November ‘24 Starters Thread 8 - The one where we hop into Spring and thinks about new swimwear👙

[Mounjaropen]

Link to previous thread here

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight-loss-injections/5268809-november-24-starters-thread-7-the-one-where-we-might-need-smaller-smalls?page=40&reply=142476529

Welcome to thread 8 to MN weight loss friends old and new!
Feel free to lurk or post, absolutely no judgement here, just support and encouragement as we Spring forward into a new season...and consider new swimwear and Summer Wardrobes ❤️

I’m on W17 D3 and on my fourth 5mg pen
F in my early 50’s
H 5’ 5.5”
SW 13st 11lb
CW 11st 6.4 lb
GW 10st (maybe 9st 7lb if I don’t look like a melted candle)
Total loss so far 32.6lbs

Recommend the Shotsy app to monitor MJ in the system and pleasing graphs to look at…plus the MeThreeSixty body scan app to monitor inch loss for the weeks where weight loss is slow but you might have lost body fat etc. Both are free.
Feel free to swap recipes that might inspire anyone in a food rut, tips for side effects, exercise tips, tips for titrating up or down and we love a beauty/ style chat too 🥰

Goodness! They sound heavenly 🥰

12.5mg started Monday - no symptoms at all. Just thought that might reassure others as I was nervous when I did have symptoms on lower doses.

@MounjaropenThat’s a really good point about the incline walk, and it maps perfectly onto my (very new, very tactical) learnings about plantar fasciitis - apparently all the last-ditch surgical solutions involve trying to loosen the calf muscles, so incline walking/stretching/rolling all make sense.

I have a normal fitness band for calf stretching, and a eco dryer ball (don’t laugh!) that I’ve been rolling under the arch of my foot. It’s not very comfy - it’s designed to be one of two that knock around in the dryer and soften towels in a skin-friendly way - but it’s a bit spiky and seems to be helping.

It’s glorious out there today, isn’t it? I will need to get out for a walk & podcast at lunch and maybe a little dryer ball roll after.

morning all. I’ve lost 1.5lbs this week which has taken my BMI to 25. Just a nudge more to get to 24.9 and a healthy weight. Loss is just under 25lbs with just over 3lbs to my initial target. I still haven’t decided on whether to aim lower or stick. Looking old and gaunt is a concern.

NSV this week has been seeing my waist measurement finally go down an inch. This is now a healthy waist measurement - hurrah!

I did my first outdoor run in ages and actually quite enjoyed it. Did 30 mins but I could have carried on to do a 5k. So hoping to get out again this week to tick that milestone. I also have PF but actually it hasn’t flared up yet after the run. I did have my orthotics in. Swimming tonight but I’ve not made the gym at all this week. My gym buddy is all about classes but I want to focus on my sets so I’m going to have to brave going alone I think.

some fabulous losses and NSVs on this lovely and supportive thread. I def support going up a dose when losses are stalling. 7.5mg really kickstarted things for me.

I noted from the article the woman was putting vaginal oestrogen cream on her face for ozempic face. I’ve read about people doing this before. I have a whole stash of it but not sure I’m brave enough!

Well done on the loss and the run!. I wondered also about the oestrogen cream - surely if you are taking it already you are just doubling the dose?

Dryer balls are ideal I reckon. Enjoy the walk!

I just learned about some of the uses for vaginal oestrogen cream last week. I didn’t know that menopause can cause some of your lady parts to atrophy / disappear 🫠

I’ve been umming and aahing about giving serious consideration to HRT (3 years ago I was heavily pregnant etc) and I don’t want to give my fibroids any more ‘nourishment’ (they grew loads when I was pregnant) but it’s also rather scary learning about the effects of menopause.

I was 14.0 this morning! 🎉

Total loss 2 stone 7lbs (35 guinea pigs 🐹)
1st GW 14.0 Woohoo
2nd GW 12 stone 7
TW 11 stone (if I get there I may adjust to 10 stone 7)

On our way to MIL’s house (LONG journey). Last time I saw her I was more than 2 stone heavier than I am now. She’s criticised me a lot in the past for my weight (too fat for her son etc). Relationship better now but 🤦‍♀️

Enjoy the sun wherever you are!

I am very lucky with my skin. Things have sprung back OK around my belly, although it crinkles a bit more than it used to when I bend over etc. Not complaining.

Face wise, all OK - I am claiming 'more chiselled' (😂) as the weight has come off. I definitely should moisturise more though.

When I was in my 20s and 30s, I always felt I wasn't taken really seriously at work etc. - I was really baby-faced and it used to bug the hell out of me. I also suffered with acne well into adulthood but fixed that with a course of roaccutane in the lead up to my wedding. I grew a beard in my 40s (as DCs arrived), to make me look more grown up 🙄. I am enjoying the benefits now though - although wrinkles are appearing, and the weight loss has exacerbated things, I have nothing to worry or complain about.

DW has also lost a good chunk of weight whilst I have been on MJ and is very focussed on her skin. I think she looks amazing but she is exploring more options than she used to for improving things. Her main issue is fighting the effect of her 2 C-Sections (a brutal 'classical' on the 2nd - I nearly feinted) and getting some tone back in that region.

