“I started Ozempic last night” - THREAD SIX

[Peridot1]

Hi all. Just spotted the previous thread filled up so thought I’d start a new one quickly.

@Peridot1 Totally agree. We need to remember that Ozempic isn't a weightloss drug, it's a treatment for diabetes and a treatment for obesity.

The appetite supression that some people get isn't it's goal, it isn't how it's meant to work. It's meant is to support your pancreas to regulate blood sugar and regulate your appetite, not surpress as in I can only eat 3 calories before I'm full - and it doesn't get to the concentration and steady state to do this until you've been taking it for 6 or more weeks. If that's not the cause or at least part of the cause of your weight issues it's not going to help.

Tbh I get some of the good effects of ozempic and I am grateful for that but whenever you are losing weight and paying a lot to do so, it’s always demoralising to not lose much. I joined a PT gym for even more money 2 years ago and hated every single workout it was too hard and I ended up resenting everyone who found it easy. It just wasn’t for me. Problem is I don’t know what is for me. Even low calorie is extremely hard work and painfully slow nowadays. So I’ve tried hardcore exercise, I’ve tried low cal, I’ve tried ozempic - not sure what else to try. And I am more worried about my health not what I look like.

Is it though? The huge boon for me is not that I'm loosing weight quickly, it's that I'm loosing weight consistently, relatively easily and what feels like sustainably.

I'm talking the middle way, I've dropped my calories but not so I'm finding it difficult to keep to, I've dropped my carbs but still fit in a bacon buttie for breakfast at the weekend and rice with my curry. I now flatly refuse to do any exercise that I don't enjoy or if I don't enjoy it, it has to take less than 15 minutes, so I swim and do yoga, and walk to the shops, occasionally doing a weights routine for 15 mins when Im feeling virtuous.

The result is a slow loss but one that I feel I could keep up for years of necessary and still not feel deprived or a struggle.

If it's any help, this last week, after 15 weeks I've suddenly and really oddly lost my appetite for dinner. Although I can happily eat an IF "breakfast" (yoghurt and fruit) and eat a banana, some cheese or some fruit during the day, I've gone off a big salad for dinner in favour of (tonight) a piece of chicken some tomatoes and onion followed by a huge bowl of strawberries - yum!

I still think the dissatisfaction some people feel is exactly because Ozempic is spoken of as a weight-loss drug rather than something which can help normalise hormones and blood sugar and so help people to regulate appetite.

Sorry, meant as a reply to @menora

@mumwheresmyribena if you were just doing this on your own or with a friend or 2 you probably wouldn’t be exposed to so many people claiming to have lost such a large amount in a short space of time. It’s similar when you tend to only hear from those who have something happening to them, you don’t always know about those who it isn’t happening to. It’s probably normal not to lose very much very fast. I am just coming at it from another angle of what you see online can be demoralising although I don’t want to take that away from people who are doing well. It just isn’t that way for everyone and we shouldn’t compare ourselves. It’s human nature to do that though

I came at it from my GP recommending it and then researching it via papers published and articles in the science press (my background is in research, not scientific but near enough for me to want the science). I'm actually horrified by some of the myths, exaggerations and some of the media manipulations and reporting about Semaglutide and that includes the companies that prescribe it and many (not all) people on social media.

Yes, some people are doing much better than me, but we all start from different starting points; how we ate previously will have a big effect on our results as will age, genetics, starting weight, activity levels and meds people are on. Plus personally, I'm not going to make a rod for my own back by doing this unsustainably. My GP suggests and my own inclination is to take a year both to lose the 30kg I wantef to lose and put me back around where I was in 2020 before my accident and that also gives my body time to reset it's appetite and set point. I'm a third of the way there despite a crazy 6 weeks of holidays, covid and then selling our house and am amazed not so much at the weight drop but the body shape change, frankly I'm bloody delighted.

@mumwheresmyribena I decided to do it when a friend/colleague who is a health care professional told me she had met a specialist and after chatting to them decided to try it. I was too nervous up till then. I was pre diabetic and I wanted to do something not to end up in a bad way further down the road of getting older. Thing is I don’t actually find it different to when I did slimming world in some ways, I still find myself comparing myself to others and feeling like I am failing.

Now when I explain it to others they are always surprised by how it actually works. Someone just asked me how they could lost half a stone in 2 weeks and I just looked at them and said.. I don’t know? Not on ozempic though 🤣

I'm just not a natural "joiner" or a comparer I think Slimming world would be my idea of hell, I just like to get on with it (losing weight, exercise, learning another language, whatever...) by myself, sometimes that's a disadvantage, sometimes not it seems 🙂

its been great reading all these threads!you lot have been a great source of advice and inspiration!
im now on Ozempic 1mg (started in March I think)…but looking for some advice.
I’ve been lucky with side effects so far but the 1mg has hit hard with constipation and light headedness as well as stomach cramps. I’ve used laxative and upped fibre but just for next week (need to function properly for a work thing) I want to go back to .5. Is there a way to count clicks to do this…and does anyone know how many??
I’ve lost 2st so far…half way to goal, but just need to back down to get through next week’s commitments!
thanks for any advice….I’ll catch up on the thread again in my lunch break!

