Off Script Mounjaro (start Aug 26)

[CatMonj]

A thread for all of us with a BMI below 30, with no health conditions and therefore not meeting the NHS threshold for free medication, yet still have a bit to lose to get us to a healthy BMI.

Where are we getting our scripts?

Who have the best deals at present?

Which suppliers make it easy/complicated?

What are your experiences?

Let's catch up and continue to pass on current/updated info!

Hi, first jab last Saturday.
I went with Bolt and was accepted after sending photos.
Not sure it was a great deal as saw the price list website afterwards, showing suppliers and deals.
Food noise is gone which has stopped my evening snacking. That is amazing in itself. Feeling a little bit tired, slight headache and quite cold. No other major SEs that I"ve noticed. Very thirsty for water which is also a first.
How about everyone else?
Good luck!

I’m petrified of this all so am going to a local private GP!

I’m paying £250 a month for the consultation and four weeks’ medication. She is giving me a bit of advice on healthy eating/answering questions/monitor when to go up to 5ml etc.

So it’s very expensive but until I get a bit more confident with it all I will stick with her for now.

My BMI was 29 when I started but I hav high cholesterol too, and although I’ve only been on it five weeks it’s going well so far.

I have had it before lost about two stone my bmi isn't high enough to get one but my weight doesn't match how I look. I would like to loose another stone but I'm scared now after seeing these stories online of people who have died taking them.

That’s not the threshold for free NHS prescriptions, that’s the threshold for private prescriptions.
So where indeed are you getting your medication from?

That's not the criteria for "free" mounjaro on the NHS. The criteria to qualify on the NHS is:

● BMI above 40 plus 4 out of 5 of the qualifying health conditions:
(a) Type 2 Diabetes
(b) High Blood Pressure
(c) Coronary heart disease
(d) High cholesterol
(e) sleep apnea

The criteria for private prescriptions is:
● BMI above 30 with no health conditions
● BMI above 27 for some Asian and ethnic backgrounds with a qualifying health condition

I’m maintaining at BMI of 23. I have a history of PCOS but not sure how relevant it is now. I use Swift Doctor. I didn’t start with them but moved after a couple of months. They just wanted evidence that I’d had before from someone else.

You can now get it with a bmi of 25 + . Most people here , nearly all wont be from NHS, their qualifying criteria is high..

I started MJ on 28th December with a BMI of 28. I was going to lie about my height and weight to make it 30, but Cloud Pharmacy counts perimenopause as a condition and prescribed it without any embellishment from me 🤷🏼‍♀️ I didn’t give them permission to contact my GP, as I want to keep MJ private.

They aren’t the cheapest supplier, but it’s been easy and reliable.

MJ is magic. It’s taken 8 months, but I’m down 43lbs to 9st 10lbs and my BMI is now 21.4, so it’s been a steady loss and my skin has shrunk without any sagging or stretch marks.

It’s a bit bonkers that I can stay on MJ until I get to BMI 20.4 (goal), but at the time I wouldn’t have been prescribed it below BMI 27 (I know it’s now BMI 25). That’s why I was prepared to lie if needed.

I found the jump from 2.5mg to 5mg tricky and was nauseous/sick several times. The other jumps were fine. I went up to 10mg for a few weeks (because I was trying to rush the process) and it was too high for me (vomiting again), so I reduced to 7.5mg again and it’s been fine. Everyone is different! You just won’t know how you will react personally until you’re on the journey!

Make sure you’re exercising regularly to maintain muscle mass and strength, drink lots of water and my approach has been to eat what I fancy (within reason) but much less of it.

Wishing everyone well with their weight loss journey.

I’m on week 2 from voy - bmi of 27. I didn’t need to lie or invent any health conditions at all.
so far not really any side effects except for some slight nausea at a business lunch - when I had to eat more than I needed.
really excited to finally shift the stubborn stone (or two) that I’ve been hanging on for the last 5 years!

That's the threshold in Northern Ireland via a local GP surgery/NHS. Perhaps different across the water?

Apologies, you're quite right, it is 40. I'll amend the initial post for anyone else joining.

My BMI is currently 30, doh!

I'm on 2.5mg, have been for a few jabs now, side effects were awful for a few days but settled and I now feel fine.

