Page 3 | Ozempic for life?

curiousfurious · 2023-01-30T18:36:18+00:00

This drug seems to be all the rage at the moment and gets good results. If you are not diabetic and lose enough weight on this to get down to a normal healthy weight do you stop taking it? Will the NHS continue to prescribe it if you are a normal weight after however long it took to reach your goal weight? If you are getting it privately because you don't meet the NHS prescribing criteria will your provider continue to provide it if you are no longer overweight? I've read threads on here recently and there doesn't seem to be much focus on lifestyle changes or addressing the causes of being obese in the first place. I wonder if there's a danger in this being perceived as a wonder drug cure for obesity but that it's only short term. Diabetics will be on it for life perhaps but what about those who aren't diabetic? It's very expensive, prohibitively so to many, so what happens to those who can't afford it any more?

gingercat02 · 01/02/2023 10:58

This class of drug, GLP-1 inhibitors, have been used for many years in type 2 diabetes.

Most (but not all) people find the improved blood glucose and weight loss tails off and stops after around 2 years.
This is what the prescribing guidance is based on.
Occasionally swapping to a different drug in the same class gives a bit more weight loss but often not.

Peridot1 · 01/02/2023 11:36

Agreed @Twiglets1. I know that reducing my risk of diabetes and other issues will hopefully benefit the NHS long term.

That is interesting @gingercat02. Definitely worth bearing in mind.

S70V12 · 01/02/2023 13:36

If your overweight and fat for most people it is excess calories and lack of exercise. The amount of people saying I got medical condition or it doesn’t work is like for 1% of the population and there are too many people on here who are just lazy or can’t count calories and macros accurately which is why they are overweight and resorting to fad diets or Ozempic. I not looked into WW or SW but as long as they incorporate enough protein roughly 1g of protein per pound of lean body weight, plenty of fruit and veg, can keep carbs and a calories deficit of no more than 0.5-1% per week of body weight then they are fine.

Original poster

curiousfurious · 01/02/2023 13:39

@S70V12 harsh.

OP posts:

knitnerd90 · 01/02/2023 13:46

Saxenda is in the same class as Ozempic (GLP-1 inhibitors) and does work similarly. (Saxenda is the branding for weight loss; Victoza is the brand sold for diabetes.)

They are finding that when GLP-1s are discontinued, patients regain weight. That's why there's so much talk about Ozempic being a lifelong commitment. The weight loss stops after ~2 years, hence the recommendation, but maintenance of existing weight loss is another question.

S70V12 · 01/02/2023 14:12

curiousfurious · 01/02/2023 13:39

@S70V12 harsh.

Harsh but true.

mrsbrownhat · 01/02/2023 14:16

I am diabetic. I have been taking it for 9 months. My blood sugars have plummeted. My weight hasn't. I have lost a stone. Another 5 to lose. It is NOT always a miracle cure for weight loss!

Peridot1 · 01/02/2023 14:28

@S70V12 - yes I agree with you that calorie counting works. WW works. SW works. All generally based on calorie restriction. Encourage exercise etc. Yes they have definitely worked for me in the past. To a certain point. However I get to a certain point and then bam. Can’t do it any more. I don’t know why. I have always felt a total failure about it. I then regain what I’ve lost. And you know at WW or SW meetings there are many many more like me. It’s what WW and SW base their business model on. It doesn’t work long term for lots of people so they come back. Again and again and again.

Peridot1 · 01/02/2023 14:29

That’s interesting @mrsbrownhat. I wonder why? Must be pretty frustrating to see non diabetics on it losing weight?

Original poster

curiousfurious · 01/02/2023 14:32

It's common to plateau with weight loss but you have to give it a boost to get your body responding again. It's tempting to give up but you have to keep going.

OP posts:

S70V12 · 01/02/2023 14:36

Peridot1 · 01/02/2023 14:28

@S70V12 - yes I agree with you that calorie counting works. WW works. SW works. All generally based on calorie restriction. Encourage exercise etc. Yes they have definitely worked for me in the past. To a certain point. However I get to a certain point and then bam. Can’t do it any more. I don’t know why. I have always felt a total failure about it. I then regain what I’ve lost. And you know at WW or SW meetings there are many many more like me. It’s what WW and SW base their business model on. It doesn’t work long term for lots of people so they come back. Again and again and again.

Are you eating enough protein 1g per pound of body weight ?

People regain if go back to old lifestyle. Have to keep calories at maintenance and exercise to keep the body you want otherwise just get fat.

