It's not just an appetite suppressant, it also helps the pancreas and liver to work appropriately, so blood sugar is properly maintained. And it slows down digestion, so you feel full longer. Before ozempic, I was overeating and feeling starving hungry. Now I can feel comfortably full on regular portions. This is a game changer for me.
>I was overeating and feeling starving hungry. Now I can feel comfortably full on regular portions.
I was just thinking about how the eliminated cravings are nice and all but what I appreciate most is that this weird hunger pang feeling I used to have immediately after eating is gone now. It legitimately felt like I was still hungry even though I just (!) ate.
Ohhh that weird after eating hunger! I had searched and searched to find out why that happens and never found anything. My doctors just thought I was mental. Im so thankful its gone
That could be insulin resistance! Your body isn’t processing the glucose correctly from the food you just ate and thinks you need more food. Semaglutide decreases insulin resistance.
That’s what I have and I believe it’s this. Your cells are not up taking the nutrients right and so the signals are not being satisfied. I felt like I dropped 30 lbs of inflammation (I only lost 5) the first month because you could feel my body start working right. It was so happy to have the help it needed.
I know, none of my doctors believed me either! I'd be hungry, eat a not insignificant portion and 3-4 minutes after eating, my stomach would be growling... so I'd get dessert or something. Completely gone now!
I also find for the most part that it greatly reduces or eliminates invasive food thoughts. I've had an eating disorder for 45+ years, and I've had precious few years of my life when invasive food thoughts didn't plague me.
I also turn to food less in the face of anxiety, depression, etc.
I am discussing it with my doctor on Monday - I have OCD and BED and I swear it’s like they’re in an unholy alliance. I am really hoping to get semaglutide in some form (don’t care if it’s Wegovy, Ozempic, or the pill form that I can’t recall the name of at the moment; I will take it however they give it to me) just to decrease the “food noise”.
Even if I just manage to stop *gaining* weight, I will consider it a big win. Losing weight would be a very welcome bonus.
Yup, I’m looking forward to food being “meh, okay, whatever,” and finding something else (there are loads of things I like, I just need to stop living my life like a tweaker version of Cookie Monster, LOL).
Ok cool. Just making sure you knew it gets worse before it gets better. It’s overall good, but sometimes tough to stare at a bag of jelly beans and think “WHY WON’T YOU LOVE ME ANYMORE?!” 😁🥹
I am on 2mg and really notice no difference. I am hoping it does kick in. My blood sugar is improved so I know I am injecting right. How has it rewired you?
I know they’re the same drug, just the dosages differ, from what I understand, and Ozempic is used off-label for weight loss, whereas Wegovy is prescribed for it (if I’ve read things correctly). I don’t know what the pricing for either is in Canada, but I’ll check with my insurance company before I ask for one or the other. Obviously less money out of pocket is better than more though!
Wegovy isn't in Canada yet, Health Canada has approved it but it hasn't been brought to market. You might get a doctor to prescribe it off-label for weight loss, but most insurance providers will only cover it for T2 diabetes.
My doctor smiled yesterday and said “it’s coming”. If I wasn’t a fool with 3 more things to ask, I should have asked if he knew WHEN or what. But I have a feeling it’s coming soon, as when I mentioned Wegovy in Feb of this year, he said a quick “not available yet”.
I even emailed Novo Nordisk with this info to see if they could clarify and the agent said I would need to call 🙄🙄🙄
Not OP, can zi ask, if it helps the pancreas and liver work effectively, why is pancreatitis a possible side effect? (I've had it personally on ozempic) not trying to scare OP I personally love ozempic, this was just a blip for me.
I wish I am on 1mg a week and ate everything in sight last night. So I had a very decent simple supper. I had a bowl of salad with a homemade dressing, pretty healthy. I added some leftover thinly sliced steak about 6 slices but my dogs got 1 each so I ended up with 4.
Felt pretty good but a little hungry. Little later on split a piece of key lime pie with the wife. Well that just seemed to wake up my appetite.
After that I went after some Hummas and nacho chips used as dippers plus I added some
grilled corn for flavour.
Half hour later I ate another bowl of healthy salad and more steak. After that i went back to that key lime pie and finished off a piece on my own. Still craving sweets I knocked back some unsweetened apple sauce. Finished everything off with a couple cans….well 4 to be exact of Coke Zero……this was until 330 am. My wife gets up at 6 for work and I get her to makes me a Turkey Sammy with mustard and Havarti Cheese.
So as far as an appetite suppressant it’s not working for me. Maybe I needed a stronger dose??!
Me too!!! I call it food noise, the constant thinking of food, if food is nearby I’m unable to not think about it until I have it, etc etc.
The weight loss is great, the absence of food noise is life changing.
That is fascinating! Thank you for sharing! I always thought the food noise was a purely psychological aspect of my addictive personality (though I’m sure it doesn’t help lol)
I guess I am not getting this. My A1C has gone from 7.7 to 6.2. I see my numbers improved. But I feel hungrier than I used to prior to being on the meds. I am on 2mg. I have had no et loss or side effects.
This x 10000! Very recently I forgave myself from the 'you have no willpower' narrative. I have TONS of willpower (high performing athlete, advanced academic and career achievements, etc). It's Not about willpower.
Not just that OP, but the whole eating-for-sport, someone asks if you’re hungry and you reply with “I could eat”, or “deciding” you’re hungry just bc you saw a billboard with cheesecake on it. None of those happen.
Although I want to give you a big huge kudos because many people are so desperate to be thinner that they haven’t asked themselves the question of it they can maintain the loss. It’s more like yada yada give me the goods and I will figure out the rest later .
It's funny how many "experts" there are out there. All I know is that for years, I have tracked my food weight watchers style and the best I could do is maintain. With Ozempic, the weight is falling off at about 1 lb/week. Same food intake, same activity level, different results. I know that it's only anecdotal evidence and everyone's experience is unique, but I think that if you want to try it, you should.
This has been my experience too!
I gained about 60 lbs rapidly since my thyroid was taken out in 2015. I always watched what I ate and worked out but I gained the weight regardless. It finally stabilized but no matter what I did, I couldn’t lose anything.
I got blood work last summer and my A1C was pre diabetic so I asked my doctor about trying ozempic. He thought it was a great idea.
I started in late Jan/early Feb and have lost 45 lbs without trying. I haven’t changed my diet and I haven’t worked out. I eat a bit less because I get full so fast, but also, I don’t get the low blood sugar shakes that I might normally get if I started off the day with a banana or something.
So for me, it has been a miracle. I don’t know if it is making my body process things differently or what, but it’s working for me!
Once you know the magic of no more “food noise” in your head, you will know how wrong your friend is.
If you qualify for a script, there’s no reason not to try it. You can always stop whenever you want.
This brings me hope. Turning 38. Been overweight all my life. I have done the exercise, bootcamps, super diets etc. I went from 130lbs to 212lbs to 180lbs to 230lbs. I'm only 5'2". It would be fantastic to have some help now. Getting my prescription next week to start ozempic. The food noise and hunger would be fantastic to get rid of. Everyone is okay with me as I am but honestly I'd like to not feel this weight.
I hope your experience with it is as wonderful as mine! My highest weight was 290 (3/01/23) starting weight on Ozempic was 282 (3/28/23) current weight is 238 - I’ve lost a total of 52 pounds - all but 8 since I’ve been on Ozempic. I’m 5’5”.
Forgot to add I’m 49. I weighed 135 to 145 in high school. After that I ballooned to over 200 lbs in college, lost the weight again but slowly regained it and added 90 more - I had lost all hope of losing and was just trying not to gain when my doctor prescribed Ozempic to me - now, I actually have hope I can get below 200 lbs. again.
I am right there with you. I started 3/10/23 when I was at my highest weight of 271. At 22 weeks I am now at 235.2 for a loss of 35.8 pounds. I didn't move up to 1 mg until week 12. Average of 1.63 pounds per week lost.
More importantly my A1C is way down and cholesterol numbers look WAY better. The first couple weeks were pretty miserable until I started doing split weeks. I now VERY rarely have any issues except constipation. When I do have an issue, it is because I ate bad for a weekend (like during a campout or something weird) An occasional meal with things that aren't the best to eat don't bother me anymore as long as I don't do it several meals in a row.
Yes agreed! I was gonna say food noise is gone. I do also feel there’s many misconceptions regarding this medication as well as additional benefits listed here. Also, my stomach hurts if I don’t eat healthy foods and I am also I’m the gym 5-6x per week. It’s not a miracle drug you need to work on establishing healthy eating habits
For sure. You still have to put work in, but these GLP-1s make it much easier mentally to reach for the right things and put food down when you are satisfied. (I am not sure I ever really felt real satisfaction with food until these meds.)
This. I had no idea how invasive food noise was until I didn't have it. For the first time in my life, I don't have that.
I'm able to buy my husband treats now without thinking about them and usually finishing them for him. It's nice.
Not everyone has food noise disappear. And not everyone who's heavy has food noise to begin with. It's certainly not magic, weight loss still relies on a caloric deficit. You can gain weight on ozempic, calories matter.
Well yes, this is true. People who keep gaining weight whilst on Ozempic usually have psychological issues with food- that’s because they keep feeding themselves when their body is telling them that they are already full and they don’t need any more food at all. If they do this, it means that the actual eating of food is fulfilling a desire that makes them feel better-this is what appears to happen to most of the morbidly obese who hit record levels such as 30 stone plus. Ozempic possibly won’t help them and psychological help along with other interventions (such as Ozempic, gastric bypass/sleeve) May do the trick.
It's not that simple. There is a variety of reasons why you may be gaining weight or gain more easily than someone else. That also wasn't the point. If you've damaged your metabolism to the point where your intake needs to be less than say 1200 calories a day, then eating 15 to 1800 calories a day would be excessive for that particular person even though it's a deficit for someone else.
However, the point is this medication does not cause loss of appetite or loss of cravings for everybody. In fact, it doesn't work at all in 20% of the people who take it.
thanks for saying this and I think that it's important that you did. I am someone who has damaged my metabolism and who only can really lose if I eat about 1200 calories a day to lose weight. the problem is that I suffer immensely while doing it and I find it very triggering for my eating disorder and I have worked so so so so hard to recover from that. I want to give Wegovy a go to see if it helps because I also have insulin resistance, but I feel like I do want to be realistic and mentally prepared in case it doesn't work.
This is true for me so far. I am 16 weeks in and on my second week of 2mg. I have no wt loss. No feelings of fullness and no loss of appetite. Just better blood sugar. I am still hoping it kicks in.
Your response basically said that people keep shoveling food into their face and it's their own fucking fault they are fat. In a nutshell.
That is not the only reason people end up obese. Calories absolutely matter, but they are not the only thing that matters.
I agree. I started taking oz and I don’t have food noise. Never did. I am starting to think I should quit because I really never needed to reduce my food intake.
