“I started Ozempic last night” THREAD FOUR

[HermioneWeasley]

Can’t believe we’re on thread 4

welcome back to previous posters, and welcome to those who are new or interested.

a few of us have been on Ozempic with a range of experiences for a few months now, so if you’re interested in how it goes in the early days, the earlier threads might be a good place to start.

I’ve been on it for about 6 months now and have lost around 20lbs. It has been effortless. I used to be ravenously hungry all the time, and now I’m not. I had very mild side effects at first (just some nausea), but none now.

most of us have referral codes for various providers, so if you are starting, do ask on the thread and someone will PM you.

quickmeds is around £150 if you put in save5 as a code you get £5 off

I wonder if they have added the coaching in light of the NICE guidance? I did an assessment out of curiosity and manual came with coaching and no option to opt out. Surely the coaching is a positive thing to help learn lifelong healthier habits?

I'm on my 4th week of 0.5 (injection was Tuesday) after a month of 0.25, I'm also on the 3rd week of a plateau so I'm hoping that'll end soon (13lb down). Eating wise I'm doing b'fast, lunch and dinner, no need for snacks but I am still having a little bit of wine every now and then. All meals are small and possibly about half the size of what DH is eating. That in itself is fine, but I find I'm thinking about food more than I did on 0.25, but maybe that's also good as it gives me time to plan a healthy meal, rather than grab something unsuitable. I've also had a horrible metal taste in my mouth on and off since going onto 0.5, has anyone else had this? Am drinking a lot of water but the metallic taste makes me think more about food as a way to try and make it go away, is that odd?

@RainyDays8 @LadyFarnborough woohoo 🙌🏻

I'm going to do my first dose on Saturday morning - no weekend plans so want to be home in case of any adverse effects.

I'm absolutely dreading stepping on the scales though! Suspect I'm going to be closer to 16st than the 15 I was last time I weighed myself 😢 And at 5'4, that's not great 😞

I think the coaching at £50/month is a bit of a con really. Everybody on this thread knows exactly what they should be doing and by definition of being eligible for Ozempic, it hasn’t worked for them in the past (for myriad reasons). My understanding is that Ozempic gives you the headspace to be able to implement the rules we all know about, and to make them a habit to sustain them after the drug is stopped. Which is important, because otherwise the manufacturers state you will weigh the same three years after two years on Ozempic, as you did before starting the drug.

Given that one pen has a cost price of less than £20 I think they’re having a laugh charging so much for ‘coaching!’

Why now Friday night if you are in then? Subcutaneous injection so several hours to get into your bloodstream; you may as well use that time while you are sleeping to get as head start on your ‘side effects over the weekend’ plan. You’ve nothing to lose x

There are also great resources and trainers available for free on eg. youtube.

Well I've ended up ordering some tablets from one place to do the tolerance trial month as they're cheaper than pens for that low starter dose and a 1mg pen for the 2 months after that at 0.5 ish.

Couple of questions - I've seen people say the tablets were awful - what did you actually experience that you found hard to tolerate? If I don't like them I will save them for traveling when I can't take a pen and go onto the pen I've ordered.

Also could someone please link to the video that has been mentioned showing you how to use the clicks of the pen to measure doses please?

Week 4 for me today which means weigh day.

I only weighed myself last week for the first time.

I have been so good all week and have definitely eaten less as well as making healthy decisions.

I have put on 0.04kg which I know is nothing to put on , but I was really hoping to lose 2 pounds.

This is normally the time I complexly ruin my diets as I give up.

I have already eaten a bigger breakfast than I have in the past month and I am so worried I will now just lose the will.

I need to fight through it.

