Scared newbie , please can you answer my questions

[Alsjsoefi936392]

I am very fat! Ive tried every diet , cant maintain it. I binge eat when im stressed/sad. And I have mobility issues which stops me from exercising/keeps me quite sedentary. This is last chance saloon. Im 21 stones now and 5ft 4inch meaning my bmi has hit 50 which terrifies me . I am so scared to try mounjaro incase it makes me vomit . Ive also ended up in a & e before when doing a low calorie diet, pack of electrolytes had caused tachycardia and chest pain/Palpitations and had to be admitted on potassium drips etc . I want to avoid this at all costs.

1. Obviously you start on 2.5mg but can I stay on that dose? Im scared to go higher after hearing about the side effects
2. What vitamins should I take alongside mounjaro? I already have some electrolyte tablets and take folic acid as suffer from cramps

3.i hear people talk about different foods triggering vomiting/pain. Obviously I dont know what foods until I try but I am a very fussy eater. Partly why im fat as I hate healthy stuff, veg ,fish ,pulses etc. I eat very carbon heavy, think uk pub menu. If I eat smaller portions of what I currently eat to start off with will I still get weight loss?

I know i need to work on my relationship with food but that will take time.

Hi, there's a lot to unpack in your post,
1,mj is far and away the most excellent tool for losing weight.
However you say you are scared of vomiting, hmm, the diet you say you eat I'm presuming is full of fatty carby food, I mean I can't say for sure if it will make you feel ill eating that on mj but a year and a half on and anecdotal evidence and my own tells me even eating a lower volume of this type of food will make you feel ill at best, almost guaranteed a vomiting session.
You can stay on 2.5 of course, depends on how you respond as to whether it would do you any good.
In short I would say unfortunately unless you change your diet alongside the mounjaro you're unlikely to see success, sorry, coupled with the fear of vomiting I'm not sure it's for you. Nausea is pretty much guaranteed even on a clean diet, and yes it's a good idea to drink electrolytes and take supplements if you go ahead.
I've been very successful on mj, and my diet is protein rich, lots of chicken, fish, eggs, tofu, fruit and nuts yogurt, dark chocolate, protein mousse for treats.Gallons of water.
Good luck if you do decide to go ahead.
You may find your previous diet is no longer attractive to you once you start, lots of people do find this, they go off 'crap' and crave cleaner foods.

The trouble with reading people's experiences on social media is they tend to be the bad ones. Most people tend not to post if things are going well. There are some very good posts on Reddit which are worth a read.

I've been on MJ for six months and not vomited once. I can eat anything I want and I don't take any supplements. I do however eat healthy foods and have cut out snacking altogether.

I was on 2.5 mg for 11 weeks, 3.33 mg for 11 weeks and only recently moved to 5 mg. Unfortunately you won't know until you try if the lower doses would work for you. Some people need to go higher and there's no shame in that.

My suggestion would be try MJ and see how you go. Good luck.

Yes i dont mean I want to eat that way permanently. I mean I have a very severe relationship with food that has developed over 40 years. As other diets ive tried, I cant just break that habit overnight. I have seen lots of people who talk about mj who say its perfect for people like me as it will quieten the food noise and will enable me to change my relationship with food which is what I need.
If you are able to drastically change your diet from day one successfully then surely you would lose weight without mj? I would think mj is perfect for someone like me

Common side effects happen to about 1 in 10 people, and include nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, constipation. It slows your digestion which can mean stomach upsets. But it tends to settle and then not re-occur on a stable dose level.

Higher doses don't mean inevitable side effects. I was fine on 2.5mg, had some stomach upset on 5mg, again to a lesser degree on 7.5mg and then nothing at all since, and I have been on 7.5mg then 10mg for many months now.