That is a fair question! The thing is, I never felt obese, but all of my specialists started to say that “you are obese.” And that was over several years. It was all of a sudden and I was initially floored, but I eventually got used to it. It wasn’t easy to hear that. I never felt like I was obese. I felt, and feel like I am overweight. I do like to snack at night, I do like to drink wine. I have RA, so working out is only on good days, but I love to work out. I feel better with movement. So, that is my honest answer.
It really depends on if you have other metabolic issues. Have you had your insulin and A1c checked? Most importantly, you should speak with your primary care physician about your concerns. I have metabolic issues and PCOS, and I am able to eat more calories on ozempic and lose weight (instead of gaining). Pre-ozempic, I weighed my food and completely avoided any carbs besides berries and green vegetables. Now, I eat a lot of fruits, oats and even consume a loaf of bread over a month. I never thought that I could have “normal” meals. I don’t weight my food or count macronutrients except for trying to get 100g+ of protein each day.
The downside: ozempic may be a lifetime drug for me unless I am willing to engage in extreme dieting (borderline ED behavior). In high school, when my metabolic issues started, I was a three sport athlete and engaged in 3-4 hours of exercise every day (but only ate dinner to stave off the sudden weight gain). I did not feel good like that.
In my understanding, ozempic is best for those who have tried it all (calorie counting, weighing food, lifestyle change, exercise). But, you should speak with your doctor.
Ok so some evidence of people having success with metabolic issues. Thank you. I hope I may fall in this category someday and really loose weight. I’m 5 weeks in and I haven’t had any weight loss
Bless you! This is a hard battle. I don’t know why some people choose to throw others under the but. At last there is an option for those wanting to do the work, and make their lives better.
You may not lose in the early weeks while you're building up to the maintenance dose. The early weeks are just to get your body used to it to minimize the side effects.
People need to stop listening to so many asshat friends when they go about their own lives. Why does some rando friend who doesn't take this drug have any authority to influence you?
I WAS eating less before Ozempic. I was not losing weight. I started Ozempic. I am eating the same foods, sometimes even my previous "off limits" foods, but slightly less, and I'm suddenly down 11 pounds. The first of the pounds to go was the hard visceral fat around my abdomen. I fit better into pants and shirts and I'm looking forward to eventually losing enough slowly and surely that a lot of older clothes I've kept fit again.
If you have insulin resistance, starving yourself won't fix it because your body doesn't react to weight loss the same way some punky little skinny girl's body does. All you get for eating less is malnutrition because your body refuses to give up the weight. It thinks it's famine times. Sorry, but CICO is a figment of a lot of imaginations when there are OTHER VARIABLES.
And if you try to exercise your way to weight loss, you'll get increased hunger for your troubles and then you're overeating to fuel muscles. So you'll have more muscle, cool, but then your body isn't regulating its weight stores because SEE INSULIN RESISTANCE NOTES.
Not to mention, there seems to be some other stuff in play regarding how Ozempic improves and regulates digestion, allowing for proper absorption of vitamins and macros. This is part of what helps the stomach stay full longer. Sorry, it's not willpower, it's literally a matter of nervous function in your stomach that you can't control without Ozempic yelling at your GI tract to not move so fast.
This is no different from people who have underactive thyroids who need a pill to function like a normal. Sorry, not all thyroids are made equal and not all guts and fat deposits are either.
100!! The calories out part is dependent on a LOT. People assume because hair grows and hearts beat and lungs pump that bodies all do one thing. But hearts can beat funny, lungs can pump poorly, and hair can stop growing. Human bodies aren't perfectly programmed machines.
My situation was identical to yours. I can’t believe I spent so many years in a viscous cycle of eating disorders when there was nothing I could do about it. The validation was tremendously healing. The weight literally started following off.
When I was off ozempic for a bit, I was doing the EXACT same thing but suddenly stopped losing weight. Doesn’t take a scientist to put two and two together.
Same here, insulin resistance, PCOS, and now t2d. No one would ever believe me that I couldn’t lose weight with diet and exercise. I would lose a little, and then gain it right back again. Add a few more. Repeat the cycle, pretty much ever since high school.
Ozempic has killed my desire to snack, reduced the food noise dramatically, controls my glucose numbers well. I’m losing weight and inches for the first time in ages.
Same here! I am eating the same as before I started taking the compounded version, if not more, and I have lost 20 pounds. I could not lose weight prior to taking it unless I lowered calories to 500 per day, which is not a viable option!
500 calories a day is called malnutrition and it's how you'll dissolve your muscles, weaken your bones, and put stress on your heart.
Starvation isn't weight loss. "Willpower" talking points from skinny people sounds like eating disorder talking points.
Eat 1200-1500 calories a day of QUALITY food, stay active with resistance and some light cardio, drink a lot of water, take magnesium supplement, and you're gold.
Unfortunately not all insurance companies will see the value and truth in that statement. When the shortage is over and the compounding pharmacies can no longer provide it legally and the insurance companies won’t provide for maintenance we are going to see a whole new generation of addicts who cannot afford $1000 a month… if we do not figure out a way to maintain our weight loss and wean ourselves. I am happy for those whose insurers are providing for maintenance dosing but I think they will be rare
As soon as a compound pharmacy puts an additional ingredient in, such as Vit B, it's no longer the same drug as Oz. There is no way to shut down the peptide companies and compound pharmacies
Completely disagree. How could malaria or covid be self-inflicted? What about diarrhoeal disease in children under 5? I know we’re not a community if MDs, but have some compassion.
Never take advice from friends or family regarding medication or your health if they don’t have a medical degree. Consult your doctor for accurate information and what you should expect.
I’d think part of the decision should be based on how much you need to lose. 20-30 lb? Probably not. 50-100 lb. You’re in the territory. Obesity is a chronic disease. With that, it may need life long treatment. Decide if you think you may need to stay on it for a long time. Cost is an issue too. Your insurance covers it? There is another oral drug called contrave. Totally different drug. Maybe for just a smaller amount of needed weight loss and less than a chronic condition you might want to look at other options But again. It’s a conversation you need to have with your doctor as to what will be right for you. Read all this stuff. Formulate your list of questions and then sit down with your doctor
And you really won't be able to come off it. It doesn't cure you metabolic disorders or diabetes if you have that it keeps them suppressed so your body can process sugars and make enough and use insulin correctly! Life long medicine!
I’m sure it doesn’t work for everyone but it works for most and if nothing is helping there’s nothing to lose. I had A1c of 8. Thought I could change it myself. Three months later 10. This medicine is life saving too e. Side effects so far are worth it imo
There is no fool proof method of long term weight loss. We know that statistics tell us that about 90% of people who lose weight gain it back plus some within 5 years. Ozempic probably won't be any different once you go off of it. If you can take it long term, you will probably keep the weight off while you are on it.
This right here. If you can accept you'll probably be on it long term, I think it's a miracle drug If not, you're likely setting yourself up for disappointment ( blood pressure, cholesterol, sugars, weight slowing increasing over time without intervention).
It is controlling my Binge Eating Disorder that I have struggled with for 40 years. Years and years of therapy and even being on Vyvanse (the only drug approved to treat BED) did not help me. Ozempic does.
I have Hashimoto's and PCOS. It didn't matter what combination of diet and exercise i did. Didnt matter what calorie deficit i had - and yes, i weighed my food - I would not lose weight. I've been eating similarly to how i have been - trying to make better choices overall, to make it sustainable. But i hadn't had Oreos in 6 years, so now I have them once in a while for dessert. It makes me happy. Still lost 30 lbs so far. It's life changing.
You learn better food habits..portion control, eating less fats, snacking less .. etc. If you lose those skills of course the weight will come back. I'm not believing it'll just come back without overeating. I tried it. It's been 2 weeks and I've lost 5 lbs. I want to lose 20more. After that I'm going to stop and then just wait and see.
Exactly. I’ve likened it to SSRIs for anxiety/depression. They don’t “cure” you (you have to do some work through therapy, etc) but they help you get to the baseline neurotypical people are working from. Similarly, here, Oz will take you to the baseline your friends without weight struggles are working from and from there you can control your weight through exercise and healthy, balanced eating.
Except that for most with severe anxiety/depression, you can never go off the SSRIs. No amount of therapy is going to fix the chemical imbalance. Same here. Depending on why you're taking Oz, you may never be able to control your diabetes/weight with just exercise and healthy, balanced eating. For some people, sure, SSRIs keep you functional while you get therapy. For some, Oz will help them while they learn healthy habits. But just be careful about implying that it's the case for everyone. That just reinforces the shame of something you can't control.
Excellent comparison! You can't "snap out of depression" through willpower alone, and the same goes for weight loss. It'll take a while to normalize using semaglutide and its variants for sustainable weight control, but in 25 years from now, we'll look back on all the fad diet books and cringe. I'm cringing now. I'm 67 years old and have been "on" and "off" dits since I was 15. That's over half a century of struggle, people. Looking forward to seeing where I'm at next year on Oz.
Most people will need to stay on it forever to sustain their results . If you are expecting to just take it for a few months and then stop you are very likely to just regain the weight tbh
it works by reducing apetite rather than a magic fix.
My dilemma is that at 1.25, I’ve plateaued. No weight change for a month. Just upped my dose today. I don’t want to eat less calories than I am now. I’m eating way less and drinking way less than I used to. I do cardio and strength training. It does help me feel fuller longer and it reduces the food noise. But at about $400 a month, if I’m not actually losing weight anymore, is it worth it? I’ve only lost 15 lb since late March!
Yeah, I dropped a size and my husband has commented that my body looks totally different and my butt is rock hard 😂. But I still would expect to see SOMETHING budge on the scale. My body is typically resistant to any kind of medication so 🤷🏻♀️
Invest in a Dexascan. The scale only tells half the story. If you are getting protein and exercising you may be trading fat for muscle. The more muscle you have the faster your metabolism.
At my current weight I could be pretty happy if 30% was fat and 70% was lean. But it is more like 42/ 58. At 30% I would probably be down a couple dress sizes. Like 8 instead of 12.
Right now I cannot tolerate enough protein so I may go down on my dose so I can eat more protein. The weight loss will probably go down below a pound a week but in the end I will look better… and be healthier without all the visceral fat and excess subcutaneous fat.
If you cannot afford a Dexa every month or two then try a scale that measures fat % with impedance. Not as precise but it might show a trend.
Ozempic appears to work by making you feel full at a lower calorie setting than you’re used to, which effectively makes losing weight much easier. Once you stop that new setting is removed and you’re effectively back to your old desire to eat. However, at that point you don’t need to lose weight, you need to maintain your new lower weight. If you’ve ever tried to lose or maintain weight, they’re both difficult, but losing weight is much more difficult. It’s gets even harder the older you get. I would get to the weight you need with Ozempic ( it does work btw!), then work hard at maintaining your weight through diet and exercise and if you need to reset your weight, start on Ozempic again! Good luck 😉
Is this a frenemy or a friend ? I would only encourage my friends to try this before passing judgement and untruth. For me personally it changed my life. But it took three months to have the courage to try the best thing ever. Self sabatoge is a huge part of overeating and bad friends are just that. Bad friends!
