Ozempic new starters thread

[MedievalMadness]

Wondering if anyone would like to join me starting Ozempic. I’m doing my first injection tonight and am very nervous about reactions/side effects. I’m 5’ and 10.5 stones with very high blood pressure which medication is struggling yo bring down, high cholesterol and arthritis.

I would like to get to 9 stones realistically and ideally 8.5. I do seem to have unusual reactions to some medication so am really hoping I can take this without too many problems as I’m sure I’d be far healthier minus a couple stones.

Thanks guys! I really wanted it to work for me but I’ve genuinely without exaggeration felt like I was dying at moments. I think it just lower my blood sugar too much or something.

Im on two days since my last dose as I’m still shaking after/before meals and feeling so exhausted that I can’t even bring myself to stay awake. I was typing at work with one eye open earlier as I was so tired despite the fact that I’ve slept for 10 hours.

Is anyone having trouble ordering Ozempic it seems to be out of stock everywhere? I’m due to start 0.5 dose next week. Got my original prescription from The London Slimming Clinic who told me there were expecting a delivery this week but it’s not arrived. I’m nearly 4 weeks in with the 0.25 dose have lost 8 lbs not really had any side effects as yet felt a bit of nausea in first week nothing else

Quickmeds had 0.5mg pens in stock yesterday.

@Lavendersquare thank you, it’s now out of stock expect there is a lot of people trying to purchase

@DaisyDieter I'm sorry it hasn't worked out for you but I think you did the right thing by stopping, those side effects sound horrible. I hope you feel better soon and are able to find something else to help with your weight loss journey.

@MedievalMadness how are you feeling regarding your kidney?

Just catching up on everyone’s week. Sorry to hear you’re finishing @DaisyDieter , those side effects do sound extreme. You can’t carry on the expense of your wellbeing. And @MedievalMadness , hope your ache turns out to be nothing linked to ozempic/ your health issues.
I’ve lost another pound this week and I’m really feeling the appetite suppression now. At the beginning I really had to work at it. Now I just don’t feel like eating. It’s hard to describe, it’s not nausea but I can feel sick thinking about eating. I’ve been shopping and normally I’d have eaten so many bags of crisps but I haven’t touched them.

One week in and I've lost 5lb. I'm shocked, I did not expect it and don't feel it either to be honest.

I only had one day (Sunday) where my appetite was suppressed, the rest of the week I've really struggled to keep my eating in check.

I have had a headache most days and had some nausea after eating dinner but no other noticeable side effects.

All in all a good start!

everley that’s a brilliant start. I bet you’re well pleased. I’ve lost 2 lbs this week which I didn’t expect so am very happy with that.

Franklin2000 Also finding I get fuller on far smaller portions and don’t want to snack. I’m going to keep on .25 as it seems to be working well and if the kidney discomfort is to do with Ozempic I don’t want to increase the dose anyhow.

Daisy. I hope you soon start to feel better as the drug leaves your system. So sorry you feel so rotten

End of week 1 and 3.5lb off for me. More to do with calorie counting than the injection though I think as I know it's still early days. Very pleased so far though worried if I will be able to continue with the stock issues. Well done everyone else some great losses!

whereareyousleep. That’s a really great start. Yes, let’s hope there’s no problems with getting our next pens.

Hi all I am starting soon. Can I ask for recommendations, I got mine from My BMI. Also if there is more than 4 doses do I just get some needles? How many more than 4 if I am starting 0.25?

Hello all. 👋 Can I join you? Starting tomorrow after 4 months of research and indecision and gaining and losing the same 5 lb. This is my favourite thread of all the Ozempic ones. I was prompted to go for it when I checked my BMI and found it was too high even for the British Heart Foundation charts. A shock and I have a lot to lose. I am terrified about side effects and so sorry @DaisyDieter that you've had such a bad time of it.

Hi and welcome menora and ginflinger . Lots of luck to both of you. I think just about all of us were really fearful about the side effects as there’s just no knowing how you’re going to feel on it. By the looks of it most people find find them manageable. I had stocked up with ginger chewy chews, mints, dry crackers, Imodium, indigestion stuff and haven’t needed any of them yet. But I’m still on .25 so a bit scared of moving up a dose.

Ive been using MyJuniper and they seem pretty good so far - they were pretty thorough asking for medical info and test results as some of the drugs I take can affect the kidneys etc. They wouldn’t just content to accept me typing 💬 out the results and asked for screenshots of latest blood test results of kidney and liver function . You can message the pharmacist there for advice at any time too which I’m going to do next week as one of my kidneys does feel a bit uncomfortable and I’m wondering if it’s linked to the Ozempic.

