beginning to panic

[ashamedtramp]

ive used the injections very successfully for just over a year now, and am really happy with the results, but at christmas it was time to stop. my BMI was at 27, i was looking great and feeling great.

so i stopped.. and although i have not piled masses of weight back on, probs a couple of poounds, i'm panicing because my eating is now totally out of control and i don't want to be back there again.

i've now ordered another pen! i had to send photos in this time round, must be a new thing since i did them last year.

and now i wait for the answer.. what do i do if i can't have another prescription? am i destined to just get fat again? how do i curb these ridiculous binge eating sessions?

i really wish now, believe it or not, that i hadn't started the things in the first place, because i have been given happiness for the first time in years about my weight, and to attain it, im stuck (if i can get them) these injections.

anyone come off them successfully?

there is some mention that people using these injections have 'ozempic faces' perhaps this is what the comment was meant to mean, as in their face has never altered?

Sorry I saw you reply to a Mounjaro comment and since it was the only drug specific one I assumed (wrongly).

not to worry. i believe mounjaro is cheaper than wegovy but i am sure someone will come on here and tell me i am wrong!

i'm a lot calmer today and may have panicked too early!!

My hunger came roaring back after stopping mj op. I did find this faded over time. I made the mistake of stopping the injections right before a big family and foodie holiday.

Despite all that. Even though I did regain some weight it's back under control now. I'm using keto for it's appetite suppression and did find that there were some permanent changes following taking the drug.

Firstly, although I do have food noise again, I seem to have an accompanying 'nah you don't really want that' voice which I recognise from taking mj (being physically hungry but not really fancying anything in particular).

Taking mj made me realise how much I actually gave to eat to effectively lose weight. It's about one (healthy) meal and a snack (starter portion) a day. Two meals is maintenance. Any more is weight gain slowly over time. So now I eat every other meal (breakfast and dinner one day, just lunch the next) but generally waiting until I'm quite hungry as I feel I really enjoy my food then.

Exactly but I said ‘slim’ as I think the term ‘Ozempic face’ could be derogatory.

I don’t know if you can stay on a weight loss drug forever but if not, or if it stops working, you may find it easier to stay motivated now that you’ve experienced yourself as thinner and healthier.

I find health is a fantastic motivator. I’m not on a weight loss drug myself but I keep an eye on my weight.

Out of all the different motivations I’ve tried health has been the one that has kept me going.

I wish you all the best. I’m sure it hasn’t been easy.

I do not believe that there is a happy end game for many people taking these weight loss jabs. Either take them for life or put the weight back on soon after stopping. The people who keep the weight off after going cold turkey on the jabs will be few and far between.

In a couple of years time I can see it now 'Been mis-sold weight loss jabs? You could be entitled to compensation.."

Thanks for that contribution @Lassango. Since GLP1 medications are being investigated for a whole range of additional health benefits after demonstrating a positive impact, let's hope you're wrong!

(Including but not limited to - cardiovascular conditions, kidney conditions, Alzheimer's, sleep apnea, polycystic overy syndrome, depression, NAFLD and substance use disorders.)

I wonder if eventually they'll be available to those with cardiovascular disease or other issues that are a healthy weight? Although if a tablet with no side effects (in my case) is working then why switch to something that often has significant unpleasant side effects. At the moment it seems like a magical cure-all. It would be tempting to take these drugs to control high blood pressure (mine's genetic sadly), silence food noise, treat ADHD, and have the benefit of losing a few pounds while I'm at it. Or will it still only be available to those who are overweight? It's an interesting area of research currently and I don't recall any other drugs over the years attracting so much attention for what else they can do other than their original purpose. Cost is prohibitive at the moment but if it can be used for all sorts then it could end up much, much cheaper.

Well done for maintaining since Christmas. I have had two breaks from WLIs and the hunger has been high and I gained quickly both times. I am relieved to hear that you didn’t have to go back up to a BMI over 30 before you were allowed another prescription. No point in encouraging yo yo ing for people who try but struggle with maintenance off the medication.

I do think it is our physiology that drives out appetite and weight loss or gain. There is only so much that willpower can do.

Also what happened in the 80s? Did we all lose our willpower in some western world wide hypnotic trance or did the environment change? I think it was the latter and we are living with the consequences of that. It is really hard to consistently block out all the widely available, cheap, tempting and convenient unhealthy food out there.

Sorry your post has generated such a lot of bad temper! As someone mentioned, there are several threads about maintenance. Provided you have evidence of having taken MJ for some time, it is surely worth having a conversation with one of the suppliers (Oushk or Cloud Pharmacy, for example), about your options.

thank you, and its fine, sadly i was expecting differing views about the injections, i take what people say with a pinch of salt, give it a couple of years and they will have moved on to the next thing anyway.