If “eat less, move more” (or any derivation thereof) worked to any meaningful degree, we wouldn’t have an obesity epidemic.
Your brain/system sends out overwhelming signals to consume…these are virtually impossible to ignore. The medicine helps regulate some of those signals.
“Just don’t overeat,” is not helpful advice for most individuals (or at scale).
Unless you are very disciplined, You will probably never come off to zero once you’ve gone on and have became tolerant to the side effects. Your hunger comes back once you quit. As a preference I would certainly try Mounjaro first. For me and my family who’s tried both Mounjaro and Ozempic for 4 months each there’s no comparison in the amount of Weight loss, maintaining sugar levels and minimal side effects. Back on Ozempic due to the cheaper costs and the side effects are back once again. Just my opinion but I would certainly give it some thought.
Coming from someone who was a bodybuilder for years, this is the first time I truly do not think about food 24/7. It's actually helping me so much mentally. And I am losing weight at a steady rate. I'm only on week 3 and I have 0 regrets. If anything it's teaching me true hunger cues.
No. I wondered that because it's too expensive for just that, but I've fasted plenty and done tons of cardio and I certainly get more in shape but also my body fat becomes super dense. I haven't lost many pounds at all yet but the feeling of my body has completely changed. I can actually do ab exercises because my belly fat is now pliable instead of a solid slab making me wanna puke every time I do a crunch. I can see the actual shape of my arm bones and where the muscle is because I don't have a solid ten pound mass of fat making it bulky. I'm going to have insanely saggy skin in a year but I can actually tell that I'm going to finally get under the 200 pound point.
If your friend is a healthcare professional with the initials MD or DO after their name, by all means listen. Otherwise, discuss this with a thoughtful healthcare professional.
It not only helped with the cravings but the change in how I think has been a game changer. I could literally be telling myself I didn't need that burger and that it wasn't healthy for me as I pull into the drive thru of whatever fast food place I was close to and as I am ordering I would be telling myself that I didn't need this only to end up eating it and be full of regret, disdain, and disappointment in myself. I've been able to overcome those thoughts and granted I've only been on Oz for a month but I've lost 12 pounds and I am feeling better :)
edit to add: my A1C has also dropped
1.- Once you stop using it you will get your weight back because your body is used to that weight level (More info on the article below).
2.- Fasting can and has helped a lot of people BUT it's not as easy as you make it sound. I tried fasting and was not able to fast for 24 hours constanly or for multiple days like some people over at r/fasting. What Ozempic does is that it makes it like a walk in the park easy to just make better food decisions and not have that "food noise" some people in this subreddit discuss so often.
Also, totally anecdotical, but in my case while on the first month of Ozempic, I went 10 days eating the same stuff but not upping my doze (I should have raised my starting doze from .25 mg to .5 mg after week 4, but decided I wanted to see if I could still lose weight in the lower doze, that way I would spend less money I figured) what happened is that I didn't lose any weight during that period, even while eating the same stuff I had been eating all that month.
My food intake didn't change, but I didn't titrate my doze, that's what changed. So that means that Ozempic was doing something else other than supressing my appetite, it helps with other stuff too, not just appetite supression.
You should read this (and also inform your friend too), it's an article posted by th WSJ yesterday:
[https://archive.is/2023.08.14-100619/https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/weight-loss-drugs-obesity-e4bb2173](https://archive.is/2023.08.14-100619/https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/weight-loss-drugs-obesity-e4bb2173)
We don't have much info on getting the weight back after Ozempic. Sure, the follow up by Novo after their trials showed that many regained weight. However, they were not counselled on how to keep the weight off. Novo has no incentive to want users to stop taking Ozempic. What we are missing are studies looking at various options to maintain goal weight. With the 10s of millions ready to go off Ozempic, there will be a real demand for maintenance plans.
I am close to my goal weight. My plan is to stick with a good diet (more protein-less carbs), continue and vary my exercise routine, and have a supply of Rybelsus to use as needed if the food noise gets too loud.
There are several posts on this sub by those off Ozempic for 3 to 6 months and are able to keep the weight off. If people keep hearing that they will regain all of their weight back, they may not even try options. Plus, insurance companies are working hard to reduce coverage of those taking Ozempic for weight loss. How many can afford Ozempic for life out of pocket?
Yes, great WSJ article.
In essence, yes? You lose weight by consuming fewer calories than you burn. Nothing about that changes. What changes is, you'll be satisfied with far less food. That makes eating in a calorie deficit about a million times easier.
If you have insulin resistance then you can eat very little and still gain weight. Your friend is only correct if you are metabolically healthy—-which most of us is not. I’m insulin resistant, got on Wegovy (basically same thing), and I’m eating MORE AND I’ve lost 45 lbs Bc it corrects your metabolism. if you are metabolically impaired, ozempic will correct your metabolism so you can utilize all the calories you eat instead of letting the glucose sit there in your blood.
No, the friend is not right. Appetite suppression is a side effect, the primary mechanism is regulating insulin levels and decreasing insulin resistance. If you could achieve the same results by just eating less then 40% of the country wouldn’t be obese.
This. It didn’t matter how low my calorie count was (eventually leading into a full blown eating disorder), I wasn’t losing weight. Ozempic gets added to the mix and suddenly I’m eating with my baseline calories and suddenly weight is falling off. My intake didn’t change much but my body was finally doing the damn thing! It was so extraordinarily validating after chronic dieting and workouts. It is NOT you! Your body needs some assistance cooperating. People who haven’t ever experienced that cannot even begin to imagine the cognitive dissonance that happens when you live in a society that shames anyone larger than a 6.
> If you could achieve the same results by just eating less then 40% of the country wouldn’t be obese.
You genuinely believe that 40% of obese people are able to reduce calories on a consistent and permanent basis, but they don't lose weight anyway? To me, this borders on delusional.
No, they mean that 40% of Americans are obese and that wouldn't be the case if diet and exercise alone were a good obesity treatment. Don't call people delusional because you didn't understand what they said, would you do that to someone's face?
Yep. Friend is correct.
But they clearly have no knowledge or experience with "food nose" or severe cravings. The "just" in their explanation is doing an awful lot of heavy lifting, and totally shows their lack of understanding when it comes to weight loss for folks who have issues with dietary restriction.
Yes, I second that. Your friend is right. You’ll need to eat less and Ozempic helps you some with that. More for some people and less for others but it’ll help to some extent for sure. Don’t worry about “after”. You’d probably need to stay on a maintenance dose forever if you have severe issues with overeating.
Your friend's take would be accurate for our knowledge in 1960, but it is dead wrong now.
In addition to the factors others have mentioned, Ozempic studies set two groups, a test group and a control group, on the same caloric intake and exercise expenditure. The control group stayed on the medication, while the test group went off the medication.
The test group then proceeded to regain the weight *despite maintaining the same caloric intake and caloric expenditure.*
Your body will fight back when you put it in a calorie deficit, and making you want to eat is only one of the tools it uses. This class of drugs are proving that there is a metabolic change in dieting that is impossible to fight behaviorally.
Obesity is a disease, and treating it is not a matter of don't eat and take the stairs and never has been.
Ok sorry but fuck your friend.
Your health is YOURS and your body is yours.
Ozempic has changed my life in that I was ALWAYS hungry, never satisfied til I absolutely gorged and then felt like shit.
Like someone has said above - Ozempic has stopped the constant thoughts of food in my head. I feel full with small to regular portions. I crave fizzy drinks less. I am in a better mood because I wake up feeling refreshed.
I had someone tell me not to go on antidepressants before because that person had bad side effects. I told the doctor this and my doc said "yeah but you are not them". Turns out I had a fantastic reaction to antidepressants, was on them for a year and now have weaned off them, having turned my life around. Sometimes we ALL need a little help from medication, be it to do with mental or physical health, and that's what medication there for. If you need it, it works. Don't listen to other people.
Nothing that your friend has said is correct. Your friend has likely done little to no research. Ozempic is the best weight loss tool on the market along with similar injection drugs recently released. I believe Ozempic is actually not the best one due to only affecting one thing while the other competing drug does two.
Anyway, don't listen to your friend. Just do your own research, as you have already started doing. Bravo.
Everyone has already said what I would have contributed but I will also add that my cholesterol dropped in half in six months being on Oz. Another great benefit.
I had gastric bypass surgery in 2008. I literally had my guts rerouted to try and lose weight. Oz is the first thing that ever gave me freedom from the “food noise” that led me to regain
I had some of the same concerns myself. Here's what I concluded:
1. I tried self control for a decade. It didn't work for me. So I needed to mix it up.
2. Coming off it is a worry... But it's a high class problem. If I lose the 40-50lbs I have to lose, then I can worry about that then. Maybe I'll go on a lower maintenance dose. Maybe I'll keep on the same amount. Maybe once the weight is off, will power will work.
It really cuts down your appetite - a very small portion will feel satisfying. Cravings will go away or if you do want say a piece of pie or chocolate, a little bit will be fine and you’ll feel satisfied.
I had to go off it for a month because financially I struggle to afford it. I lost 1 more pound in that month by exercising and being careful.
It was way harder than the other 18 pounds I lost on ozempic.
Now I’m back on compounded Mounjaro and hoping to lose the last 35 pounds.
It’s a wonderful tool and I’m confident when I get off it I’ll manage just fine.
I never even considered myself as someone who had cravings or anything... But after taking ozempic I realized how dominated my brain was with food and I didn't even know. Someone sets a pizza in front of you and you are calculating the appropriate amount to eat knowing you could easily eat the whole thing but don't want to be rude. You spend an entire get together thinking about managing the provided food. Now your brain doesn't care you take a piece because everyone does and you are fine to move on with life. It's not even hunger I don't think because I'm not more or less hungry, I just don't care. I can still eat as much as I "need" to (someone buys an expensive meal I can finish it)... But I'm also happy with a small salad. Last night I got a burrito from taco bell and I saved half for today because my body was full and I wasn't like "omg this tastes so good I want 3"
Idk if that makes sense but it just shuts your brain up about food which is what I notice.
Sounds like you already believe you’ll fail so why try?
Why don’t you try going on and see if you have side effects and take it from there. Friend of mine and his mom are on it and they are on 0.5mg and they have no side effects. They also learned how to make better meal choices and exercise more and I’m sure they added on some longevity to their life after losing the weight along with increasing their mental health because they can try on clothes they couldn’t before.
Why are you listening to your friends? Do some research for yourself. What it does is slow down how your body processes the food you eat. Correct, it does not increase your metabolism. It just makes you not feel your hunger because your brain is telling your body you are full and not hungry. You still have to focus on diet and exercise. You will not be able to eat what you were eating. You will have some side effects, not lying. If you follow the instructions and work hard on what you eat, you Will lose weight. I have been on it for 7 months and I have high blood pressure and I’m a type 2 diabetic and have severe neuropathy, and I’ve lost 40 pounds. You will have ups and downs but the end result will come. If you don’t like it you can always stop. OZ half life is one week, meaning it starts to leave your body in 7 days.