.5 is 36 or 37 clicks

Beenalongwinter, you are an absolute star, Thankyou.

(as an aside, my learning for today is never take a laxative and go to work as normal….it’s been an eventful morning)!

This is probably in the thread but I'm feeling a bit under the weather (feeling like I have a uti) I have a 0.25mg pen. I did 4 injections of 0.25mg with it and 2 in a row last week to give mya 0.5mg dose. Will I get another 0.5 mg out if it? But that's it?

Ffs I think I fucked up my injection.

I have a uti so I'm not on top form, plus work is redic. Just to explain I'm not normally stupid. Did my injection and didn't hold it in, I normally count to 10 or 20 it doesn't hurt me at all so I like to leave it a bit longer too. But I pressed it. It clicked down all the clicks and I pulled it out.

I'm annoyed at myself, I just wasn't concentrating. There was a drop of liquid on the needle. Not much but I feel the dose is tiny. So now I'm worried I haven't had a full dose. Anyone any thoughts? Or commiserations that I'm so daft!

Well if there was only a small dose left on the needle, the rest has probably gone in. I wouldn't worry, and I wouldn't be tempted to redo it as you could end up with a double dose (plus it costs £££ so you don't want to waste it).

I'm worried that it came out of the pen but didn't go in. Anyway I think as you say re doing it could risk a double dose so I'll leave it.

If it came out, but didn't go in your injection site would be wet. I'm sure it's fine

I was fine for 6 weeks and then the sulphur burps, bad stomach, diarrhoea and vomiting started 😭

I’ve got a question. I struggled with moving up to 0.5 so went back to 0.25. Trouble is, my body isn’t responding at all now at 0.25. Could I take 0.25 a few days apart to get the 0.5 in a week? And maybe make the side-effects a bit easier?

@FMLWTF I know on Juniper the team have recommended some people space out their doses more to help with side effects (eg every 12 days rather than 7).

I'm taking my 3rd 0.5 dose later and really hoping I don't suffer for the 3rd weekend in a row...

@FMLWTF I did the same, went back to 0.25 for one week, next week did two a couple of days apart and last two weeks took full 0.5 dose. I suffered dreadful symptoms from week 2 but the only symptoms I have now is feeling slightly nauseous occasionally which is usually helped by eating ironically. I have a permanent, overwhelming tiredness but I think that's getting a little better too. I think unless you take the plunge and let your body get used to the higher dose, you might be stuck on 0.25 for ever.

How long did the dreadful symptoms last? Asking for a friend?

I suppose mine were marginally better last weekend as I only threw up once rather than 5 times

I've had a bit of up and down journey and have not exactly followed the tritation 100%. Worst symptoms started after 2nd injection. They were bad, nausea, fatigue, chills - I WFH for 2 weeks. Then I went away for a weekend and only took 0.12 dose that week as didn't want weekend ruined. Went back to 0.25 for two weeks and chills stopped then. Nausea lessened but tiredness got worse. Took 0.5 dose then everything came back, tiredness worsened, which I didn't think was possible. It really affected my routine to a huge extent so went back down to 0.25 as had another weekend away planned. Last two doses have been at 0.5 and tiredness is still overriding problem. After all this I've only lost 7lb (bit I understand this given my journey and the weekends away) and I still have to work really hard not to overeat. Maybe symptoms and weight loss would have settled more if I'd just stuck with the normal timeline so please don't use me as a standard example. Everybody's journey has been different and some have had great losses with minimum or no symptoms

After a few weeks on 0.5 dose I had D&V. It only lasted about half an hour and I was totally fine after but it was so out of the blue as I haven't had side effects at all. I attributed it to the Oz as I had sulphur burps and I'm so rarely sick that it's the only thing that's changed that I think could cause it.

Anyway, fast forward 4 weeks and it happened again. Again, just the 1 bout but I noticed that both times was the 1st day of my period. I have PCOS and have always had very erratic periods and this is the first time I've noticed that I seem to be falling into a 4 week cycle and now twice with this D&V so wondering if it's all related.

I've also not had much appetite suppression, what has happened for me is that I find I don't crave carb heavy food, probably due to the Oz helping with insulin resistance. Despite no appetite suppression I'm still losing weight all be it slowly so I feel like the Oz is having a big impact on my PCOS symptoms and related insulting resistance. I've had a look online and there hasn't been much research in this area but I've seen a research study is due to take place on the impact if Oz on those with PCOS.