I’m on Ozempic and the Side Effects Have Been Brutal
I’m learning to manage them, but for me this is not the ‘wonder drug’ and ‘easy way out’ that it’s reported to be.
Please note this is an honest account and my own personal experience with the drug semaglutide for weight loss and is by no means medical advice. While Ozempic (semaglutide) is only approved for the treatment of diabetes in Australia, use of it for weight loss is considered “off label”. This when a Dr prescribes medicine for a purpose outside of what it is approved.
I was prescribed Ozempic for weight loss and because I had experienced some weight related health issues. During the pandemic and extensive lockdown period in Victoria, Australia I put on 18 kilos. I comfort ate and drank quite heavily to escape mentally. It was a tough time working from home whilst home schooling two kids with dyslexia.
Fast forward a year or so and I was still struggling to lose the weight I had gained. I believe it was a combination of stress, alcohol, relationship and work issues and perimenopause. This coupled with years of weight fluctuations, it was like my body was holding tight and refusing to let go of the weight gain.
Once the country began to open up, work got very busy and required travel and attending and managing several big events. At the end of the year, I ended up in hospital with diverticulitis. This is an infection/inflammation in the digestive track. Factors that increase the risk of diverticulitis include stress, heavy alcohol use and obesity.
A Gastroenterologist advised me to stop drinking alcohol and lose weight and wrote me a prescription for a new weight lose drug called Ozempic. She didn’t explain how the drug worked or give me any advice about side effects and how to manage them. I had read about the supply issues it was causing for type 2 diabetics and when I questioned this, she brushed me off and sent me on my merry way!
I had no luck the first few times I tried to fill the prescription, so I put it on the back burner. In the meantime, I was reading about the amazing results and bearing witness to celebrities shrinking right before our eyes. When at least 1 housewife on every Real Housewives show was suddenly half their size, you knew the drug was gaining momentum in Hollywood.
Last year there were massive shortages nationwide in Australia and the abhorrent looks and occasional eye roll I got from some pharmacists, when I asked for it, was enough to deter me from pharmacy hopping. It became a futile exercise in stopping into different pharmacies in my area and hoping for an elusive pack that may be floating around after they had dispensed the drug to all their customers who were Type 2 diabetics. I understood diabetics were the priority and entitled to go first, so I waited until my local pharmacy had enough stock to be able to give it out for weight loss.
It was over five months ago when I officially started Semaglutide (Ozempic). It’s advised to start on 0.25mg for 4 weeks then 0.50mg for another 4 weeks then move up to 1mg.
Starting on the lower dosage, I did lose a little bit of weight. It was about 2 kilos in the first 8 weeks. My appetite did decrease slightly but I was still getting hungry throughout the day. I was experiencing waves of nausea and some headaches, but it was manageable by taking Ibuprofen. I was also fatigued and if I could, I would nap in the afternoon. Not ideal but at this stage I could cope with the side effects.
I upped my exercise, visiting the gym to do strength training three times a week, went for nature walks plus an additional two dance classes. I would mainly stick to a keto style diet — protein at every meal and sometimes I would replace dinner with a protein shake. I didn’t lose my fondness for chocolate (some people report they completely lose the taste for sugar), but I certainly cut back.
Going up to 1 mg was a game changer, my appetite decreased substantially and over the next few months I lost another 4 kilos. What was strange was that when I started on the 1mg initially the side effects were ok but over time, they got worse and got to the point where I was feeling very sick. Nausea, extreme exhaustion, abdominal pain and constipation daily.
After two or three days of being constipated I’m tremendously grumpy because I’m in pain and it rules my every waking thought.
Movicol, Metamucil, chia seeds and laxatives did work after a day or so, but it was (is) a constant shit show (pardon the pun).
This is when I decided to get real and start doing some research. I went on a quest to learn as much as I can about the drug and the side effects. I spent hours doom scrolling on Facebook user groups, listened to countless podcasts, audio books and searching up Dr Google. I called a surgeon friend of mine to ask her advice and went to my GP to discuss.
What I learnt was quite frankly shocking — especially in the Facebook user groups. The side effects some people were willing to suffer though to lose weight were astounding.
Some reported throwing up all day, alongside severe diarrhea and abdominal pain. I’ve read about sulfur burps, bad farts (yes that’s a thing), rapid heartbeat and vision changes. More severe side effects include kidney and gallbladder problems and pancreatitis.
Obviously, this scared the living hell out of me, but it was working and I was losing weight finally. The cost vs the benefits was such a conundrum, but it was getting to the point where I felt like I had no quality of life.
I had completely quit alcohol and I was exercising like a mofo, so I should be feeling on top of the world. Not crippled with constipation and exhaustion and headaches.
My GP and I agreed it was best if I stopped the drug to see how I felt. Which I did and guess what, within days the hunger (people in the user groups call it ‘food noise’) returned with a vengeance!
There is no doubt in my mind, once off the drug, the weight will return unless you are hyper vigilant.
Fortunately, I started to feel better, the headaches dissipated quite quickly, the constipation eased and I wasn’t so tired.
Unfortunately, I was hungry again and began to eat more. I was still making healthy choices, but I was getting ravenous in the afternoon and what I needed to eat to feel full was increasing. Then I regained 1 kilo and disappointment and frustration kicked in.
Any person who has continuously battled with their weight and the demons that come with it, knows that once you find a way to get results you want to cling to it desperately.
Ok Plan B — do some more research. I read some people had decreased the dosage to the starting dose to get less side effects and injecting it in their thigh rather than stomach. Others break it up throughout the week and take smaller (micro) doses more often. I decided to clear my body of the drug, by giving it two weeks and restarting on the starting does of 0.25 mg.
A few weeks back I increased it to 0.35mg and yes some side effects have returned (mainly headaches and tiredness) and a new one — hair loss but at this stage they are manageable. I have lost another kilo, and my clothes are starting to feel loose.
In total, I’ve lost about 7.5 kilos (fluctuates with hormonal changes) over five months with a two-week break in the middle.
For me, this drug is by no means a ‘wonder drug’. On 1mg the side effects are intolerable, I cannot manage everyday life, feeling so sick. What I have learnt is the only way I can stay on it is by taking a very low dose. This means the weight loss is very slow, if any?
Only time will tell.
I still get hungry; I still exercise every day and try and stick to a high protein diet.
I certainly didn’t lose my appetite entirely and drop 20 kilos in three months like some people are reporting.
Everybody reacts differently, some have no side effects and others are hit with the full gamut. God knows how the multitude of celebrities who are on it, manage the side effects. There is a drug for everything I suppose.
I do worry about it being a new drug and the lack of long-term research and the effect this drug will have on me and on society at large.
For now, I will stay on the small dose and slowly but steadily aim to lose another ten kilos, just so I can get back to my old weight. But I have decided If the weight loss stalls again and the side effects get worse, it’s a matter of conceding defeat.