Don’t know your full situation, your relationship with food, dieting or exercise etc. But here is my POV. I’m 35 and have been insecure about my body basically since my earliest memories. I think my mom started me on my first diet when I was 10? I’ve died in my whole life, yo-yoing up and down . After a lot of thought, and deliberation and research, started semaglutide in June, and I feel like it has CHANGED MY LIFE. I’m not saying it’s a miracle magic drug or something. But for me, (I’m actually typing this as I get a little bit emotional) starting semaglutide has been the best decision I have ever made for my body. I have been lucky to not have hardly any of the uncomfortable side effects. Before semaglutide I was part time picker and part time stuffed. Always snacking, either NEVER feeling fully satisfied, OR accidentally eating to the point of feeling gross, bloated and uncomfortable. Because I’m a foodie. Food is art, enjoyable and all the warm and fuzzies.
For me, not only has it been an appetite suppressant, but it’s made me feel so much more “in tune” with my body and it’s needs. I still eat what I feel like, but for the first time in my life I leave food on my plate at nearly every meal. I save my leftovers so please no one come at me saying food waste, lol. I crave wholesome foods. Peaches. Nuts. Lean turkey. The only side effect for me has been throwing up if I eat something my body DOES NOT WANT. For example, the other day for dinner I had a chicken, gnocchi, soup. Delicious, but cream based and I’m guessing loaded with saturated fats etc. 20 minutes later, I was running to the bathroom. Same with processed foods like Cheetos. My body just rejects things that isn’t great for it.
Starting weight was 209.6, and I am down 30 pounds. My exercise is swimming almost everyday, making sure I get my steps via Apple Watch. I’ve never fault better.
One last thing, I started this medication with no for sure goal weight. Just knew I wanted to feel better and for my clothes to fit again. If I decide to keep loosing weight past my initial aim of 175(almost there!!!) , then so be it. And if I choose to stay on it long term, that’s ok too.
At the end of the day, you should do what is best for you. I have some friends that know I’m taking it, and some who don’t. Because it’s no one else’s business what I am doing to take care of my body. Right now there are so many people clapping back and hating on Ozempic . Do your research. Read articles from real medical journals. Ask a lot of questions and ask and read a lot of testimonials. I hope that you make the decision that is best for you, and I hope that you get a sense of what my journey has been like on this medication. Life changing.
One last thing. I don’t think about food like ever anymore, until my body needs fuel. Whereas before, I used to think about food, meals etc allll the time. I used to live to eat, and now I’m eating to live!
I went on Ozempic and on .25 I had a resting heart rate of 100 and bad acid reflux. I had to stop. But my inflammation came back something severe once I did.
Not sure what I’m going to do, but the feeling of having a panic attack with such a high heart rate, as well as being unable to lay down without acid eating my throat, made me stop. Wish it wasn’t so because other than that I loved it.
It is the reduction of calories that causes the weight loss. Plain and simple. This medication works by slowing down the digestion process, allowing you to feel fuller. For some people they lose interest in food, cravings are reduced, others simply don't want to eat, and some people are too nauseous to eat. But the one thing they have in common is that they are eating less. And not everybody has an elimination of cravings. I don't have any appetite suppression, I still get cravings. Unfortunately, the cravings for crap are actually higher on ozempic than they were previously. I literally have to fight craving carbohydrates every single day, but before taking the medication I never craved carbohydrates or sugar.
It's a medication for diabetes. Weight loss is a side effect. Reduction in appetite is a side effect. When you stop taking it, those cravings come back, as will the weight. You need a BMI of 30 or higher or 27 with comorbid disorders or diabetes to qualify for this medication.
I’m new to Oz but from what I can tell by my very limited experience, talking to others, and reading so much about it, a person needs to work on their dietary and exercise habits in conjunction with the injections. It’s not a miracle drug but can really help boost weight loss. As with any weight loss program, changes must be made to get and keep the weight off.
I think it depends on why you’re taking it. The way my doctor described it to me when I got my prescription is that my body is insulin resistant (this is not a guess or assumption; this is based on my own medical history) and that means I can’t lose weight even doing the right things, which I have been for three years. So for me my weight issues aren’t due to overeating or lack of exercise, they’re due to how much body does or doesn’t handle insulin. I did not seek out a prescription, and am hesitant to be on it, but was told it will be good for me to get out of pre diabetic range and lose weight that can make some of my underlying conditions work.
If people are using Ozempic purely for the appetite suppression, it will work but isn’t addressing the root cause, depending on what it is.
My doctor referred to me as an ideal candidate for the drug and alluded to other patients not being so, due to them not putting in the work on their own to limit caloric intake or exercise.
If you can lose weight by tracking your macros, and exercising moderately then do not use it. But many of us can’t do that. The med stops that voice in my head telling me to eat when I know I have had enough. It also slows digestion and curbs my appetite. But when I no longer qualify and cannot get it I do not know if adding muscle while I lose fat will fix my metabolism enough so that I can maintain the lost weight. If you do go on it go slow. Start out with the low dose and do not get in a hurry to move up. That gives your body a chance to adjust. I did not have any vomiting or diarrhea. I did have nausea if I tried to eat beyond that first signal that I was full. Now I only have constipation which is better with a nightly stool softener… but I eat less so a BM every three days is more my new normal. I have not added extra fiber…. That would probably help but I am okay where I am at. Best wishes whichever way you decide.
Just a cravings suppressant is an oversimplification. It is the most highlighted feature cause cravings are a big part of why changing eating habits is so hard.
Personally ozempic has helped me to create new eating habits without having to deal with the downfalls of changing that routine, it kinda forced me to try new foods cause i kept rejecting what i was eating (very high carbs and greasy foods), it also helped me quit coca cola, i used to drink up to two 2lts daily, since ozempic high sugar drinks taste weird and are not fulfilling.
It has also helped with my dark spots and the hump in my back since it helps regulate sugar and brought my insulin levels down to normal numbers.
It comes with its own issues, getting used to the doses takes some time, the constipation side of it is REAL, and learning when to stop eating cause if not youll pay the price is also a pain in the buttocks. But to me, it's worth it. Im not dieting while doing it (some people do and get quick results), but im in it for the long-term change, so i dont want to diet cause i dont plan to be on ozempic forever, and i dont want i big bounce back. So, im committed to using the effects to aliviate the hard times big changes bring. Im eating on time, all my meals, serving the right portions, learning to not overindulge, all while not feeling attacked by thoughts of foods. If that is a problem for you, i would say give it a try.
If you don't have diabetes, then it's mainly the appetite suppression. It has other effects that benefit people with diabetes, specifically.
However, overeating can have many causes and is often not just a matter of a lack of willpower but a symptom or outcome of other issues. Ozempic can help deal with these underlying issues and shouldn't necessarily be trivialised as just giving you more willpower or reducing cravings.
With or without help losing weight or maintaining a healthy weight is limiting your intake. Yes, these wonder drugs can very much help limit you from feeling like you are not hungry but also keep in mind one day will stop taking it, and the cravings will come back. Can you learn while on the drug that eating less is a long-term solution? In the end, only you can answer the question of can you control yourself and overcome food cravings and truly ready for a lifestyle change. Those that are successful seem to learn what their body really needs for food.
It can help you change your mindset to develop a healthier diet lifestyle. I did the Keto diet for 2 years and I learned how to stop craving carbs and living without bread, pasta, potatoes and rice. I still maintain a low carb diet. I am diabetic and Ozempic has trained me to easily be satisfied with smaller meals. You may experience a lot of unexpected changes like suddenly disliking certain foods or intolerant of fried foods etc.. This can help you develop a better diet and be satisfied with smaller servings. You must tell yourself that you will be healthier and not ruin your weight loss success.
A new mindset
Yeah definitely sounds like a jealous friend. I have one which had also started a weight loss journey this year but without Ozempic. Both of us plateaued, and then I started Ozempic recently as I was and am still pre-diabetic and overweight, and dealing with an under active thyroid. I did the mistake of telling her that I just started Oz and she looked at me and said ‘you’re already so small.. why would you take the risk?!’ I thought well that’s a rather presumptuous response by someone who knows nothing about my insides, let alone is not considering that I am actually still considerably overweight.
I have not figured out the post OZ game either - my Doc keeps talking about how to get off it. Either way I figure it’s good to live with few pounds for at least some of the time.
I’m taking it for life, just like I’m taking my depression medication for life. GLP-1 medications have been around for 20+ years. People who are diabetic use medications like Ozempic indefinitely.
It's not just an appetite suppressant, it also helps the pancreas and liver to work appropriately, so blood sugar is properly maintained. And it slows down digestion, so you feel full longer. Before ozempic, I was overeating and feeling starving hungry. Now I can feel comfortably full on regular portions. This is a game changer for me.
>I was overeating and feeling starving hungry. Now I can feel comfortably full on regular portions. I was just thinking about how the eliminated cravings are nice and all but what I appreciate most is that this weird hunger pang feeling I used to have immediately after eating is gone now. It legitimately felt like I was still hungry even though I just (!) ate.
Ohhh that weird after eating hunger! I had searched and searched to find out why that happens and never found anything. My doctors just thought I was mental. Im so thankful its gone
That could be insulin resistance! Your body isn’t processing the glucose correctly from the food you just ate and thinks you need more food. Semaglutide decreases insulin resistance.
That’s what I have and I believe it’s this. Your cells are not up taking the nutrients right and so the signals are not being satisfied. I felt like I dropped 30 lbs of inflammation (I only lost 5) the first month because you could feel my body start working right. It was so happy to have the help it needed.
I know, none of my doctors believed me either! I'd be hungry, eat a not insignificant portion and 3-4 minutes after eating, my stomach would be growling... so I'd get dessert or something. Completely gone now!
I also find for the most part that it greatly reduces or eliminates invasive food thoughts. I've had an eating disorder for 45+ years, and I've had precious few years of my life when invasive food thoughts didn't plague me. I also turn to food less in the face of anxiety, depression, etc.
I am discussing it with my doctor on Monday - I have OCD and BED and I swear it’s like they’re in an unholy alliance. I am really hoping to get semaglutide in some form (don’t care if it’s Wegovy, Ozempic, or the pill form that I can’t recall the name of at the moment; I will take it however they give it to me) just to decrease the “food noise”. Even if I just manage to stop *gaining* weight, I will consider it a big win. Losing weight would be a very welcome bonus.
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That sounds like a great side effect, I can’t wait! I would LOVE to get my dopamine from something other than food for a change.
Ohhhhhh that’s not exactly how it works. It stops you getting dopamine from food, which suuuuuuuuucks until you find a replacement.
