Can weight loss injections help short term before continuing alone?

[Pompelly]

I'll start off by saying I have alot of weight to shift - around 130lbs to take me into the middle of a normal BMI.
I know this isn't going to happen overnight - I lost around 4 stone last year and have put almost half of that back on.

Affording WLI will be really difficult, and I'm not sure it's something I can manage long term. No chance of getting it on prescription here. Is it possible to use for around 6 months or so and then go it alone? I think my problem is that I lose some weight but still feel and look extremely obese and I give up - I think keeping it off would be easier for me than losing it.

I have started running and I feel like I'd be rewarded with better progress if I was much lighter which would also help with my motivation.

Would appreciate your thoughts- I know there are lots of stories about people who have piled it all on after stopping, is that the case for everyone?

No the evidence tells us it’s very unlikely. You might find it works for you on the lower doses, so isn’t too expensive, but in all honesty you need to think about being on it for the longer term. Obesity is a chronic disease and the jabs are a treatment not a cure.

I did this , used it as a boost to get started but never intended to continue
Lost 1.5 stone and then went back to Slimming world and continued until I got to target , lost 4 stone in total and now at goal weight
Learned new habits , healthy choices and kept motivated with small losses every week
I’d recommend it as long as you can afford it and shop around for deals

Ok you can lose weight really easily on wli,and if you change your mindset and what you eat,and how you exercise it's likely you'll keep it off.
If however you eat shit,use wli to still eat shit, but less of it, don't exercise and carry on when you stop you'll fail.
I used them they're brilliant and I would still keep on them but I can't afford it so have come off having completely changed how I eat, I do do 16/8 And it's brilliant keeps the weight off

The four people I know that bought WLI all put the weight back on once they stopped them.

In my experience no - I’m on mounjaro- wonderful love it wish it was released to more people earlier - I would have had a much happier 20s and 30s

However, I had to go off for two months and put the weight I lost plus more on as my head new that hey I could just lose it again with WLI. It’s not fixing the root of why we over eat - just stopped the noise.

I think it’s a bargain really as I’m eating less and I feel better and I’ve only lost 4 kilos in two months but I feel better not stuffing my face - no guilt, no shame no beating myself up no midnight eating

I have actually triggered a latent eating disorder,so easy to get them I've lost about three stone more than I needed to,and the pharmacy kept supplying, I am 6 and half stone and 5ft 4,yesterday I went to get another pen knowing it's not a good and they would have supplied it despite me being 6 and a half stone, obviously I lied but they don't care,be careful.

Are you ok? Your previous post said they were great but you've stopped taking them, and now you're saying you're quite severely underweight because of them but continuing to use. Which is it?

I'm sorry of you're having a difficult time but I don't see how your situation is comparable - I am very overweight at 12 stone heavier than you.

@Pompelly obviously I'm not ok, my eating disorder tells me it's brilliant I've lost weight and can keep losing at a severe underweight,a rational mind would say no. If you lose weight on mounjaro and you don't have an eating disorder,you can keep it off if you change your mindset, but if you carry on as you were you'll put it back on and more.

If money is an issue, going by my past experiences of yo-yo dieting with a lot to lose, I’d be tempted to try do it the other way around. Try to do yourself for the first few stone (I always managed 3-5st loss) before yo-yoing back up. Save money while doing this so you can get as long on WLI as possible when you do start, then introduce them when you feel you can’t go it alone anymore.

It would give you a faster start, but you would need to change your habits massively and rein yourself in if you felt it going back on. And if you struggled last time and ended up putting back on it would be the same this tome, possibly even worse if the sudden increase in food noise throws you even more when you stop.

If you lie to them then that's on you.

I spent many years bulimic and one of the things I was worried about was being too happy about the weight loss.
Actually I have decided to go to a maintenance dose while I'm still a size 12, as I don't think it would be good for me mentally to get too small.

@Branleuse if course it's on me,fuckinell, I didn't actually get the pen ,but I COULD HAVE, that's my point, the prescribers don't give a shit who gets it as long as they're getting their money,glad you've got your ed under control, some of us aren't so perfect.

Well done for not getting the pen @Mezzalola

I'd do it the other way... try yourself first while saving as much as you can, then when you can't do it alone try the wli. Its a treatment for obesity so once you stop, the benefits of it stop. Regain is pretty inevitable but their are outliers who can maintain without wli.

