Oh dear - I think I've injected too much

[Givingitago99]

Hello
I've been taken mounjaro for a few months and loving it. I've stayed on a 2.5mg dose the whole time. No plans to increase.

I learnt about the extra dose at the end of the pen. I have been buying 5mg pens and just doing 30 clicks instead of 60 on the dial so getting about 8 or 9 doses from 5mg pen.

I bought insulin syringes to extract the last does. I googled and it said 1ml was 1mg. I drew out what I could from the last of the pen and it was 1ml so I just thought I'd have less this week and see how I get on. I think now I should have only taken 0.3ml!!

Has anyone accidentally taken more than they should? I feel okay at the moment but it was only a couple of hours ago.

This is my first post but I've found all the threads really helpful. Thank you.

And this is exactly why people shouldn't be injecting themselves without knowing what they're doing!

You're right!

0.6ml in volume is a full dose on any pen. The dosage strength depends on the strength of the pen. On a 5mg pen, 0.6ml is obviously 5mg so 1ml would be a dose of 8.33mg. A big jump up from 2.5mg!

A quick google isn't sufficient to check what you're injecting if you are going to be using a syringe and drawing out medication yourself. You need to understand the volume and strength, and what a normal dose is in ml, and then understand the maths to calculate your dose. Then double check it, and take some time to sense check before you inject anything.

I have seen a couple of other people post on here that they have made similar mistakes or even injected themselves twice, and using the wrong strength pen by mistake. You will likely be ok, but you may experience gastric side effects and very high suppression. It will take a fair while for the levels in your system to drop back to the levels they were when you were taking 2.5mg.

That’s a huge amount op to take. I think try to keep hydrated, let someone close know, ensure you eat and take it easy over the next 5 days.

The pens are only supposed to be used for 30 days before discarding. I accept one extra dose out a pen might be okay ( i don't do it but i know many do) but keeping a pen going twice as long seems irresponsible. I wouldn't take those chances with my health and you have now discovered that errors can be made . I do hope you are okay and hope you don't suffer too many side effects but i would urge you to use the medication as it is supposed to be used.

Wow..

Please come back and let us know how you feel, you may be in for a tough time!!! .

Oh my, I just realised you’re also using it once it’s expired and well past the 30 days. How reckless.

It is likely you will have unpleasant side effects. It would be worth speaking to your provider, tell them what you have done and ask them what you need to look out for and what service you should use if you hit serious problems out of hours (111, A&E etc)

Good luck.

Sounds like you've taken about 8.5mg. Which of course is too much but shouldn't cause serious harm, however be prepared for side effects. You may be lucky - you may not.

OP you know this - you should NOT be taking so many doses from one pen. Don't risk your health for the sake of some money. I take 5 doses from a pen, using a syringe for the final dose, but that's within the 30 day guidelines. Just use 2.5mg pens in future. And if you are using a syringe, please work it out correctly. Ask on here if you aren't sure. The maths can be confusing.

Good lord. Please contact your provider/pharmacist/GP assp.

Thanks everyone. Lesson learnt!

I feel fine so far (although I can't say I want to eat a thing, although of course I'll be sure I consume healthy meals).

I contacted the provider and said I might have clicked too much (I didn't say about the golden dose), and they have just replied said as some of you have said, to be mindful of symptoms etc but as I've had no side effects from a few months of use I shouldn't be overly worried about a jump in dose. They've told me to report any unusual symptoms and of course seek medical help if needed. I think I'll skip next week and I'm due to reorder so I'll get a 2.5mg pen and take it from there.

Look it's a big step up, but lots of people are taking more than that every week. I don't think you will be hungry for a few days though! Why would you rush off to a pharmacist? There's nothing to be done. If you start to feel really ill, call 111, but unless you have symptoms they won't be interested.

Op, you didn’t click too much, that’s not even possible if taken correctly. You took 3 times what you were supposed to, of expired medicine,

So you weren't honest with your provider. How can they advise you if they don't know the full story?!

Why do people think it is ok to fuck about with this medication

they wouldn’t do it with any other medication so why this one?

it has single dosage constraints built into the mechanism but people think they are somehow beating the system by shoving a needle into the chamber

i bet they don’t mention this shit when they end up in a&e dehydrated because of the v&d

no wonder everywhere you look constraints on purchasing it are being discussed, pity stupidity isn’t a reason to exclude you

How are you managing to order if your pens are lasting 8/9 weeks
?

Surely they are not supplying you 5mg pens if your order gap is so big?

I told them how much.

I've been with the same provider from the start, 4th order and they seem to do so. I send in my weight and new photo each time.

Are you ordering at 4 week intervals and building up stockpile or at 8 week intervals though? Or somewhere inbetween?

Yes I hear you. As I say, 2.5mg on order for next time.

Thankfully no V&D so far, and I feel fine but I'll keep a close check on myself.

Insulin syringes do not measure in ml-they measure in ‘units’, and should only ever be used for insulin. Please please don’t ever be tempted to do this again for all the reasons already mentioned by other posters and for this reason too. I think you need to speak to a pharmacist and be upfront about what’s happened for your safety,but also hopefully they can give you some reassurances and possible side effects to watch out for. Best of luck to you OP.

Make sure you drink at least 2-3 litres of water a day. If your suppression is really high then get calories in via the higher calorie protein shakes.
The free soul powder is good, you can add fruit to it and blend.

about every 8 weeks or so I've requested a new pen

If you got 1ml out of the pen at the end it means you haven't even been priming the needle properly which means you've been taking less than 2.5mg each week.

Your provider should not be supplying you with 5mg when on paper you are having more than a 2-week gap between ordering your new pen. You're supposed to start on 2.5mg again. What's the purpose of skipping next week's dose? Taking double the dose doesn't mean it stays in your system twice as long. You'll just cause yourself more problems.

It's this crap that has people frothing about "the dangers" of weight loss injections and crying for stronger regulations.

They don't expire 30 days after penning, that caution is just over hygiene of repeated opening and closing.