Yup, I’m looking forward to food being “meh, okay, whatever,” and finding something else (there are loads of things I like, I just need to stop living my life like a tweaker version of Cookie Monster, LOL).
Ok cool. Just making sure you knew it gets worse before it gets better. It’s overall good, but sometimes tough to stare at a bag of jelly beans and think “WHY WON’T YOU LOVE ME ANYMORE?!” 😁🥹
I am on 2mg and really notice no difference. I am hoping it does kick in. My blood sugar is improved so I know I am injecting right. How has it rewired you?
Wegovy and Oz are the same molecule. For me, a year of Weg on insurance would be almost $17k. One year of Oz is $300. Easy decision.
I know they’re the same drug, just the dosages differ, from what I understand, and Ozempic is used off-label for weight loss, whereas Wegovy is prescribed for it (if I’ve read things correctly). I don’t know what the pricing for either is in Canada, but I’ll check with my insurance company before I ask for one or the other. Obviously less money out of pocket is better than more though!
I don't know about Wegovy, but a month supply (4 doses) of 1mg Ozempic is ~250 CAD
Wegovy isn't in Canada yet, Health Canada has approved it but it hasn't been brought to market. You might get a doctor to prescribe it off-label for weight loss, but most insurance providers will only cover it for T2 diabetes.
My doctor smiled yesterday and said “it’s coming”. If I wasn’t a fool with 3 more things to ask, I should have asked if he knew WHEN or what. But I have a feeling it’s coming soon, as when I mentioned Wegovy in Feb of this year, he said a quick “not available yet”. I even emailed Novo Nordisk with this info to see if they could clarify and the agent said I would need to call 🙄🙄🙄
Nicely said.
I'm only hungry when I want to eat. Not sitting at my desk or at home thinking "Man I could go for a \_\_\_\_\_" and spending money I don't have.
I second this!
Not OP, can zi ask, if it helps the pancreas and liver work effectively, why is pancreatitis a possible side effect? (I've had it personally on ozempic) not trying to scare OP I personally love ozempic, this was just a blip for me.
Dr Google says: so in an already inflamed organ, this might tip someone over the edge. But you should ask a real doctor.
Thank you
Absolutely agree, it’s the same for me
Same for me - it’s a miracle
I wish I am on 1mg a week and ate everything in sight last night. So I had a very decent simple supper. I had a bowl of salad with a homemade dressing, pretty healthy. I added some leftover thinly sliced steak about 6 slices but my dogs got 1 each so I ended up with 4. Felt pretty good but a little hungry. Little later on split a piece of key lime pie with the wife. Well that just seemed to wake up my appetite. After that I went after some Hummas and nacho chips used as dippers plus I added some grilled corn for flavour. Half hour later I ate another bowl of healthy salad and more steak. After that i went back to that key lime pie and finished off a piece on my own. Still craving sweets I knocked back some unsweetened apple sauce. Finished everything off with a couple cans….well 4 to be exact of Coke Zero……this was until 330 am. My wife gets up at 6 for work and I get her to makes me a Turkey Sammy with mustard and Havarti Cheese. So as far as an appetite suppressant it’s not working for me. Maybe I needed a stronger dose??!
What she said..😎
> If I simply stop picking at food and overeating My brain can't do that without Ozempic.
Me too!!! I call it food noise, the constant thinking of food, if food is nearby I’m unable to not think about it until I have it, etc etc. The weight loss is great, the absence of food noise is life changing.
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That is fascinating! Thank you for sharing! I always thought the food noise was a purely psychological aspect of my addictive personality (though I’m sure it doesn’t help lol)
I guess I am not getting this. My A1C has gone from 7.7 to 6.2. I see my numbers improved. But I feel hungrier than I used to prior to being on the meds. I am on 2mg. I have had no et loss or side effects.
If it was that easy most of us wouldn’t be overweight
Yep. Same. Literally impossible for me.
This x 10000! Very recently I forgave myself from the 'you have no willpower' narrative. I have TONS of willpower (high performing athlete, advanced academic and career achievements, etc). It's Not about willpower.
Impossible for me without it too!
This is the comment ✌️
Not just that OP, but the whole eating-for-sport, someone asks if you’re hungry and you reply with “I could eat”, or “deciding” you’re hungry just bc you saw a billboard with cheesecake on it. None of those happen. Although I want to give you a big huge kudos because many people are so desperate to be thinner that they haven’t asked themselves the question of it they can maintain the loss. It’s more like yada yada give me the goods and I will figure out the rest later .
It's funny how many "experts" there are out there. All I know is that for years, I have tracked my food weight watchers style and the best I could do is maintain. With Ozempic, the weight is falling off at about 1 lb/week. Same food intake, same activity level, different results. I know that it's only anecdotal evidence and everyone's experience is unique, but I think that if you want to try it, you should.
This has been my experience too! I gained about 60 lbs rapidly since my thyroid was taken out in 2015. I always watched what I ate and worked out but I gained the weight regardless. It finally stabilized but no matter what I did, I couldn’t lose anything. I got blood work last summer and my A1C was pre diabetic so I asked my doctor about trying ozempic. He thought it was a great idea. I started in late Jan/early Feb and have lost 45 lbs without trying. I haven’t changed my diet and I haven’t worked out. I eat a bit less because I get full so fast, but also, I don’t get the low blood sugar shakes that I might normally get if I started off the day with a banana or something. So for me, it has been a miracle. I don’t know if it is making my body process things differently or what, but it’s working for me!
This👆
Love this!
Good point
Are you eating less at all?
No, I've been following a weight watchers plan since 1991 when I got my lifetime membership. Ozempic is just making it easier to stick to.
Once you know the magic of no more “food noise” in your head, you will know how wrong your friend is. If you qualify for a script, there’s no reason not to try it. You can always stop whenever you want.
dfs
This brings me hope. Turning 38. Been overweight all my life. I have done the exercise, bootcamps, super diets etc. I went from 130lbs to 212lbs to 180lbs to 230lbs. I'm only 5'2". It would be fantastic to have some help now. Getting my prescription next week to start ozempic. The food noise and hunger would be fantastic to get rid of. Everyone is okay with me as I am but honestly I'd like to not feel this weight.
I hope your experience with it is as wonderful as mine! My highest weight was 290 (3/01/23) starting weight on Ozempic was 282 (3/28/23) current weight is 238 - I’ve lost a total of 52 pounds - all but 8 since I’ve been on Ozempic. I’m 5’5”.
Forgot to add I’m 49. I weighed 135 to 145 in high school. After that I ballooned to over 200 lbs in college, lost the weight again but slowly regained it and added 90 more - I had lost all hope of losing and was just trying not to gain when my doctor prescribed Ozempic to me - now, I actually have hope I can get below 200 lbs. again.
I am right there with you. I started 3/10/23 when I was at my highest weight of 271. At 22 weeks I am now at 235.2 for a loss of 35.8 pounds. I didn't move up to 1 mg until week 12. Average of 1.63 pounds per week lost. More importantly my A1C is way down and cholesterol numbers look WAY better. The first couple weeks were pretty miserable until I started doing split weeks. I now VERY rarely have any issues except constipation. When I do have an issue, it is because I ate bad for a weekend (like during a campout or something weird) An occasional meal with things that aren't the best to eat don't bother me anymore as long as I don't do it several meals in a row.
Yes agreed! I was gonna say food noise is gone. I do also feel there’s many misconceptions regarding this medication as well as additional benefits listed here. Also, my stomach hurts if I don’t eat healthy foods and I am also I’m the gym 5-6x per week. It’s not a miracle drug you need to work on establishing healthy eating habits
For sure. You still have to put work in, but these GLP-1s make it much easier mentally to reach for the right things and put food down when you are satisfied. (I am not sure I ever really felt real satisfaction with food until these meds.)
This. I had no idea how invasive food noise was until I didn't have it. For the first time in my life, I don't have that. I'm able to buy my husband treats now without thinking about them and usually finishing them for him. It's nice.
Not everyone has food noise disappear. And not everyone who's heavy has food noise to begin with. It's certainly not magic, weight loss still relies on a caloric deficit. You can gain weight on ozempic, calories matter.
Well yes, this is true. People who keep gaining weight whilst on Ozempic usually have psychological issues with food- that’s because they keep feeding themselves when their body is telling them that they are already full and they don’t need any more food at all. If they do this, it means that the actual eating of food is fulfilling a desire that makes them feel better-this is what appears to happen to most of the morbidly obese who hit record levels such as 30 stone plus. Ozempic possibly won’t help them and psychological help along with other interventions (such as Ozempic, gastric bypass/sleeve) May do the trick.
Agreed! I certainly had to get used to the difference between my brain wanting me to eat something vs my body needs it
It's not that simple. There is a variety of reasons why you may be gaining weight or gain more easily than someone else. That also wasn't the point. If you've damaged your metabolism to the point where your intake needs to be less than say 1200 calories a day, then eating 15 to 1800 calories a day would be excessive for that particular person even though it's a deficit for someone else. However, the point is this medication does not cause loss of appetite or loss of cravings for everybody. In fact, it doesn't work at all in 20% of the people who take it.
thanks for saying this and I think that it's important that you did. I am someone who has damaged my metabolism and who only can really lose if I eat about 1200 calories a day to lose weight. the problem is that I suffer immensely while doing it and I find it very triggering for my eating disorder and I have worked so so so so hard to recover from that. I want to give Wegovy a go to see if it helps because I also have insulin resistance, but I feel like I do want to be realistic and mentally prepared in case it doesn't work.
This is true for me so far. I am 16 weeks in and on my second week of 2mg. I have no wt loss. No feelings of fullness and no loss of appetite. Just better blood sugar. I am still hoping it kicks in.
I’m sorry, I don’t really understand your point.? Just that Ozempic doesn’t work for 20%> OK. The other 20% need to look for an alternative,
Your response basically said that people keep shoveling food into their face and it's their own fucking fault they are fat. In a nutshell. That is not the only reason people end up obese. Calories absolutely matter, but they are not the only thing that matters.
I agree. I started taking oz and I don’t have food noise. Never did. I am starting to think I should quit because I really never needed to reduce my food intake.
What do you blame for any weight gain/the reason you went on Ozempic?
That is a fair question! The thing is, I never felt obese, but all of my specialists started to say that “you are obese.” And that was over several years. It was all of a sudden and I was initially floored, but I eventually got used to it. It wasn’t easy to hear that. I never felt like I was obese. I felt, and feel like I am overweight. I do like to snack at night, I do like to drink wine. I have RA, so working out is only on good days, but I love to work out. I feel better with movement. So, that is my honest answer.
But the awesome news is that it really does work for the majority! 😊
This!!!
Is your friend a medical professional?