Who the hell is prescribing you?

She’s already tried it, it’s in her op. In fact I’d assume she’s tried it many many times,

Op. This is very individualistic. Some people can come off and maintain, some can’t, only you know you.

id be honest with you and say if you’re thay over weight it is a low chance of being able to do it alone. Howver this doesn’t mean you should simply give up and not try, because this is about health. So yes, try them. Give it everything you’ve got.

@Wickedlittledancer thanks - you are right. I have been trying to lose weight for a very long time. 5 stone lighter in my early twenties is when I first joined WWs and now here I am.

I do think if I could drop a chunk of weight quickly to begin with it would help my motivation and also make it much easier to exercise. I believe if I got to a place where I could see and feel a real difference then I wouldn't fall off the wagon as easily.

@Pompelly It's worth a try if you can afford it.

It's true that as soon as you stop, your appetite will return with a vengeance and you'll have to manage that.

But, losing some of the weight can really give you the motivation to continue.

Obviously you do have to be really committed and intentional about maintaining the loss, but I found once I'd lose a decent amount I was so determined not to go back, that was enough motivation. I'd never managed to get to that point on my own. Being less overweight makes everything so much easier.

I think I would be inclined to go for it. After a few months, if you can come off and continue to lose weight, great, but if you struggle there may be other cheaper options by then that you could consider. And you sound like me, in terms of needing an initial boost for motivation. I have stayed on the lowest dose the whole time (9 months). I no longer felt any supression from the jabs on this low dose after two or three months, but yes, the motivation from my success up to that point carried me forward. And being more comfortable exercising definitely helps too.

Good luck!

It would be so much better if people could have joined up healthcare and face to face appointments and to not have to get it privately.

I'm sorry that I probably came across as really flippant to your issue because I do think it's an important issue.
The reason I reacted like that is because I think we've had a lot of negativity put on to the medication, when really I think it's about how shit it is that everything is all privatised and disjointed.
That's MUCH more open to abuse than having support from a GP that knows you. Online pharmacies may give support if you seek it out, but they won't know about the rest of your health and of course people will lie to get prescribed all sorts of things with sometimes very few checks.

I hope you manage to develop a healthier body image and self worth and I hope you continue to stay strong about things that might mess with your recovery. It can be done!

For me, mj has been really useful because various health issues have contributed to me gaining weight to the extent It created various other issues which were affecting my quality of life.

I am actually tapering down my mj to maintenance dose now I'm at a healthy normal bmi rather than being skinny, because I just don't want to feel that way of being obsessive. I know what I can be like and I try and actively avoid going into that mindset and I talk about it if I do notice it.

May I ask what by you keep taking the low dose if you don’t have any suppression?
I haven’t had much/any suppression over the last 8 months of my journey and have gone up to 15mg. I’m coming off it after this last pen and hope to do the last 20lbs alone. The progress so far is great and as you say, spurring me on. I’m enjoying exercise now I’m not lugging 3 stones around!

@Branleuse i also think that it would be good if the jabs could be delivered face to face with more guidance and assessment along the way.

I think a lot depends on your weight history. For people who have struggled with their weight since childhood, have never really been a healthy weight, etc. then it’s likely that WLIs may need to be a lifelong medication for them.

I was a healthy weight my entire life until two pregnancies and external stressors that led to me gaining weight. I lost 5.5 stone on WLIs, came off a year ago and have maintained fine. I’m a heavy exerciser now too.

When I spoke to the prescriber about coming off, she echoed the thoughts above: that as I had spent much of my life at a healthy weight, it was more likely I would adjust to being off WLIs, which has been the case.

DH on the other hand has always struggled with his weight and I think coming off for him will be a much more gradual and perhaps not linear process.

Well done, You've done brilliantly, and best of luck with the last leg! With the exercise and motivation, I'm sure you'll do really well and reach your goal.

I stayed on a low dose because despite no longer feeling any supression, the process is still working and I'm still losing weight. The meds continue to work on our hormones/ insulin sensitivity etc in the background, even while we may not feel any appetite supression as such, supporting our bodies to burn fat efficiently. I also wanted to stay on a low dose to make it easier for me to come off when I'm ready. I have felt that I can manage ok without the appetite supression, as the success so far has motivated me no end!