S70V12 · 01/02/2023 14:37

Not denying though ghrelin and Leptin might have something to do with it being high if you gone from obese to fit.

Peridot1 · 01/02/2023 15:07

I have tried everything. More than once. I get to a certain point and can’t go any further. It’s as much a mental thing as anything else. It could be the whole set point thing. My body is quite happy at the higher weight. I don’t know what it is. I know I should keep going. I know what to do. I just can’t do it. I feel exhausted at the very thought. I was seeing a counsellor a couple of years ago initially about being unhappy in my marriage but when we got to talking about my weight issue I completely broke down. When I am ‘on’ a diet I have to do it perfectly. Otherwise the ‘oh sod it’ gremlin steps in. So I give up. I’ll start again on Monday. Or I’ll join WW next week. Or whatever. And the cycle starts again. It’s been a cycle for over 30 years. The counsellor likened it to an exhausted horse being whipped to keep going. I was both the horse and the jockey with the whip. In the end the horse went to the knackers yard! I literally could not face any kind of diet or calorie restriction/counting. I felt sick even seeing a WW magazine in a shop. I got rid of every diet book I had. And I had them all. I got off the treadmill for a couple of years. Avoided any thought or talk of dieting. Stabilised at around 16 stone. I read Why We Eat (Too Much) by Andrew Jenkinson which made a lot of sense. And I read The Obesity Code. Also made some sense regarding insulin. And then I read an article about Ozempic. So I decided to try it. I have lost 3 stone. I am no longer obese. And I no longer feel a total failure.

Twiglets1 · 01/02/2023 15:55

mrsbrownhat · 01/02/2023 14:16

I am diabetic. I have been taking it for 9 months. My blood sugars have plummeted. My weight hasn't. I have lost a stone. Another 5 to lose. It is NOT always a miracle cure for weight loss!

I suppose it’s a question of perspective. I consider losing a stone in 9 months to be really positive. Though understand we are all a bit impatient to lose weight fast.

Twiglets1 · 01/02/2023 16:00

Peridot1 · 01/02/2023 15:07

I have tried everything. More than once. I get to a certain point and can’t go any further. It’s as much a mental thing as anything else. It could be the whole set point thing. My body is quite happy at the higher weight. I don’t know what it is. I know I should keep going. I know what to do. I just can’t do it. I feel exhausted at the very thought. I was seeing a counsellor a couple of years ago initially about being unhappy in my marriage but when we got to talking about my weight issue I completely broke down. When I am ‘on’ a diet I have to do it perfectly. Otherwise the ‘oh sod it’ gremlin steps in. So I give up. I’ll start again on Monday. Or I’ll join WW next week. Or whatever. And the cycle starts again. It’s been a cycle for over 30 years. The counsellor likened it to an exhausted horse being whipped to keep going. I was both the horse and the jockey with the whip. In the end the horse went to the knackers yard! I literally could not face any kind of diet or calorie restriction/counting. I felt sick even seeing a WW magazine in a shop. I got rid of every diet book I had. And I had them all. I got off the treadmill for a couple of years. Avoided any thought or talk of dieting. Stabilised at around 16 stone. I read Why We Eat (Too Much) by Andrew Jenkinson which made a lot of sense. And I read The Obesity Code. Also made some sense regarding insulin. And then I read an article about Ozempic. So I decided to try it. I have lost 3 stone. I am no longer obese. And I no longer feel a total failure.

That is brilliant to have lost 3 stone and more importantly to feel good about yourself. We shouldn’t mix up weight with self worth but I do it too 🤷🏼‍♀️

S70V12 · 01/02/2023 16:42

Peridot1 · 01/02/2023 15:07

I have tried everything. More than once. I get to a certain point and can’t go any further. It’s as much a mental thing as anything else. It could be the whole set point thing. My body is quite happy at the higher weight. I don’t know what it is. I know I should keep going. I know what to do. I just can’t do it. I feel exhausted at the very thought. I was seeing a counsellor a couple of years ago initially about being unhappy in my marriage but when we got to talking about my weight issue I completely broke down. When I am ‘on’ a diet I have to do it perfectly. Otherwise the ‘oh sod it’ gremlin steps in. So I give up. I’ll start again on Monday. Or I’ll join WW next week. Or whatever. And the cycle starts again. It’s been a cycle for over 30 years. The counsellor likened it to an exhausted horse being whipped to keep going. I was both the horse and the jockey with the whip. In the end the horse went to the knackers yard! I literally could not face any kind of diet or calorie restriction/counting. I felt sick even seeing a WW magazine in a shop. I got rid of every diet book I had. And I had them all. I got off the treadmill for a couple of years. Avoided any thought or talk of dieting. Stabilised at around 16 stone. I read Why We Eat (Too Much) by Andrew Jenkinson which made a lot of sense. And I read The Obesity Code. Also made some sense regarding insulin. And then I read an article about Ozempic. So I decided to try it. I have lost 3 stone. I am no longer obese. And I no longer feel a total failure.