My BMI was 50 when I started too. That was 18 months ago and my BMI is now 25. You just need to decide what is the worst of the two situations, remain at BMI 50 or higher, or try Mounjaro and risk the possibility of some stomach upset.

me and dh have been on Mounjaro for a year and although we started on 2.5 we have only increased to 5 which we remain on now. Richer foods are now a bit of a turn off but we have continued to eat pretty much what we did before we are just better at controlling our portions now. It’s been the best thing we have ever done and he has gone from 20 stone to just over 12 and I’ve gone from nearly 13 stone to 8 1/2. We eat lots of fruit but do have a multivitamin drink when we remember. We have not had any ill effects, only positive ones.

I’ve been on MJ for 10 months & have lost nearly 4 stone. In that time I’ve felt mildly nauseous but have never been sick.

I also would have happily lived on carbs but within a week of starting I was craving fruit & salad, anything wet & juicy, I realise now that I really needed to drink more.

It’s the best thing I’ve ever done & I feel so much freedom from negative food craving now.

Please just try it. You can stop if it doesn’t agree with you but I bet you’ll find it revolutionary. I’ve been on it for 4 months now, going very slow at low doses & using it as a crutch to change my eating habits forever. It seems to stop the craving for carby foods & sweet stuff. Along side it seek some talking therapy to confront your deep rooted issues with food though. Good luck x

I have emetophobia which meant I was terrified to start because of vomiting risk, the pen sat in my fridge untouched for ages until I was ready. I started in may and haven't felt sick once. I don't have the healthiest diet, I still eat takeaways etc and have not been sick.

Everyone's experience is different. So just be brave and go for it, you won't regret it I'm sure. I regret not starting sooner.

I lost 4 stone on 2.5, no need to move up if it's working for you.

Good luck.

I have done 15 months on 2.5mg. No side effects.

It was far too effective in the early weeks, I didn’t like the suppression it gave me. I like to be able to eat well. I have a good balance now of healthy and not so healthy and am still losing weight, albeit much more slowly now. About half a pound a week but having come down from 20 stone to 11 and a half I’m delighted to lose slowly now.

I haven’t taken a single vitamin as i get all I need from food now; unlike before when my diet was crap filled.

1. Yes, you can and should stay on the lowest dose that works for you.

2. You can ask your prescriber for advice. A multivitamin wouldn’t hurt. Do you take vitamin D in the winter? In any case, your diet is likely to improve on Mounjaro because…

3. A lot of people find their tastes changed. I was transformed overnight from someone who would always order the pie then crumble to someone who wanted the white fish followed by sorbet. So this may give you your opportunity to change what you eat. That’s a good idea, because fried or fatty foods are likely to make you feel nasty and give you smelly burps. Conversely, lean protein like chicken works with the drug to make you feel and stay full.

I have a prescriber which gives a lot of advice and coaching, which I’ve found very useful. Consider one like that?

Good luck!

You can stay on the 2.5 I’d avoid fatty food though cos it does make you feel sick

I've been on 2.5 mg for 7 weeks now and plan on staying on that dose for as long as possible. I'm losing 2-3 kg a week which is a bit too much. I still have an appetite and enjoy my meals but the drive to eat a ton of chocolate every day has completely gone. I've had some very mild nausea the day after injecting, but that's all.

This medicine is life changing. I'd definitely recommend trying it.

I was 19 stone when I started and am also a very fussy eater, ate almost exclusively carbs before MJ. I don't eat vegetables. You sound very much like me. Mounjaro hasn't magically changed my brain but it's absolutely life changing and I do believe the only way I ever could have lost the weight.

Because you're so much less hungry and the cravings completely disappear it's so much easier to make better food choices and just generally eat less. I'd say you just have to give it a go and you'll soon see whether it's going to work for you.

I was only on 2.5mg before moving up but I then stayed at 5mg for a long time. You'll know whether you need to move up or not. I'd recommend joining a thread on here for people starting at the same time as you.

