Saxenda support thread

[EmmaH2022]

Hi all

Continuing on from here

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/weight_loss_chat/a4172903-Saxenda-journey-all-welcome?msgid=115224282#115224282

@EachandEveryone this early on in your Saxenda journey I would personally skip a day and enjoy your theatre trip.

@Peridot1 and those on Ozempic can you tell me what dose you stated on please - I'm a bit confused as to whether you start on 0.25 or
0.5 thanks

@Wizzbangfizz - I’m on 0.5. I’m in a FB group for Ozempic and some people do start on 0.25 and lose weight but the company I got it from said 0.5 is better for weight loss. So I went with that.

Hi all, just popping on to ask a couple of questions, if you don't mind answering or you can tell me to piss off

Does anyone get in through NHS, or do you self fund?
How ill does it make you feel? I was taking metformin for PCOS but it badly affected my gut, so came off it. When I started taking it though, I felt ill and it flared my colitis up.

I need to lose weight, binge eating is a problem, but I didn't binge at all when I was on metformin and lost over a stone.

Oh, and how hard is it injecting yourself? Is the pen one of those ones you just click a button, and where is it recommended you inject?

Hi @AdditionalCharacter - I only started a few days ago so can't really comment too much on side effects. I've had some queasiness/nausea and headaches (although I think the headaches were more caffeine withdrawal!).

I'm self-funded, I'm not sure Saxenda's offered on the NHS but I'm happy to be corrected if I'm wrong.

As for the injections, they're not too bad. It's a pen with a button at the top and I hardly notice when I do it. When I was on daily anti-clotting injections during pregnancy my DH had to do it for me as I couldn't face it but this has been a walk in the park by comparison

Also - injections recommended front of thighs, stomach or top of arms. I've only done thighs.

I'm on Ozempic - they were v clear not to expect weight loss until 1mg but I was losing from 0.25mg in the first week. It did take getting used to from a side effect point of view as well.

It was noticeable that my desire for snacks had gone, but my brain took a while to catch up as I still had the habit of stopping at shops to buy them. So I would buy a snack, eat it, feel bloody awful and soon enough I broke the habit.

Without the snack buying the weight fell off.

I inject in my stomach flab which there is still quite a bit of, but a lot less than there was before.

Thanks both that is a help I think a weekly injection will be better for me - I'll start at 0.5,

Seriously I'd start at 0.25 just so you know what it's like! You may be able to titrate quickly but with the weekly injections, if you are miserable, you are stuck with it for a week.

It took me a while in the early stages to figure out that my nausea and indigestion were coming from my portion sizes and what I ate - I absolutely can't eat chocolate, fatty food or big portions (by which I mean bigger than 3 spoonfuls) anymore. It's a lot of adjusting of what you eat, what you serve, what you cook and shop for and even 4 months in a lot of Gaviscon gets taken.

Also with some doses, especially the smaller ones, you can eke more out of a pen as each pen is good for 6 weeks. I currently take 0.75 from a 1mg pen worked out from an online click chart - it means I get 5 weeks out of a pen which would only last me 4 at full dose and as I'm losing, I'm happy.

Now I'm back at 0.25 but thanks @AnnaMagnani I have had saxenda so was thinking I should probably tolerate it at 0.5 but like you say if it is a bad reaction. My portion sizes are huge and I also like my wine so it is going to be a big adjustment - so you have your pens prescribed or do you buy online?

I buy online. It's embarrassing how much I used to eat compared to now - it wouldn't be one chocolate bar, it would be 2, probably more than once a day. If there was cake or biscuits at work I probably ate the most. Then big dinner at home, more snacks, glass of wine

The snacks went on 0.25mg. Portions have slowly decreased in size. Not even a glass of wine every day now and then it's a small glass. I will have cake sometimes but it's a tiny sliver.

I might even be saving money considering how much I used to spend waste on food!

Good morning. I have weighed myself this morning and lost a paltry half a pound in a week 😢. Got a wedding in 3 weeks and was hoping to have lost another half a stone but looks unlikely now!

We had some really tragic family news yesterday so I missed the dose as my head was gone so hoping once I take it tonight it doesn’t knock me

@ImSaxyAndIKnowIt sorry to hear you that, I do hope you are ok.

Weigh in this morning and 1lb off. Actually happy with that as I had a few meals out and birthday cake (not mine) twice during last week. I wasn’t expecting much.

Is anyone exercising? I’m struggling to get re motivated.

@ImSaxyAndIKnowIt - sorry to hear about the family loss. Half a pound weight loss isn't much but on the plus side you are losing weight.

@Orangemoon77 - congratulations on the weight loss. I'm not exercising much at the moment - the cold weather isn't helping!

Can someone help on what to expect going from 0.6 to 1.2? I've been quite lucky on side effects so far but I've read a few people saying that the 1.2 has made them feel too unwell.

@PurpleBun I didn’t notice much of a difference. I think your body gets use to the lower dose so the next one up isn’t too bad. I had a bit of nausea on day 1 of the new dose. Only times I have had nausea are day 1 each week and when I inject into my stomach.

@PurpleBun I just went up to 1.2 on Sunday. I'd hoped it would curb my eating a bit more than 0.6 but I'm exactly the same. No side effects. I pretty much forget I'm on the stuff. Hoping I will find my appetite will diminish any day soon...

If we follow their suggestion of increments roughly how long will a pen last?

@EachandEveryone I think pen 1 lasted about 16/17 days for me. Pen 2 will last less and then by the full dose I think it’s a pen every 6 days, which is why people tend to hover on a lower dose.

Can confirm drinking copious amounts of alcohol in one night is thoroughly unrecommended while taking this stuff.

It is day 3 and I am still horrifically hungover with shakes, headaches and sickness. Never again.

@Orangemoon77 where do you buy from?

A loss is a loss so well done. I'm trying to get back to exercise but struggling with time and work which is annoying as I feel so much better when doing it!

@Wizzbangfizz you just get it online. I’ve used Boots but Pharmacy2u, Lloyds and Asda have online doctors as well.

@GayParis sounds dreadful! Hope you shift the hangover soon.

I’m day 6 on 0.6 mg and I think I’m going to go up tonight. I feel
Like I’ve lost but I’m getting hungry again whereas when I started last week I wasn’t.