back again.... mounjaro this time but for how long?

[altaego]

Having lost nearly 5 stone using wegovey from Oc 2022 until just up to Christmas 2023. I admit to losely calorie counting, but i have started to exercise more now and use a PT and go to the gym maybe 3 or 4 times a week and also hitting a 10,000 step count everyday - YAY ME!

I decided to stop with the injections as i was sure I could do it all on my own! Nah. my bad.. my appetite came back with a vengance, and ontop of going on a holiday, I weighed in at a stone over my target weight last week.

I kept my injections secret last time, but this time I have decided to tell close family and friends what i am doing. I've swapped to Mounjaro this time and I am into my first week on my first injection.

My question is; I don't really want to be on these injections for the rest of my life, and know I need to make some changes now to eventually have better habits and keep the weight off. (I like food! I will be honest).

Would anyone suggest I sign up to one of these subscription services, and tie myself into a year? with the aim of one year from now being injection free? I am litterally a stone and half (21lbs) away from my ideal target?

I just want some advise, what kind of things to i need to work on apart from the obvious calorie deficit and exercise?

Is your BMI high enough to be prescribed Mounjaro?

Yes, it currently stands at 30.1. I have sent off my photos etc and I am using what i conside to be a 'reputable' source i.e the same place i was getting my wegovy from, so they have my full prescription history etc

I had a similar reaction when I came off Wegovy last year. Scared myself a bit how badly the cravings came back. Mainly for bread. But they did subside. I came off it as I wanted to change to Mounjaro and had to be off it for a month which ended up being a bit longer for various reasons. I put ten pounds back on.

Im on Mounjaro now and have lost the weight I gained back and a little more. Not lots as I was away for almost six weeks and Boots didn’t want me to increase my dose just before I went away so I will have been on 7.5 for four pens. Am about to go up to 10 next week.

I didn’t feel much effect from the 7.5 when I was away and ate and drank what I wanted but didn’t gain any weight which was a relief.

I think I may have to be on it long term but I’ll see how it goes once I reach goal. And I haven’t really decided what that is yet. At the moment I want to lose another ten pounds to get to 12 stone.

I personally don’t like the subscription model as they tend to be more expensive and less flexible.

I don’t know if I have any useful advice. I’m 9 months into using Mounjaro and my BMI is 33, so higher than yours now. I think I need to work on coping strategies for stress, boredom and frustration that don’t involve food. Those are my triggers. When you say your appetite came back, is it large portions or is it snacking and wanting carb/sugar/fatty things?

Sorry I didn’t actually answer your question! I’m not sure about the subscription services. But only you know you and if it would mean you would approach it all differently.

I think the only thing I might look as as a complement to the medication is making sure I’m eating in a way that supports the medication and a way I can continue long term. Because you will have to continue it long term. I think Weight Watchers are now doing a programme aimed at people on GLP1 meds. I get my meds from Boots and they are now offering coaching etc too.

I’m trying to make sure I’m eating enough protein and fibre. And I think what I choose to eat has changed a bit.

yes, its boots I am using. and yes Protein and fibre are good points to make!

i can't eat breads and pasta's as i am gluten intolerant, so they have never been an issue. the craving for sugar was the worst thing.

i did used to drink lots of diet pop... and i means cans and cans of the stuff, and i have now since quit and just drink water, and at a push j2o or similar.

I lost about 4 stones about 8 years ago using a combination of a low carb diet, cutting out all highly processed food and 16/8. And it's the only time in my 45 year dieting history that the weight hasn't gone back on, leaving me half a stone heavier than when I started, each time! Yes I had 4 stone more to go but that 4 stone off meant I could come off pills for blood pressure and statins and I felt well. Old eating habits have crept back in over that 8 years (I'm an emotional binge eater) but I found it easy to stick with the 16/8 and I'm wondering if it's that that's made the difference. I never feel hungry till the afternoon and never eat later than 8pm so although I was back on the carbs and highly processed foods, and often binging, maybe there is something that suits my body in limiting the number of hours insulin is active. I levelled out at 14 and a half stone... Going up a stone in the winter and dropping back down naturally in the summer. The binge eating was starting to cause me huge problems with acid reflux lately though, so it's the food noise control to stop me binge eating that's my main driver for going on Mounjaro. I'm aiming for about 10 and a half stone this time...my recommended weight. I've gone back to high fat, high protein, lower carb eating with no calorie counting at all. The only thing I keep a rough count of in my head is grammes of carbs, aiming for less than 100 g daily .....and doesn't that lack of food noise make it so much easier!! My hope is that the 16/8 habit will control weight gain when I do have to stop the injections.... they're too big a chunk out of our budget for me to afford more than 9 months treatment.We shall see! Oh and my acid reflux has totally gone and 18 lbs with it within 8 weeks of starting Mounjaro

it really is the food noise... i am an emotional eater, due to childhood trauma and adult issues.

My GP recently told me he’s recommending patients to stay on a maintenance dose of MJ for at least 18-24 months after reaching goal weight, because (he says) the latest evidence suggests that helps the habits to stick.

I hope to stay on it forever, because it makes me feel better in other ways than just weightloss. But I’ll certainly be following his advice for two years. I think I’d all too easily backslide, and I don’t want to get into a cycle of coming off and gaining and going back on.

which is all well and good but its also got a lot to do with the cost!

Yes! But it’s likely to be available on the NHS eventually and generic versions will be coming out.

ah if only.. i suspect by this time, I will not longer qualify as will hopefully be at my target and maintaining.

i suspect this drug will get cheaper and cheaper as it becomes more popular, but at the moment i'm stuck with the here and now

@shrinkingthiswinter - that’s interesting about staying on it for two years. It makes sense. The manufacturer of Ozempic and Wegovy has likened the medication to be like blood pressure meds. You would expect to be on that for life.

Obviously with the weight loss medications the big issue is cost and the fact that as yet they aren’t widely available on the NHS. I do think accessibility will change gradually and hopefully cost will come down. I’m not sure generic versions will be available too quickly as I’m sure the drug companies have ensured that they have the rights for a very long time but new medications are in development. So if there is more competition hopefully it will mean lower prices.

@altaego - I’m using Boots partly because I think they support long term usage for maintenance even though I know they are more expensive. So I’m hoping that I would be able to stay on it on a maintenance dose going forward.

The problem is that those of us who paid for our prescriptions won't be eligible for NHS injections when they're finally available. I suppose nor should we be, given the state of the NHS right now, but I don't fancy spending almost a couple of hundred pounds a month for the rest of my life. I would love a 1 mg dose maintenance for about £50 a month.