Eating less does not make you lose weight....?

So do you want to explain how these weight loss jabs work then?

Just eat less? So we have also solutions for alcoholism, gambling and other additions. Drink less! Gamble only occasionally. Easy.

to be fair, any hardened dieter will be able to tell you that eating too few calories can cause your weight loss to stall or stop.

how the weight loss jabs work for me are; they take away the 'food noise'. i don't spend all day, every day thinking about food.. what shall i have for breakfast, what shall i have for lunch or dinner? i don't spend all day obsessing over the healthiest options for me, worrying about how many calories are in this, that and the other.

i am an emotional eater, i eat when i am stressed, i eat when i have anxiety, its a trauma response, and no amount of anti-depressants or theraphy have been able to take that away from me, but the WLI injecttion, for some reason does. I did hope i could stop them, but it seems for me, i am on them for life.

the annoying thing is, i could go to my GP and they would happily prescribe anti-depressants too me by the bucket full, all day, everyday without batting an eye lid at the cost, yet, these injections do exactly what all these anti-depresants have not been able to do, yet i have to pay for them.

and still people are angry that i use them! i work hard to earn the money to be able to afford these things, and still people treat you like goodness knows what because i take them, instead of saying 'good for you' and 'well done'.

i cannot speak for everyone else, but for me, i still have to count my calories, i still have to weigh and measure my food, i still have to have food diaries and meal plans. I still have to exercise, i still put all the work in!

indeed.. you are correct!

people have gambling addictions for a reason, people have problems with alcohol and drugs for a reason. i'm sure a smoker would love to just quit one day! and hey presto never pick up another cigarette.

you do know that alcoholics are given drugs to stop them drinking don't you? druggies are given meds to stop them taking the drugs. yet someone with a weight problem isn't allowed to take anything to help them...

to be fair, any hardened dieter will be able to tell you that eating too few calories can cause your weight loss to stall or stop

pretty much every single person on these drugs is a hardened dieter. And it is physically impossible for weight loss to stop because you’re eating too little.

try to think logically about that. And see how humanly impossible it is,

Yes of course eat less is the answer. The problem is doing it and maintaining the motivation when you are fighting your body’s survival instincts. The drugs make this possible.

you do know that alcoholics are given drugs to stop them drinking don't you? druggies are given meds to stop them taking the drugs. yet someone with a weight problem isn't allowed to take anything to help them...

Sorry, I think my comment might have read wrong. That's what I wanted to say, that nobody would tell an alcoholic to just drink less. But it's totally fine to tell someone with obesity to just eat less, like people struggling with their weight have never thought of that before.

pretty much every single person on these drugs is a hardened dieter. And it is physically impossible for weight loss to stop because you’re eating too little.

It's not impossible at all, your metabolism is really flexible and is affected by many factors, like how much fat you have on board and how much you eat.

ah yes, apologies... i think i'm getting a bit frustrated with the 'its simple, don't eat as much' comments.. if it were that simple there would not be an obesity problem all over the world!

you are right, there are a multitude of conditions where healthy eating would really be a benefit. i think most of the people who are turning too these injections really are at the end of their tether with it.

obviously as with anything, there will be those who abuse it, this will always be the case but what can you do.

spoken like a person who has never had to lose weight in their lives.. i suppose if you were to under eat for weeks and weeks and weeks, then eventually something would have to give.. and luckily we don't live in the type of conditions or countries where this is a real issue. but i will argue with you that eating too few calories can and will slow down and even stop your weight loss.

Finally somebody is honest about it.

Eating less IS the answer. Where most people fall down is having the willpower to achieve it.

i can only assume by responses now that people assume that these injections make it impossible to over eat!

i still have to stick to a calorie deficit! it IS possible to eat ecessaive calories while taking this medication!

for me, as i've said, it helps deal with the cravings, helps to somehow trick my brain into not constantly thinking about food. I guess if you have never had to worry about where or when your next meal is coming, you have no concept of being 'starving hungry' and that the childhood trauma you suffered means your brain is terrified that it will have to suffer that again!

try to bear in mind, there is usually a reason why people overeat.. we are not just greedy fat piggies

for me, and i can only speak for me, it takes away the hunger my brain is telling me i have. (i call it food noise). as a child, i was abused, starved and forced to eat food that was days old! (think being made to sit at a table with the same plate of food for several meals until it had all gone) or being in such poverty that parents spent their money on booze and fags rather than a decent meal for the kids. I'm talking 50 years ago! when i was finally removed from that situation i vowed i would never be hungry again!! that kind of rubbish sticks in your head. the rational part of my brain knows I'm an adult, i am able to feed myself, the irrational side simply won't let that trauma go!

the injection for me.. stops all that! so i still exercise, and i still calorie count and it just allows me a bit of a boost to my will power to do it!