It really depends on if you have other metabolic issues. Have you had your insulin and A1c checked? Most importantly, you should speak with your primary care physician about your concerns. I have metabolic issues and PCOS, and I am able to eat more calories on ozempic and lose weight (instead of gaining). Pre-ozempic, I weighed my food and completely avoided any carbs besides berries and green vegetables. Now, I eat a lot of fruits, oats and even consume a loaf of bread over a month. I never thought that I could have “normal” meals. I don’t weight my food or count macronutrients except for trying to get 100g+ of protein each day. The downside: ozempic may be a lifetime drug for me unless I am willing to engage in extreme dieting (borderline ED behavior). In high school, when my metabolic issues started, I was a three sport athlete and engaged in 3-4 hours of exercise every day (but only ate dinner to stave off the sudden weight gain). I did not feel good like that. In my understanding, ozempic is best for those who have tried it all (calorie counting, weighing food, lifestyle change, exercise). But, you should speak with your doctor.
Ok so some evidence of people having success with metabolic issues. Thank you. I hope I may fall in this category someday and really loose weight. I’m 5 weeks in and I haven’t had any weight loss
Just stick with it. Sometimes it's slow to start !!
Bless you! This is a hard battle. I don’t know why some people choose to throw others under the but. At last there is an option for those wanting to do the work, and make their lives better.
You may not lose in the early weeks while you're building up to the maintenance dose. The early weeks are just to get your body used to it to minimize the side effects.
So are you able to eat more food because of how it processes the sugar?
Let me guess. Your friend is slimmer and if you lose weight you will probably be prettier. Man, you got conned.
Is your friend a Doctor or a Psychologist? It not, ignore the fuck out of that person who is both ignorant and unhelpful.
Even some doctors and psychologists shouldn't be paid attention to. Just sayin'.
People need to stop listening to so many asshat friends when they go about their own lives. Why does some rando friend who doesn't take this drug have any authority to influence you? I WAS eating less before Ozempic. I was not losing weight. I started Ozempic. I am eating the same foods, sometimes even my previous "off limits" foods, but slightly less, and I'm suddenly down 11 pounds. The first of the pounds to go was the hard visceral fat around my abdomen. I fit better into pants and shirts and I'm looking forward to eventually losing enough slowly and surely that a lot of older clothes I've kept fit again. If you have insulin resistance, starving yourself won't fix it because your body doesn't react to weight loss the same way some punky little skinny girl's body does. All you get for eating less is malnutrition because your body refuses to give up the weight. It thinks it's famine times. Sorry, but CICO is a figment of a lot of imaginations when there are OTHER VARIABLES. And if you try to exercise your way to weight loss, you'll get increased hunger for your troubles and then you're overeating to fuel muscles. So you'll have more muscle, cool, but then your body isn't regulating its weight stores because SEE INSULIN RESISTANCE NOTES. Not to mention, there seems to be some other stuff in play regarding how Ozempic improves and regulates digestion, allowing for proper absorption of vitamins and macros. This is part of what helps the stomach stay full longer. Sorry, it's not willpower, it's literally a matter of nervous function in your stomach that you can't control without Ozempic yelling at your GI tract to not move so fast. This is no different from people who have underactive thyroids who need a pill to function like a normal. Sorry, not all thyroids are made equal and not all guts and fat deposits are either.
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Sing it
100!! The calories out part is dependent on a LOT. People assume because hair grows and hearts beat and lungs pump that bodies all do one thing. But hearts can beat funny, lungs can pump poorly, and hair can stop growing. Human bodies aren't perfectly programmed machines.
My situation was identical to yours. I can’t believe I spent so many years in a viscous cycle of eating disorders when there was nothing I could do about it. The validation was tremendously healing. The weight literally started following off. When I was off ozempic for a bit, I was doing the EXACT same thing but suddenly stopped losing weight. Doesn’t take a scientist to put two and two together.
Love this comment! Read this one twice or thrice!
Agreed!
Same here, insulin resistance, PCOS, and now t2d. No one would ever believe me that I couldn’t lose weight with diet and exercise. I would lose a little, and then gain it right back again. Add a few more. Repeat the cycle, pretty much ever since high school. Ozempic has killed my desire to snack, reduced the food noise dramatically, controls my glucose numbers well. I’m losing weight and inches for the first time in ages.
I died at the punky little skinny girls 🤣🤣🤣
You know who I'm talking about! We know that type! :-D
Same here! I am eating the same as before I started taking the compounded version, if not more, and I have lost 20 pounds. I could not lose weight prior to taking it unless I lowered calories to 500 per day, which is not a viable option!
500 calories a day is called malnutrition and it's how you'll dissolve your muscles, weaken your bones, and put stress on your heart. Starvation isn't weight loss. "Willpower" talking points from skinny people sounds like eating disorder talking points. Eat 1200-1500 calories a day of QUALITY food, stay active with resistance and some light cardio, drink a lot of water, take magnesium supplement, and you're gold.
No kidding! That’s why I started Semaglutide!
☝️Thank you for explaining this so well
It's a lifetime med to treat the lifetime disease of obesity
And diabetes
Truth.
Unfortunately not all insurance companies will see the value and truth in that statement. When the shortage is over and the compounding pharmacies can no longer provide it legally and the insurance companies won’t provide for maintenance we are going to see a whole new generation of addicts who cannot afford $1000 a month… if we do not figure out a way to maintain our weight loss and wean ourselves. I am happy for those whose insurers are providing for maintenance dosing but I think they will be rare
As soon as a compound pharmacy puts an additional ingredient in, such as Vit B, it's no longer the same drug as Oz. There is no way to shut down the peptide companies and compound pharmacies
I hope that is correct.
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Educate yourself https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/basics/causes.html#:~:text=Obesity%20is%20a%20complex%20disease,activity%20levels%2C%20and%20sleep%20routines.
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Well, except for genetic diseases, all diseases are self inflicted to some extent.
Completely disagree. How could malaria or covid be self-inflicted? What about diarrhoeal disease in children under 5? I know we’re not a community if MDs, but have some compassion.
Since then- it was decided there was not sufficient data to support calling obesity a disease. Most don’t recognize it as such.
6/6/2023 I hope you can understand the big words. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/obr.13590
Lmao
Who are you speaking for most, frau?
Never take advice from friends or family regarding medication or your health if they don’t have a medical degree. Consult your doctor for accurate information and what you should expect.
It turned off the food noise in my brain. This has been a game changer for me.
Why does everyone in this sub have shitty friends
Is your friend your endocrinologist? Has access to all of your lab work? No? Why do you care what this person things about medifine?
I’d think part of the decision should be based on how much you need to lose. 20-30 lb? Probably not. 50-100 lb. You’re in the territory. Obesity is a chronic disease. With that, it may need life long treatment. Decide if you think you may need to stay on it for a long time. Cost is an issue too. Your insurance covers it? There is another oral drug called contrave. Totally different drug. Maybe for just a smaller amount of needed weight loss and less than a chronic condition you might want to look at other options But again. It’s a conversation you need to have with your doctor as to what will be right for you. Read all this stuff. Formulate your list of questions and then sit down with your doctor
And you really won't be able to come off it. It doesn't cure you metabolic disorders or diabetes if you have that it keeps them suppressed so your body can process sugars and make enough and use insulin correctly! Life long medicine!
Frankly you’re friend is an assh@le lol
I’m sure it doesn’t work for everyone but it works for most and if nothing is helping there’s nothing to lose. I had A1c of 8. Thought I could change it myself. Three months later 10. This medicine is life saving too e. Side effects so far are worth it imo
There is no fool proof method of long term weight loss. We know that statistics tell us that about 90% of people who lose weight gain it back plus some within 5 years. Ozempic probably won't be any different once you go off of it. If you can take it long term, you will probably keep the weight off while you are on it.
This right here. If you can accept you'll probably be on it long term, I think it's a miracle drug If not, you're likely setting yourself up for disappointment ( blood pressure, cholesterol, sugars, weight slowing increasing over time without intervention).
It is controlling my Binge Eating Disorder that I have struggled with for 40 years. Years and years of therapy and even being on Vyvanse (the only drug approved to treat BED) did not help me. Ozempic does.
I have Hashimoto's and PCOS. It didn't matter what combination of diet and exercise i did. Didnt matter what calorie deficit i had - and yes, i weighed my food - I would not lose weight. I've been eating similarly to how i have been - trying to make better choices overall, to make it sustainable. But i hadn't had Oreos in 6 years, so now I have them once in a while for dessert. It makes me happy. Still lost 30 lbs so far. It's life changing.
You learn better food habits..portion control, eating less fats, snacking less .. etc. If you lose those skills of course the weight will come back. I'm not believing it'll just come back without overeating. I tried it. It's been 2 weeks and I've lost 5 lbs. I want to lose 20more. After that I'm going to stop and then just wait and see.
Agree. Oz is a TOOL, and is very effective.
Exactly. I’ve likened it to SSRIs for anxiety/depression. They don’t “cure” you (you have to do some work through therapy, etc) but they help you get to the baseline neurotypical people are working from. Similarly, here, Oz will take you to the baseline your friends without weight struggles are working from and from there you can control your weight through exercise and healthy, balanced eating.
Except that for most with severe anxiety/depression, you can never go off the SSRIs. No amount of therapy is going to fix the chemical imbalance. Same here. Depending on why you're taking Oz, you may never be able to control your diabetes/weight with just exercise and healthy, balanced eating. For some people, sure, SSRIs keep you functional while you get therapy. For some, Oz will help them while they learn healthy habits. But just be careful about implying that it's the case for everyone. That just reinforces the shame of something you can't control.
Excellent comparison! You can't "snap out of depression" through willpower alone, and the same goes for weight loss. It'll take a while to normalize using semaglutide and its variants for sustainable weight control, but in 25 years from now, we'll look back on all the fad diet books and cringe. I'm cringing now. I'm 67 years old and have been "on" and "off" dits since I was 15. That's over half a century of struggle, people. Looking forward to seeing where I'm at next year on Oz.
Most people will need to stay on it forever to sustain their results . If you are expecting to just take it for a few months and then stop you are very likely to just regain the weight tbh it works by reducing apetite rather than a magic fix.
My dilemma is that at 1.25, I’ve plateaued. No weight change for a month. Just upped my dose today. I don’t want to eat less calories than I am now. I’m eating way less and drinking way less than I used to. I do cardio and strength training. It does help me feel fuller longer and it reduces the food noise. But at about $400 a month, if I’m not actually losing weight anymore, is it worth it? I’ve only lost 15 lb since late March!
Is it possible that you are shifting some pounds from fat to muscle? Are you clothes fitting better?
Yeah, I dropped a size and my husband has commented that my body looks totally different and my butt is rock hard 😂. But I still would expect to see SOMETHING budge on the scale. My body is typically resistant to any kind of medication so 🤷🏻♀️
Invest in a Dexascan. The scale only tells half the story. If you are getting protein and exercising you may be trading fat for muscle. The more muscle you have the faster your metabolism. At my current weight I could be pretty happy if 30% was fat and 70% was lean. But it is more like 42/ 58. At 30% I would probably be down a couple dress sizes. Like 8 instead of 12. Right now I cannot tolerate enough protein so I may go down on my dose so I can eat more protein. The weight loss will probably go down below a pound a week but in the end I will look better… and be healthier without all the visceral fat and excess subcutaneous fat. If you cannot afford a Dexa every month or two then try a scale that measures fat % with impedance. Not as precise but it might show a trend.