I have a lot of electrolyte issues and have had drips etc - nothing to do with MJ in my case, but it's good you know to be wary of it. Take a general multivitamin but be aware that MJ can affect the absorption of tablets so they may not be as effective. Once you get into the swing of things you'll figure out ways of getting extra nutrients in through your diet, protein shakes etc.

I’m sorry to hear you’re struggling, but you’re definitely in the right mindset.

I really wish weight loss injection providers offered more behaviour change support so people could work on their relationship with food alongside the injection.

If I were you, I’d start small and focus on one, maybe two habits at a time like making sure you’re eating enough protein or staying hydrated. Trying to overhaul everything at once, or jumping straight into working out, can be overwhelming. While exercise is great for health, research shows that what we eat has a bigger impact on weight loss, and exercising too much without focusing on habits around food can sometimes make you eat more.

Have you had any side effects?

I’ve never vomited either, I’ve felt sick at the thought of food quite often - that feeling of when you’re full up and can’t manage another bite. (Even if I haven’t eaten!)
So not a nauseous feeling as such.

I think you’ll be so pleased you started it. I’ve gone off a lot of foods I once loved but haven’t limited what I’ve eaten on purpose. I still love a Chinese take away just can’t eat as much as before.

Can I ask when the best time to take it is? I’m planning to start today.

@Beechtrees19 It doesn't really matter. Choose whenever suits you. I do Friday morning, as I work from home on Friday and the kids are at school, so I have a bit of undisturbed time to myself.

The only thing I would say, is that I probably would not choose to start after having had a large meal of something fatty, carby, sugary, spicy, as Mounjaro slows your digestion down. Whatever you've eaten recently may hang around longer than you are normally used to, which can cause digestive discomfort.

A good time is whenever you have peace and quiet to read the leaflet and then figure out the first injection. It’s very simple once you’ve done it once, but you do need to follow the instructions carefully the first time.

@Beechtrees19 ,I take it before bed, and agree with others that you should take your time the first time, eat plain food and drink water so you have less chance of side effects.

My dr said the effect peaks around day 3 so take it 2 or 3 days before your weakest part of the week. Eg 2 days before the weekend or the day you go shopping. Whatever is your weak point.

I've been on it for 18 months I've felt nauseous in the early days on the day after taking it but I've never actually vomited because of it. My main side effects have been a dry mouth overnight and being cold.

I went up the doses slowly and have just gone to the highest dose in the last couple of weeks in the hope it gets me to my final target as I'm very close now. My BMI was 50.8 when I started.

I’ve been on it for 16 months and have lost 6.5 stone so far. Now losing very slowly on 15mg. My suppression was very high, even on the first doses and I’ve moved up as the food noise crept in.
I do occasionally have nausea but it’s fleeting.
I have to be careful to prevent constipation as that’s been the only real side effect.
I echo what’s been said about fried and fatty food- that is the worst for me and I have to keep up fluids as I get really thirsty.
MJ has changed my eating habits, my attitude to food, my alcohol intake as well as my health and appearance. I was terrified to start and dithered so much but it really has changed my life for the better. I feel like me again for the first time in 25 years

I was never sick. I had nausea but was not sick. I don’t take any vitamins. I ate the same as before but smaller portions as I wasn’t as hungry. I never went above 5mg.

I have an app called Shotsy which shows the estimated level in your blood and it peaks 24 hours after you inject, which fits with my experience. I jab at about 4pm on a Monday and any side effects are worst Tuesday afternoon. Suppression is strong immediately for me (by Tuesday morning) and starts to wear off after a few days - if I've got the dose right it lasts the whole week, when I need to go up a dose I start getting hungry on around day 3/4. But of course, it can affect everyone differently!

When I first started I was working Tuesday to Thursday, so would inject Thursday afternoon so I could manage any side effects over the weekend/non working days. I moved days because of Christmas and actually the Monday really suits me now, because my levels are quite low by the weekend and I can enjoy a meal out etc without worrying too much about the effects. I agree though, if your willpower is weakest at the weekend then jabbing a couple of days before might be a good idea