Hi Everyone, so ordered Ozempic from Manual yday. There is a bit of a delay in delivery which is fine as I can’t start it on the wknd as my eldest has organised afternoon tea so I wouldn’t be very popular if I started the injections and then couldn’t eat & enjoy the tea. Is there anyone who has a chronic condition, Fibromyalgia and has started Ozempic and could share what it has been like for them? I am 5ft 2 & weigh in at 15.5 stones. I used to weigh 9.5—10 stone before my diagnosis. How long does everybody think it will take for me to lose the 5.5 stone? I was happy & couldn’t wait to get started yday but today I feel anxious at the thought of not being able to continue with Ozempic should I start to have any side effects? Is it normal to feel like this? Is there anyone else who has the same amount of weight to lose & would like to buddy up?

Clicks are easy- just count 36 for 0.5mg- you don’t need a video!

Tablets taste vile, made me feel awful and didn’t work for me but that is just my experience.

You can travel with a pen as long as you keep it under 25 degrees celsius. It’s just unopened medication that has to be refrigerated.

hope this helps x

I would say to you just be aware that a lot of people get a crushing tiredness/fatigue on Ozempic, especially in the first few days after the injection each week. If you have fibro then you are likely used to this so don’t let it freak you out.
I wish you all the luck xx

Honestly that could be anything; hormones, water (dehydration), bowel habit, clothing, time of day.

I usually fix the constipation and dehydration and weigh again and it’s much better.

Don’t let this pull you off course! X

@Dogsarebetterthanhumans Thank you, hopefully my symptoms don’t get exacerbated by the injection. I appreciate the heads up on what to expect.

Tate there any recommendations for what to eat before taking the first dose?

I agree, plus the information you would receive in the “coaching “ is basic & available online for free anyway. Plus there are many support threads like this one, where people will answer questions for free. I don’t personally see the need to pay extra for coaching. Each to their own, I guess. But I prefer to do my own research from a variety of sources.

I have ordered Ozempic , hopefully my order will arrive today.

I had a quick look at the online Prescribing service with Superdrug has anyone tried the alternative. It is a lot more cost effective .

My friend has fibromyalgia so I know how difficult it can be but she is taking positive steps to help her mental & physical health - sounds like you are too.

Best of Luck with Ozempic. It’s very normal to worry about side effects but it seems to me that most people don’t have bad side effects and can manage them just fine. Expect some fatigue and possibly nausea & the dreaded sulphur burps. Expect some mild constipation. Most of the side effects can be managed with various techniques like, for example, drinking lots of water/eating fruit/ eating small, healthy meals. The weight will seem to fall quickly at times then at other times it will plateau. Then it will fall again.

We will all be your buddies on this thread!

Re: The coaching. I did research the hell out of this last night and I don't see any way to opt out of the coaching fee (agree it's a bit of a con) with Myjuniper or Manual. If you could in the past I'm pretty certain it has changed now. Oh well. I'll get it anyway. Thank you for all your replies.

Have you researched all the suppliers not just those 2? I don’t think they all require you to sign up for coaching unless a lot has changed since I was looking into it in January

Dutiful I started at 15st on 14th November and I'm 5'2" I last weighed two weeks ago and had 18lbs lost, I'm going to weigh once a month now because the plateau bothered me and I think if I'm only judging by my clothes and weighing once per month I'll notice more of a difference.

@DutifulDaughterWifeMother I have Fibro also, I'm a lot heavier than you, 17st 1lb today . I have only just taken my first dose today but will let you know what my side effects are. I'm just thinking a short term worsening in my symptoms may be worth it in the longer term as dr keeps saying lose weight so I'm hoping this helps with everything

Saxenda is a daily injection so I think that 1 pen only lasts a week, so not cheaper and the results are not as good as ozempic.

@WeKnowFrogsGoShaLaLaLaLa
i am recently diagnosed as diabetic so hoping the GP will consider it. If I can get a help on starting losing excess weight then hopefully will then be able to continue losing and also possibly lessen the diabetic blood count when they next do a round of tests (additional issues to the diabetes so regular bloods taken 🙄)

that isn’t ozempic, that is saxender which is a daily injection.