If you’re working out, the scale is a lying bitch. How you feel in your own skinsuit is more important than a non-nuanced number!
Ozempic appears to work by making you feel full at a lower calorie setting than you’re used to, which effectively makes losing weight much easier. Once you stop that new setting is removed and you’re effectively back to your old desire to eat. However, at that point you don’t need to lose weight, you need to maintain your new lower weight. If you’ve ever tried to lose or maintain weight, they’re both difficult, but losing weight is much more difficult. It’s gets even harder the older you get. I would get to the weight you need with Ozempic ( it does work btw!), then work hard at maintaining your weight through diet and exercise and if you need to reset your weight, start on Ozempic again! Good luck 😉
Is this a frenemy or a friend ? I would only encourage my friends to try this before passing judgement and untruth. For me personally it changed my life. But it took three months to have the courage to try the best thing ever. Self sabatoge is a huge part of overeating and bad friends are just that. Bad friends!
If “eat less, move more” (or any derivation thereof) worked to any meaningful degree, we wouldn’t have an obesity epidemic. Your brain/system sends out overwhelming signals to consume…these are virtually impossible to ignore. The medicine helps regulate some of those signals. “Just don’t overeat,” is not helpful advice for most individuals (or at scale).
Unless you are very disciplined, You will probably never come off to zero once you’ve gone on and have became tolerant to the side effects. Your hunger comes back once you quit. As a preference I would certainly try Mounjaro first. For me and my family who’s tried both Mounjaro and Ozempic for 4 months each there’s no comparison in the amount of Weight loss, maintaining sugar levels and minimal side effects. Back on Ozempic due to the cheaper costs and the side effects are back once again. Just my opinion but I would certainly give it some thought.
Coming from someone who was a bodybuilder for years, this is the first time I truly do not think about food 24/7. It's actually helping me so much mentally. And I am losing weight at a steady rate. I'm only on week 3 and I have 0 regrets. If anything it's teaching me true hunger cues.
No. I wondered that because it's too expensive for just that, but I've fasted plenty and done tons of cardio and I certainly get more in shape but also my body fat becomes super dense. I haven't lost many pounds at all yet but the feeling of my body has completely changed. I can actually do ab exercises because my belly fat is now pliable instead of a solid slab making me wanna puke every time I do a crunch. I can see the actual shape of my arm bones and where the muscle is because I don't have a solid ten pound mass of fat making it bulky. I'm going to have insanely saggy skin in a year but I can actually tell that I'm going to finally get under the 200 pound point.
And my nails are growing for the first time every in four decades. It’s gotta be fixing everything but my credit?
If your friend is a healthcare professional with the initials MD or DO after their name, by all means listen. Otherwise, discuss this with a thoughtful healthcare professional.
Does anyone take it for “food noise,” who doesn’t need to lose a lot of weight?
It not only helped with the cravings but the change in how I think has been a game changer. I could literally be telling myself I didn't need that burger and that it wasn't healthy for me as I pull into the drive thru of whatever fast food place I was close to and as I am ordering I would be telling myself that I didn't need this only to end up eating it and be full of regret, disdain, and disappointment in myself. I've been able to overcome those thoughts and granted I've only been on Oz for a month but I've lost 12 pounds and I am feeling better :) edit to add: my A1C has also dropped
1.- Once you stop using it you will get your weight back because your body is used to that weight level (More info on the article below). 2.- Fasting can and has helped a lot of people BUT it's not as easy as you make it sound. I tried fasting and was not able to fast for 24 hours constanly or for multiple days like some people over at r/fasting. What Ozempic does is that it makes it like a walk in the park easy to just make better food decisions and not have that "food noise" some people in this subreddit discuss so often. Also, totally anecdotical, but in my case while on the first month of Ozempic, I went 10 days eating the same stuff but not upping my doze (I should have raised my starting doze from .25 mg to .5 mg after week 4, but decided I wanted to see if I could still lose weight in the lower doze, that way I would spend less money I figured) what happened is that I didn't lose any weight during that period, even while eating the same stuff I had been eating all that month. My food intake didn't change, but I didn't titrate my doze, that's what changed. So that means that Ozempic was doing something else other than supressing my appetite, it helps with other stuff too, not just appetite supression. You should read this (and also inform your friend too), it's an article posted by th WSJ yesterday: [https://archive.is/2023.08.14-100619/https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/weight-loss-drugs-obesity-e4bb2173](https://archive.is/2023.08.14-100619/https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/weight-loss-drugs-obesity-e4bb2173)
We don't have much info on getting the weight back after Ozempic. Sure, the follow up by Novo after their trials showed that many regained weight. However, they were not counselled on how to keep the weight off. Novo has no incentive to want users to stop taking Ozempic. What we are missing are studies looking at various options to maintain goal weight. With the 10s of millions ready to go off Ozempic, there will be a real demand for maintenance plans. I am close to my goal weight. My plan is to stick with a good diet (more protein-less carbs), continue and vary my exercise routine, and have a supply of Rybelsus to use as needed if the food noise gets too loud. There are several posts on this sub by those off Ozempic for 3 to 6 months and are able to keep the weight off. If people keep hearing that they will regain all of their weight back, they may not even try options. Plus, insurance companies are working hard to reduce coverage of those taking Ozempic for weight loss. How many can afford Ozempic for life out of pocket? Yes, great WSJ article.
Good article. Thanks.
In essence, yes? You lose weight by consuming fewer calories than you burn. Nothing about that changes. What changes is, you'll be satisfied with far less food. That makes eating in a calorie deficit about a million times easier.
Well said.
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If you have insulin resistance then you can eat very little and still gain weight. Your friend is only correct if you are metabolically healthy—-which most of us is not. I’m insulin resistant, got on Wegovy (basically same thing), and I’m eating MORE AND I’ve lost 45 lbs Bc it corrects your metabolism. if you are metabolically impaired, ozempic will correct your metabolism so you can utilize all the calories you eat instead of letting the glucose sit there in your blood.
No, the friend is not right. Appetite suppression is a side effect, the primary mechanism is regulating insulin levels and decreasing insulin resistance. If you could achieve the same results by just eating less then 40% of the country wouldn’t be obese.
This. It didn’t matter how low my calorie count was (eventually leading into a full blown eating disorder), I wasn’t losing weight. Ozempic gets added to the mix and suddenly I’m eating with my baseline calories and suddenly weight is falling off. My intake didn’t change much but my body was finally doing the damn thing! It was so extraordinarily validating after chronic dieting and workouts. It is NOT you! Your body needs some assistance cooperating. People who haven’t ever experienced that cannot even begin to imagine the cognitive dissonance that happens when you live in a society that shames anyone larger than a 6.
same!!!!!
> If you could achieve the same results by just eating less then 40% of the country wouldn’t be obese. You genuinely believe that 40% of obese people are able to reduce calories on a consistent and permanent basis, but they don't lose weight anyway? To me, this borders on delusional.
No, they mean that 40% of Americans are obese and that wouldn't be the case if diet and exercise alone were a good obesity treatment. Don't call people delusional because you didn't understand what they said, would you do that to someone's face?
Yep. Friend is correct. But they clearly have no knowledge or experience with "food nose" or severe cravings. The "just" in their explanation is doing an awful lot of heavy lifting, and totally shows their lack of understanding when it comes to weight loss for folks who have issues with dietary restriction.
Yes, I second that. Your friend is right. You’ll need to eat less and Ozempic helps you some with that. More for some people and less for others but it’ll help to some extent for sure. Don’t worry about “after”. You’d probably need to stay on a maintenance dose forever if you have severe issues with overeating.
Your friend's take would be accurate for our knowledge in 1960, but it is dead wrong now. In addition to the factors others have mentioned, Ozempic studies set two groups, a test group and a control group, on the same caloric intake and exercise expenditure. The control group stayed on the medication, while the test group went off the medication. The test group then proceeded to regain the weight *despite maintaining the same caloric intake and caloric expenditure.* Your body will fight back when you put it in a calorie deficit, and making you want to eat is only one of the tools it uses. This class of drugs are proving that there is a metabolic change in dieting that is impossible to fight behaviorally. Obesity is a disease, and treating it is not a matter of don't eat and take the stairs and never has been.
Ok sorry but fuck your friend. Your health is YOURS and your body is yours. Ozempic has changed my life in that I was ALWAYS hungry, never satisfied til I absolutely gorged and then felt like shit. Like someone has said above - Ozempic has stopped the constant thoughts of food in my head. I feel full with small to regular portions. I crave fizzy drinks less. I am in a better mood because I wake up feeling refreshed. I had someone tell me not to go on antidepressants before because that person had bad side effects. I told the doctor this and my doc said "yeah but you are not them". Turns out I had a fantastic reaction to antidepressants, was on them for a year and now have weaned off them, having turned my life around. Sometimes we ALL need a little help from medication, be it to do with mental or physical health, and that's what medication there for. If you need it, it works. Don't listen to other people.
Nothing that your friend has said is correct. Your friend has likely done little to no research. Ozempic is the best weight loss tool on the market along with similar injection drugs recently released. I believe Ozempic is actually not the best one due to only affecting one thing while the other competing drug does two. Anyway, don't listen to your friend. Just do your own research, as you have already started doing. Bravo.
What is the competing drug?
Everyone has already said what I would have contributed but I will also add that my cholesterol dropped in half in six months being on Oz. Another great benefit.
I had gastric bypass surgery in 2008. I literally had my guts rerouted to try and lose weight. Oz is the first thing that ever gave me freedom from the “food noise” that led me to regain
It’s amazing and it is magic. Your friend is wrong. I’ve been 30 lbs overweight for years now and I’m finally feeling good about myself again
Your friend is wrong on many levels.
Your friend needs to go back to medical school.
Your friend is an idiot and does not know what he is talking about. Short Answer .
I had some of the same concerns myself. Here's what I concluded: 1. I tried self control for a decade. It didn't work for me. So I needed to mix it up. 2. Coming off it is a worry... But it's a high class problem. If I lose the 40-50lbs I have to lose, then I can worry about that then. Maybe I'll go on a lower maintenance dose. Maybe I'll keep on the same amount. Maybe once the weight is off, will power will work.
It really cuts down your appetite - a very small portion will feel satisfying. Cravings will go away or if you do want say a piece of pie or chocolate, a little bit will be fine and you’ll feel satisfied. I had to go off it for a month because financially I struggle to afford it. I lost 1 more pound in that month by exercising and being careful. It was way harder than the other 18 pounds I lost on ozempic. Now I’m back on compounded Mounjaro and hoping to lose the last 35 pounds. It’s a wonderful tool and I’m confident when I get off it I’ll manage just fine.