You need an online coach PT.

S70V12 · 01/02/2023 16:44

Peridot1 · 01/02/2023 15:07

I have tried everything. More than once. I get to a certain point and can’t go any further. It’s as much a mental thing as anything else. It could be the whole set point thing. My body is quite happy at the higher weight. I don’t know what it is. I know I should keep going. I know what to do. I just can’t do it. I feel exhausted at the very thought. I was seeing a counsellor a couple of years ago initially about being unhappy in my marriage but when we got to talking about my weight issue I completely broke down. When I am ‘on’ a diet I have to do it perfectly. Otherwise the ‘oh sod it’ gremlin steps in. So I give up. I’ll start again on Monday. Or I’ll join WW next week. Or whatever. And the cycle starts again. It’s been a cycle for over 30 years. The counsellor likened it to an exhausted horse being whipped to keep going. I was both the horse and the jockey with the whip. In the end the horse went to the knackers yard! I literally could not face any kind of diet or calorie restriction/counting. I felt sick even seeing a WW magazine in a shop. I got rid of every diet book I had. And I had them all. I got off the treadmill for a couple of years. Avoided any thought or talk of dieting. Stabilised at around 16 stone. I read Why We Eat (Too Much) by Andrew Jenkinson which made a lot of sense. And I read The Obesity Code. Also made some sense regarding insulin. And then I read an article about Ozempic. So I decided to try it. I have lost 3 stone. I am no longer obese. And I no longer feel a total failure.

You need an online coach.
Fat loss is easy once you know how
you don’t have to be perfect every day
forget reading diet books
forget counsellors they won’t help you lose fat
get an online coach as you can’t do it by yourself.

mumof3now2 · 01/02/2023 16:59

@S70V12

Gosh, it must be great to be you.. an online PT being the cure for obesity, and that 99% of overweight people just eat too much

Have a little compassion

Original poster

curiousfurious · 01/02/2023 17:05

To be fair most people do eat too much. That includes me. Food and weight are such emotional topics though that it's difficult for people to make changes. The process isn't quick either which is frustrating and why people turn to miracle cures like ozempic. I worry for their mental health when the money and/or supply dries up and the weight goes back on. After spending such a lot of money it's a kick in the teeth for that loss not to be permanent. I think the diet industry is amoral.

OP posts:

S70V12 · 01/02/2023 17:07

mumof3now2 · 01/02/2023 16:59

@S70V12

Gosh, it must be great to be you.. an online PT being the cure for obesity, and that 99% of overweight people just eat too much

Have a little compassion

This is why you are overweight. You don’t listen to practical and proven solutions.

S70V12 · 01/02/2023 17:09

mumof3now2 · 01/02/2023 16:59

@S70V12

Gosh, it must be great to be you.. an online PT being the cure for obesity, and that 99% of overweight people just eat too much

Have a little compassion

It would be the cure actually as long as you apply yourself and aren’t lazy.

mumof3now2 · 01/02/2023 17:11

@S70V12

You know nothing about me. Don't assume to know.

S70V12 · 01/02/2023 17:15

mumof3now2 · 01/02/2023 17:11

@S70V12

You know nothing about me. Don't assume to know.

What is your BMI, height and weight then ?

mumof3now2 · 01/02/2023 17:21

@S70V12

I've already said I'm diabetic, however you assume that means I'm fat and lazy

I'm not disclosing my weight to you

However, just 2 years ago I swam 7.5km down a river.... so your narrow minded idea that I must be lazy and unfit is way off the mark.

Bore off

S70V12 · 01/02/2023 17:22

mumof3now2 · 01/02/2023 17:21

@S70V12

I've already said I'm diabetic, however you assume that means I'm fat and lazy

I'm not disclosing my weight to you

However, just 2 years ago I swam 7.5km down a river.... so your narrow minded idea that I must be lazy and unfit is way off the mark.

Bore off

If you not disclosing you weight or bmi then obviously got something to hide. Good luck in your weight loss journey.