August 2026 starters (Thread 2!)

[chocolatecoveredpretzels]

Hi everyone and thanks for the bestowed honour of starting the new thread, Puzzled!

It’s so lovely to have all of you along for the ride on here. Thanks for keeping me company! I love reading how things are going for you and being able to ask questions or share things.

Yesterday, I tried on a fleece top I bought last year. It fit me so snugly last year, I looked like a burst sausage in its casing. Now it’s actually loose. My rings are starting to feel a bit loose too- I wear my mum’s engagement and eternity rings and on the cold mornings, they’re starting to slip down my fingers.

I’m down 1.9kg this week and, although I’m still feeling hungry, it’s not an all-consuming hunger that leads to binging. I’ve actually needed to add more food as what I’ve eaten today and yesterday ended up being 1300 calories and 1100 calories. Given that my watch is still estimating approx 3000 calories burned on a typical day at school, I know I need at least 1600 to have enough oomph. Is anyone else finding the same?

I’ll link this thread in the old one so everyone can find their way here.

I also want little bit more structure in my wating for next week. I think skipping meals and having many tiny snacks is not good habit for me, I would like to have better meals. Lunch and dinner, with either rice or potatoe, lean protein, generous portion of roasted vegetables. Then Breakfast based on hunger and some protein between lunch and dinner. Fruit is great, but it doesn't skipping lunch I can snack on too many. Remining on track for calories but protein isn't what it should be.

Do you use a tracker already, @MiaN ?

I’ve used MyFitnessPal on and off for years. I find calorie counting quite helpful. I’ve also been told I need to use a different app to fulfil my doctor’s requirements for the medication. It’s called Oviva. It doesn’t count calories but you either take a photo of your meal or write a quick description and it estimates nutritional value on a red amber green scale.

I use MFP. I paid for the premium so no ads and it takes me less then 5 minutes a day in total as my frequent meals are already there

I'm another one who weighs every day - I have a graph of all the data and it's very pleasing seeing the downward trend. It's also reassuring if I have a bit of a plateau - more info gives you more to work with.

I was hit with a bit of sulphur burps this afternoon, but happy to report that pepto bismol helped. We're doing a lot of painting DIY over half term so plenty of natural movement rather than Joe Wicks this week. It's the worst though, I don't know how anyone decorates frequently. My knees are killing me after spending yesterday on the floor cleaning the skirting. Hopefully we'll get it all finished tomorrow, the cat is absolutely furious with us for shutting him out of the living room...

I am just checking in before I start my 4th pen - have stuck at 5mg.

Start weight: 14 stone (196lbs)
Current weight: 11 stone 6 (160lbs)
Goal weight: 10 stone 7 (147lbs)

36lbs lost.

This morning I weighed 159.8lbs. I haven't been in the 150s since 2017. I cannot believe it. I feel so elated to be in the final stone towards my goal weight.

I have been swimming and doing regular yoga. A touch of weight training here and there. I feel far more toned even though I have only gone down one dress size.

I am reflecting a bit today about how long ago it's been since I was this weight. A decade of aging, pregnancy and not being good to my body hasn't been kind, so my focus is shifting much more towards health and shape, rather than size.

I don’t think there’s any way to say this without TMI.

Constipation - OMG!

I’ve had a occasional episodes which were uncomfortable, but resolved with a bit of time and…. Ummm…. Effort. But this morning… it took 4 attempts spaced over an hour and a half until I felt I was finished. I got relief in the end by sitting with my feet raised on a little stool. Before that happened, I had asked google for advice, and actually messaged my provider to ask. In the course of which, I told them I had been taking only 4mg not 5.

Anyhow…… AI is suggesting an osmotic type of laxative such as Laxido or Movicol, but says should shouldn’t use it routinely. Let’s see what the provider comes back with.

Anyone care to share?