I bought spare needles off a site called medino. They work fine and I think I’ll get about 7 or 8 of the .25 dose out of one pen. The size of the needles are shown on the box that you get with the pen so you just order the same size ones .

Thanks, I did not get this from MyBMI to be honest although they did ask me one additional question it wasn’t hard to get through. Am worrying now 🤣

with indigestion and nausea, what can you take? Are there medicines you should not take with ozempic?

menora I think there’s info online about drug interactions. I’m on a lot of different medication and I had to mention in the assessment if I was on any medication. When I listed everything that’s when I was asked for test results to show kidney and liver function as they’re apparently relevant if you are taking Ozempic. Although I have a kidney problem my kidney function has always been ok so far. I think if you get nausea they recommend eating little and often and not eat greasy, fried stuff (which I guess none of us should be eating at the moment ) and to try ginger, peppermint tea and I think you can take something like gaviscon if you get indigestion but you probably need to check that.

@menora There's a list of meds that interact with Ozempic in the Patient Information Sheet. It's worth reading, it has a lot of useful background info too. There's also an extensive list on drugs.com (always a good first stop for needs info) https://www.drugs.com/drug-interactions/semaglutide,ozempic.html

Thanks I am on no other meds apart from an asthma inhaler but I do use Nexium if I get heartburn - seems ok.

I haven’t started yet but I drank some wine last night and been on the toilet all morning 😭. Perhaps this is a good thing as I hear I am going to get constipated! I’m going to cut down on alcohol as it’s no good for weight loss anyway

they didn’t ask me for blood results mine were ok in Sept 2022 though

I'm asthmatic and have a Symbicort inhaler with zero issues. I just take a desert spoon of psyllium husk in a small glass of dilute sugar-free squash daily, that knocks constipation issues before they start and helps with hunger pangs in the afternoon (it swells in your tum and makes you feel fuller). Can't comment on alcohol, I've never been much of a drinker (maybe 1 drink a week) and haven't had a drink since I started Ozempic 11 weeks ago. Again drugs.com is a good reference. https://www.drugs.com/food-interactions/semaglutide,ozempic.html

Make sure you're eating the Semaglutide recimmended way to minimise side-effects and maximize results. Low carb, high protein, medium fats, smaller meals. Minimise UPF and simple carbs.

they didn’t ask me for blood results mine were ok in Sept 2022 though

I don’t think that’s a standard requirement at all going from other peoples experience. I think they asked because a lot of the drugs I take for high blood pressure can affect kidney and liver function so they wanted too see mine was ok before they prescribed Ozempic. I was worried they’d not approve me, but felt it proved they don’t just hand it out to anyone and everyone who has weight to lose.

Thanks so much for sharing this info @MedievalMadness and @mumwheresmyribena - first dose at 5pm today. Good luck all newbie!

ginflinger. Good luck for 5pm. And to anyone else who’s starting too.

Thanks this is very useful. Good food choices are not my biggest strength. I always struggle not to eat carbs as I don’t really have much time for cooking things. I’m seeing a weight coach next week and I am not sure what to expect but I am going to discuss this issue. In practical terms what do you eat when you have no time to cook

@Menora Don't worry, its not really about not eating carbs, it's more about cutting simple carbs and being mindful about what you fill up on.
This time of year I generally eat some kind of protein (tuna, sausages, chicken, cheese etc - tonight it's grilled pork chop) with a pick and mix of anti pasti, like olives, sun-dried tomatoes, mushroom antipasti, charred peppers, lambs lettuce, pea shoots, maybe some feta, tomatoes, cold brined onions and topped with home-made balsamic dressing. It all lives in a tray in the fridge and gets listed out so we can add what we want.

I’m also not cutting out all carbs. I have shredded wheat, oatcakes, porridge and a few egg noodles with a stir fry. I’m trying mainly to keep to better carbs rather than supermarket sliced bread, pitta, wraps etc.

@MedievalMadness I'm similar. I still eat rice, occasionally have a few new or saute potatoes, though I've never been a big potato eater; still eat noodles though try to monitor my portions. But meals with those in are few and far between, mainly confined to a weekend evening until Autumn now.

I don't eat cereal, never have done and although I absolutely love porridge, it makes me ravenously hungry so I cut it out a number of years ago. I've always made my own bread but have now cut it down to a bacon sarnie at the weekend, but that's because I can't be trusted around good bread, it's my drug of choice and consumption can easily spiral out of all control.