Last jab was in my thigh rather than my stomach as I read that could cause less side effects - although I know there's competing theories around this - but worked for me this time.

I used this website:

https://monj.co.uk/discount-mounjaro-price-list/

Using the filter 'discounted' and '2.5mg' to get the best deal which was with Happen Pharmacy initially @ £84 on a subscription basis. I've now cancelled that subscription as the price shot up and am currently looking at New Health Pharmacy @ £94, although I have inputted my details but don't seem to be able to complete the order and they haven't contacted me any way to provide my pics etc so waiting on a response to an email I've sent querying it.

Finished my first 2.5 pen from Happen (£102) yesterday and have just reordered with Medicines Marketplace today (£99). Had to do a video of my face to standing on scales. Now waiting on 2 working days for approval (Tues) then issue 🤞

Do you feel the 2.5 is still giving you appetite suppressant ?

I think it definitely wears off towards the end of a week but usually day after jab it returns. At least I hope that's the case this time! If not, I'll have to use my willpower more strongly

How much more weight do you still want to lose? I excercise alot I'm talking 10000 steps before 9am and 3 workouts done but am always snacking and I am a sugar addict.

3 stone ideally. I am trying to up my steps and get to about 7000 per day (sedentary job) so trying to get out after work for an hour walk to get me there. Need to start into a bit of weight training. What about you?

I also do some weight training every morning and keep very active with my kids. Plus, like you, I work a sedentary job, so I have to make a deliberate effort to stay active outside of work.
I'm looking to lose about a stone. About two years ago, I was nearly 11 stone and managed to lose over two stone using the weight loss jabs. However, I feel like the weight is slowly creeping back on, and I'd love to take another dose to get this last stone off. The issue is my BMI doesn't really qualify me for it anymore, but I'm really struggling with strong sugar cravings and constant snacking I can get a jab but scared of the side effects.

Have you tried low carb and IF? I did that prior to MJ and got 1.5 stone off but then it seemed to plateu, hence giving this a go now. I felt it was good as it meant no rise in cortisol which gives you spike in cirtisol/sugar cravings.

What is IF? My problem is I just crave sugar constantly and give in alot

Intermittent Fasting. I didn't eat before 10.30am or after 6.30pm. I read bits and pieces of 'Fast Like A Girl'. I wasn't 100% into it, but kind of tried to follow that and low carb and it worked for me, for a while at least and because I was concentrating on proteins I didn't feel hungry or have that desire for sweet things as my cortosil wasn't spiking

@Jollyranger10 if you look at some of the pharmacies that support maintenance, they will let you restart at a lower BMI if you can provide proof of earlier prescriptions. The pharmacies are listed on the price comparison website.

Can I join you?

My BMI is just over 25 but I am on HRT which I think must have contributed to me getting a prescription. I’ve gone with MedExpress but will try to find a cheaper supplier now I’ve had one prescription.

I am trying MJ mainly to see if it will stop the food noise. I already eat healthily and do plenty of exercise but am tired of battling food noise and I am giving in to snacking more often which is making my weight creep up. If it works I can see myself staying on a permanent low dose if necessary.

I took my first jab on Saturday and don’t really know if it is working yet. Virtually no side effects other than a slight feeling of nausea a couple of times. I don’t seem to feel fuller or want to stop eating with my normal meals which is a bit disappointing. I think I was expecting a more dramatic change.

My BMI is also just over 25 and I’m also on HRT. I am very tall (6’) & broad shouldered so even just putting on a stone and a half (to get to that BMI) meant I started busting out of all my clothes, including splitting a jacket I really liked up the back. I went with Voy. I had my second 2.5 Mounjaro shot on Saturday the 5th; my first was Sat August 29th. I had to send photographs (front & side view) and also (without them asking) provided a screenshot of the weight/BMI tracker record I have through my gym.

So far I’ve had good suppression & only minor side effects (mainly feeling somewhat weird/spacey after the first shot). I lost 1 kg/2.2 lb in the first week.

@AxisofEvelKnievel
I did the questionnaire on Voy and got initially approved but them sending me emails every day while I was still dithering was too pushy for my liking which is why I didn’t go with them.