@PuzzledObserver yes, I've had constipation too. I think that Pepto is making it worse too, so I've stopped taking it for now. Laxido is excellent to resolve this.

I'm struggling today - awful night last night with nausea and sulphur burps (but no actual sick, and only a tiny amount of diarrhoea this morning). I've had a couple of hours of normality today, but back to the nausea/sulphur again now, ugh. I also feel really bloated, which doesn't help. I was hopeful last night that it would have gone overnight, but boy did I get that wrong 😭 Here's hoping tonight is more positive and I'm back to normal tomorrow morning 🤞😬

I'm tempted to drop back down from 7.5mg to a lower dose - this is absolutely miserable.

Edit: @PuzzledObserver I'm taking fibre capsules every day, that might help? I've not really had an issue with constipation, if anything it's been going in the opposite direction 😬

@Anseranser : have you tried something like omeprazole? - you can get it in the supermarket under the name Nexium or a generic product. Pepto Bismol is supposed to be good too for nausea and it may help the sulphur burps. Also, mints like Tictacs or sugar-free Polos.

Hope you get some relief soon. I'm dreading getting that particular side effect - (sbs.)

@Anseranser I've been like that a few times (on the 2.5 dose!) it's miserable and took me a few weeks to settle. It would reach that point about 48 hours after the injection and then settle back down so I'm hoping it's the same for you.

I had to drastically cut any fatty foods out - a big trigger of mine was things like houmous! And eating after 6pm.

I found peppermint tea helpful, rennies and keeping hydrated.

@PuzzledObserver I had one week like that! Since then I've dedicated myself to drinking copious amounts of water and making sure I prioritise my fibre. I also take lactalouse at the first sign of anything slowing down! Hope you feel better soon

@PuzzledObserver hope you are feeling better now? Did your provider comment on your doses at all?
Constipation, yes, last week for 5 days, before that just the odd day or two. Agree with lots of water and fibre. Granary type bread, jacket potatoes and sweetcorn are all foods that help me.
The last few days have been the worst bloating and sulphur burps I've had so far. Finally calmed down overnight. I increased my dose to 3.75 on Saturday which may have triggered it. No upset tum this time which I'm thankful for, but sulphur burps are horrible. Hoping they are not back after jab day on Saturday.
Seems like the week of SEs for a few of us. Hope everyone is ok.

Thanks, all, for the support. Yes, feeling fine now - I was really from the time I went properly. Just want to stave off a recurrence now!

I haven’t had a response from the provider, which is a bit poor imo. Regardless, I bought some Laxido and have taken the first dose this evening. It says 3 times a day for a maximum of two weeks, though if normal service is resumed after a few days I would cut it down to twice or even once a day and then try to stop. And see how it goes,

I think I do plenty of fibre normally, including a portion of chia seeds every day. And normally drink a fair bit too, but yesterday owing to what we were doing I perhaps didn’t drink as much as usual.

I had friend over and she was so nice & complimentary to my weight loss. Else I am in bit of a funk to be honest, If we divide my loss to 3 parts - I am in the middle and still a lot to go. The scale stay thing the same and me obsessing over other things is also having impact. But I am doing the things, and I am grateful to be done with 1/3rd of my weight loss

@Anseranser did your stomach calm down over night? Hope things are settling down again.

Morning. One more pound off so am definitely a member of the slow losers club!

Staying at 3.75mg for the rest of this 5mg pen. Even though so many people happily click count I don’t feel completely certain about it as the plunger appears to have moved a slightly different amount from what it did last week, but it may just be my eyes. And I’m feeling well and losing weight on this dose so I’m happy for now!

Really helpful to read everyone’s posts and see how people work through the difficulties that arise. I think my only contribution so far has been to provide solidarity for any other slow losers!