@Goldleafcatsadly I know all about those effects of menopause. I got my estradiol cream prescribed at the same time I got on my oestrogen gel. @Mounjaropenthe vaginal cream is topical and a very low dose of oestrogen so can be used separately and in conjunction with regular HRT. I’m still not sure about putting it on my face though!!

Congratulations on the loss! Hope the MIL doesn’t piss on your chips!

HRT is a personal choice. I wish I’d started it years earlier than I did (so in my mid 40’s). I grew up in a household where my mother was self-congratulatory about never having taken HRT but frankly it was the breakdown of her relationship with my father and also myself put simply she was an absolute nightmare to live with. She boasted about not having taken HRT right up to her death. It was nothing to be proud of…It was at the point of which DH took me to one side and said I was becoming very difficult to live with that cemented my phone call to the GP. I never wanted to put my family through what I had been through. My friend was also a bit resistant to go on HRT (I don’t think she wanted to acknowledge her age) but a fall revealed that she had the precursor to osteoporosis and went on it pretty sharpish after that. I would advise doing your research (Dr Louise Newsom has a very informative app called Balance) and decide what it is you want to achieve from taking HRT. Not everybody suffers from vagina atrophy., I didn’t but several close friends did. It really is the luck of the menopause draw!

Safe travels.

Thanks for that. I’ll give anything a go once 😂

Well that has certainly confirmed my decision to come back as a man in the next life 🤣

You do sound lovely and supportive. Your DW sounds like a lucky girl!

I saw the 'grew beard in my 40s' bit of your post first and thought, ah perimenopause is a bitch, how relatable 😂

I’ve just ordered vegan collagen as it popped up on my FB feed as winning Marie Claire’s best collagen product. And it’s a lot cheaper than Feel which is the other vegan option I was considering. I’m happy to spend £18 to see if there are any benefits. Feel ends up at £56 a month!! It’s this one https://positivesciencepeople.uk/products/collavegan

This is why I’m investing in IPL this month. I can cope with the legs, bikini and armpits but the beard needs to be gone! It’s so bloody expensive though.

I've got an old Lumea that's put in some sterling work reducing a fucking goatee down to just an averagely depressing number of witchy hairs.
It's a close run thing between the full on beard and the flooding, which has been the more fun bit of peri that no-one warns you about.

the Zoe podcast re menopause presented strong arguments for early starts on HRT. I will do more research but I’m in strong favour and note my mother didn’t take it-was miserable for years.

SW 91.4
CW 70.4
GW 68

and NSV of the week I can get my wedding ring off!!

Goodness - you are tantalisingly close to your GW! How fab 🥰

I have dermaplaning every month. Does the job, make up sits better and is cheap with the woman I go to. Keeps the whiskers at bay!

Oh you poor thing. I didn’t have the flooding but many friends have.

@Cantbesure I remember when I was pregnant, either 16 or 19 years ago, I went to get Preparation H for piles. The lady at the counter asked me loudly if I was going to use it on my face 😮 I pointed to my enormous belly and was like, no. I am not. Apparently that’s a thing though.

I bought a Philips Lumea a good few years ago and it is brilliant. I think people think I’m on commission with them 😆 I don’t really shave my legs at all. Smooth armpits. It’s fab. I would thoroughly recommend. I’m now up to £640 in medexpress referrals in 11 days now 😮 surely a glitch. Don’t get it. Haven’t shared my code for months.

Omg. You’ll not need to pay for about the next 5 treatments! 🙌

For anyone interested there was a documentary tonight on itv about WLI with particular focus on the black market jabs which at their worst are just insulin 😱.

There are some really stupid people about….probably the same ones who were convinced that there were microchips in the covid vaccines or wouldn’t have them because ‘they didn’t know what was in it’ but happy to get cheap Botox and now cheap ‘skinny jabs’. No research. No sense. The mind boggles really…but they walk amongst us.

I stepped on the scale today and saw a 9 for the first time! Not expecting it to stay for long (I always seem to go back up), but it is also the 2 1/2 stone mark. And although I go up after my high-suppression lows, it does go back down. It does feel incredibly good to hit those 9s and gives me hope.

On the topic of HRT, I am confused about whether or not I should be considering it. I was told many years ago by a gynaecologist that I wouldn’t be able to take it (I was telling her about an utter emotional nightmare I had with a type of mini pill). I’m in perimenopause but my only really significant symptom has been weight gain. I am 51, but still have fairly regular periods. I haven’t bothered with it because I haven’t had the more challenging emotional or physical symptoms. Were any of you recommend HRT in those circumstances? I get the impression that the positive impact outweighs the potential negatives.

Well done on reaching the 9’s! 👏👏👏

In terms of HRT, I’d do your research then chat to your GP to review your options. I had mood swings, low mood, anger and insomnia. I also had hair loss, joint pain, fatigue plus the weight gain. My periods just tailed off and then stopped. I didn’t have sweats. Everyone is different but my mother ended up with osteoporosis and dementia so for me avoiding those two issues were the deciding factors.