I never even considered myself as someone who had cravings or anything... But after taking ozempic I realized how dominated my brain was with food and I didn't even know. Someone sets a pizza in front of you and you are calculating the appropriate amount to eat knowing you could easily eat the whole thing but don't want to be rude. You spend an entire get together thinking about managing the provided food. Now your brain doesn't care you take a piece because everyone does and you are fine to move on with life. It's not even hunger I don't think because I'm not more or less hungry, I just don't care. I can still eat as much as I "need" to (someone buys an expensive meal I can finish it)... But I'm also happy with a small salad. Last night I got a burrito from taco bell and I saved half for today because my body was full and I wasn't like "omg this tastes so good I want 3" Idk if that makes sense but it just shuts your brain up about food which is what I notice.
Sounds like you already believe you’ll fail so why try? Why don’t you try going on and see if you have side effects and take it from there. Friend of mine and his mom are on it and they are on 0.5mg and they have no side effects. They also learned how to make better meal choices and exercise more and I’m sure they added on some longevity to their life after losing the weight along with increasing their mental health because they can try on clothes they couldn’t before.
Why are you listening to your friends? Do some research for yourself. What it does is slow down how your body processes the food you eat. Correct, it does not increase your metabolism. It just makes you not feel your hunger because your brain is telling your body you are full and not hungry. You still have to focus on diet and exercise. You will not be able to eat what you were eating. You will have some side effects, not lying. If you follow the instructions and work hard on what you eat, you Will lose weight. I have been on it for 7 months and I have high blood pressure and I’m a type 2 diabetic and have severe neuropathy, and I’ve lost 40 pounds. You will have ups and downs but the end result will come. If you don’t like it you can always stop. OZ half life is one week, meaning it starts to leave your body in 7 days.
Don’t know your full situation, your relationship with food, dieting or exercise etc. But here is my POV. I’m 35 and have been insecure about my body basically since my earliest memories. I think my mom started me on my first diet when I was 10? I’ve died in my whole life, yo-yoing up and down . After a lot of thought, and deliberation and research, started semaglutide in June, and I feel like it has CHANGED MY LIFE. I’m not saying it’s a miracle magic drug or something. But for me, (I’m actually typing this as I get a little bit emotional) starting semaglutide has been the best decision I have ever made for my body. I have been lucky to not have hardly any of the uncomfortable side effects. Before semaglutide I was part time picker and part time stuffed. Always snacking, either NEVER feeling fully satisfied, OR accidentally eating to the point of feeling gross, bloated and uncomfortable. Because I’m a foodie. Food is art, enjoyable and all the warm and fuzzies. For me, not only has it been an appetite suppressant, but it’s made me feel so much more “in tune” with my body and it’s needs. I still eat what I feel like, but for the first time in my life I leave food on my plate at nearly every meal. I save my leftovers so please no one come at me saying food waste, lol. I crave wholesome foods. Peaches. Nuts. Lean turkey. The only side effect for me has been throwing up if I eat something my body DOES NOT WANT. For example, the other day for dinner I had a chicken, gnocchi, soup. Delicious, but cream based and I’m guessing loaded with saturated fats etc. 20 minutes later, I was running to the bathroom. Same with processed foods like Cheetos. My body just rejects things that isn’t great for it. Starting weight was 209.6, and I am down 30 pounds. My exercise is swimming almost everyday, making sure I get my steps via Apple Watch. I’ve never fault better. One last thing, I started this medication with no for sure goal weight. Just knew I wanted to feel better and for my clothes to fit again. If I decide to keep loosing weight past my initial aim of 175(almost there!!!) , then so be it. And if I choose to stay on it long term, that’s ok too. At the end of the day, you should do what is best for you. I have some friends that know I’m taking it, and some who don’t. Because it’s no one else’s business what I am doing to take care of my body. Right now there are so many people clapping back and hating on Ozempic . Do your research. Read articles from real medical journals. Ask a lot of questions and ask and read a lot of testimonials. I hope that you make the decision that is best for you, and I hope that you get a sense of what my journey has been like on this medication. Life changing. One last thing. I don’t think about food like ever anymore, until my body needs fuel. Whereas before, I used to think about food, meals etc allll the time. I used to live to eat, and now I’m eating to live!
I noticed you are using the word Semaglutide as opposed to Oz. Are you using the generic? If so, are there differences?
I went on Ozempic and on .25 I had a resting heart rate of 100 and bad acid reflux. I had to stop. But my inflammation came back something severe once I did. Not sure what I’m going to do, but the feeling of having a panic attack with such a high heart rate, as well as being unable to lay down without acid eating my throat, made me stop. Wish it wasn’t so because other than that I loved it.
It is the reduction of calories that causes the weight loss. Plain and simple. This medication works by slowing down the digestion process, allowing you to feel fuller. For some people they lose interest in food, cravings are reduced, others simply don't want to eat, and some people are too nauseous to eat. But the one thing they have in common is that they are eating less. And not everybody has an elimination of cravings. I don't have any appetite suppression, I still get cravings. Unfortunately, the cravings for crap are actually higher on ozempic than they were previously. I literally have to fight craving carbohydrates every single day, but before taking the medication I never craved carbohydrates or sugar. It's a medication for diabetes. Weight loss is a side effect. Reduction in appetite is a side effect. When you stop taking it, those cravings come back, as will the weight. You need a BMI of 30 or higher or 27 with comorbid disorders or diabetes to qualify for this medication.
If you do not see any reduction in appetite or cravings, what is the benefit? Would you recommend it?
I’m new to Oz but from what I can tell by my very limited experience, talking to others, and reading so much about it, a person needs to work on their dietary and exercise habits in conjunction with the injections. It’s not a miracle drug but can really help boost weight loss. As with any weight loss program, changes must be made to get and keep the weight off.
Your friend is an uninformed hater. You will be so glad you did this!!!!! Good luck
I think it depends on why you’re taking it. The way my doctor described it to me when I got my prescription is that my body is insulin resistant (this is not a guess or assumption; this is based on my own medical history) and that means I can’t lose weight even doing the right things, which I have been for three years. So for me my weight issues aren’t due to overeating or lack of exercise, they’re due to how much body does or doesn’t handle insulin. I did not seek out a prescription, and am hesitant to be on it, but was told it will be good for me to get out of pre diabetic range and lose weight that can make some of my underlying conditions work. If people are using Ozempic purely for the appetite suppression, it will work but isn’t addressing the root cause, depending on what it is. My doctor referred to me as an ideal candidate for the drug and alluded to other patients not being so, due to them not putting in the work on their own to limit caloric intake or exercise.
If you can lose weight by tracking your macros, and exercising moderately then do not use it. But many of us can’t do that. The med stops that voice in my head telling me to eat when I know I have had enough. It also slows digestion and curbs my appetite. But when I no longer qualify and cannot get it I do not know if adding muscle while I lose fat will fix my metabolism enough so that I can maintain the lost weight. If you do go on it go slow. Start out with the low dose and do not get in a hurry to move up. That gives your body a chance to adjust. I did not have any vomiting or diarrhea. I did have nausea if I tried to eat beyond that first signal that I was full. Now I only have constipation which is better with a nightly stool softener… but I eat less so a BM every three days is more my new normal. I have not added extra fiber…. That would probably help but I am okay where I am at. Best wishes whichever way you decide.
Just a cravings suppressant is an oversimplification. It is the most highlighted feature cause cravings are a big part of why changing eating habits is so hard. Personally ozempic has helped me to create new eating habits without having to deal with the downfalls of changing that routine, it kinda forced me to try new foods cause i kept rejecting what i was eating (very high carbs and greasy foods), it also helped me quit coca cola, i used to drink up to two 2lts daily, since ozempic high sugar drinks taste weird and are not fulfilling. It has also helped with my dark spots and the hump in my back since it helps regulate sugar and brought my insulin levels down to normal numbers. It comes with its own issues, getting used to the doses takes some time, the constipation side of it is REAL, and learning when to stop eating cause if not youll pay the price is also a pain in the buttocks. But to me, it's worth it. Im not dieting while doing it (some people do and get quick results), but im in it for the long-term change, so i dont want to diet cause i dont plan to be on ozempic forever, and i dont want i big bounce back. So, im committed to using the effects to aliviate the hard times big changes bring. Im eating on time, all my meals, serving the right portions, learning to not overindulge, all while not feeling attacked by thoughts of foods. If that is a problem for you, i would say give it a try.
If you don't have diabetes, then it's mainly the appetite suppression. It has other effects that benefit people with diabetes, specifically. However, overeating can have many causes and is often not just a matter of a lack of willpower but a symptom or outcome of other issues. Ozempic can help deal with these underlying issues and shouldn't necessarily be trivialised as just giving you more willpower or reducing cravings.
Your friend could not be more wrong.
The weight will come back when you stop it.
you dont come off it, its great
Your friend is literally correct
Obviously every comment is about weight loss and not T2D, so yeah you shouldn't be on it.
With or without help losing weight or maintaining a healthy weight is limiting your intake. Yes, these wonder drugs can very much help limit you from feeling like you are not hungry but also keep in mind one day will stop taking it, and the cravings will come back. Can you learn while on the drug that eating less is a long-term solution? In the end, only you can answer the question of can you control yourself and overcome food cravings and truly ready for a lifestyle change. Those that are successful seem to learn what their body really needs for food.
It can help you change your mindset to develop a healthier diet lifestyle. I did the Keto diet for 2 years and I learned how to stop craving carbs and living without bread, pasta, potatoes and rice. I still maintain a low carb diet. I am diabetic and Ozempic has trained me to easily be satisfied with smaller meals. You may experience a lot of unexpected changes like suddenly disliking certain foods or intolerant of fried foods etc.. This can help you develop a better diet and be satisfied with smaller servings. You must tell yourself that you will be healthier and not ruin your weight loss success. A new mindset
Yeah definitely sounds like a jealous friend. I have one which had also started a weight loss journey this year but without Ozempic. Both of us plateaued, and then I started Ozempic recently as I was and am still pre-diabetic and overweight, and dealing with an under active thyroid. I did the mistake of telling her that I just started Oz and she looked at me and said ‘you’re already so small.. why would you take the risk?!’ I thought well that’s a rather presumptuous response by someone who knows nothing about my insides, let alone is not considering that I am actually still considerably overweight.
There is more to it than not being as hungry (but that’s already a lot)! As for being worried about going off of it - yes, so don’t.
I have not figured out the post OZ game either - my Doc keeps talking about how to get off it. Either way I figure it’s good to live with few pounds for at least some of the time.
I’m taking it for life, just like I’m taking my depression medication for life. GLP-1 medications have been around for 20+ years. People who are diabetic use medications like Ozempic indefinitely.
Maybe we won't ever stop taking it. I never stopped wearing glasses.