Wishing us all a good week 💐

Morning all. Well I am getting frustrated with slowness of loss now - in fact, I convinced myself yesterday that my black jeans, which a few weeks ago I thought were so loose it was worth trying the next size down (it wasn’t) were actually tight on my waist and my tummy is enormous. Was fully expecting the scale to be up this morning. It wasn’t, it was down…. but (using the moving average) it’s like 0.1lb on a good day and nothing on a bad one. It’s currently saying 0.4lb over the past week, 0.7lb over the last 2 weeks and 3.4lb over the past month.

I was also intensely hungry this morning after swimming this morning (though to be fair, jab day is Sunday). I am wondering if it might be time to move up to your actual 5mg. Of course, I rejected that possibility entirely after yesterday morning’s….. difficulties. It if the Laxido does the trick, I might be confident enough to risk a higher dose on Sunday.

The other factor is that I’ve now had 2 weeks without doing the full day of fasting I had been doing. So maybe 1-1.5lb per week is what I lose when I include that, and 0.4lb per week is what I lose when I don’t.

And just to give you all a laugh - there must have been a laundry sorting error in my house. When I swim, I out my cossie on under my clothes to go and take underwear with me for afterwards. When I came to get dressed, I discovered I had to choose between going commando and cross-dressing, as a pair of his underpants had ended up in my drawer….

Thankfully yes! I went to bed around 7pm and woke around 9.30pm with the most burping I've ever had in my life I think, but getting rid of all that gas was so helpful. Slept all night and felt much more normal this morning 🥳

@PuzzledObserver oh no 😂 I think I'd have gone with the wrong pants rather than none, but imagine it felt rather strange!

Solidarity fistbump to the slow losers club. Slowly is still a downward trend! You got this 😎

The scale has not moved in 3 days for me but I’m trying not to get too bothered by it.

I’ve just fit into a size 12 pair of jeans (the only pair that size I own) that haven’t fitted in at least a year so I’m chuffed.

A quick update, as I’ve finally had a response from my provider about the constipation. The key thing I want to feed back is they said that adding more fibre is not helpful at this point. This is the same as what the AI said to me yesterday - basically you need to get everything moving again, and adding more fibre before you do that will just add to bloating and discomfort.

24 hours since my first dose of Laxido, glugging water like its going out of fashion. Apparently expect 24-48 hours for it to work.

Oh, and AI also said that the constipation, and now extra water and Laxido, will apear on the scale….. so once the constipation is resolved, there may be a whoosh…..

Weigh in day for me

SW 12 st 12
CW 11 st 7 (week 9, 1st 5 lost!)
GW 11st

anyone had a problem with MedExpress needles? I clicked it on as usual but it wouldn’t allow any liquid out? (Pushed end harder and ended up with a few drops on my fingers - probably a tenner there 😂), used a Morrisons (Phlo) needle and was fine. Luckily Morrisons sent a huge box with my first order so will use those and maybe order somewhere else next time

No issues with medexpress needles here. Maybe you got one that was a bit bent/blocked/otherwise damaged. A new needle will sort it, I imagine.

I have still got red skin patches at the injection sites though - the last three weeks are clearly visible, though the oldest one is almost faded away now. Strange that the first several jabs didn't give me a skin reaction at all 🤷‍♀️

Oh, and yes @PuzzledObserver that makes sense. It's got to shift out of the way before the fibre/water makes much difference - that's affecting what's higher up in your digestive system, and the blockage is lower down in the tubes. Fingers crossed you're all cleared out soon. You're going to feel as light as a balloon 🤩

It was 2 med express needles that didn’t work (tried a second one before switching to Phlo), maybe I got a duff batch

I said yesterday I was fully expecting the scale to be up….. well it most definitely was this morning (after a full day taking Laxido) - 2.6lb, if you please!! It works by attracting more water into the colon to bulk out the stool…. I was drinking for England yesterday, as instructed, and that must be where its all gone.

Oh well - the importan thing is to get some relief….. on an ongoing basis….. and keep on keeping on with the sensible eating and exercise. Things will work out.