My experience of taking a GLP-1 drug: The unknown truths about weight loss medication

Often dubbed as “miracle drugs”, GLP-1 drugs are a class of medications most commonly used to help with type 2 diabetes, but more recently, these medications have been found to help with a multitude of other health issues. However, you’re more likely to have heard of these drugs thanks to recent controversies surrounding a few of them in the media. Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro – weight loss medications. Many people believe that these are a quick and easy way to lose weight, with some people even going as far as to say that using these medications to lose weight is “cheating” (although this is mostly due to both the unrestricted use of these medications by celebrities, as well as their own judgemental beliefs being spread online). Unfortunately, due to a lot of misinformation, there is still stigma around the use of these medications, not only for weight loss, but also for other health conditions as well. As a result, many people feel like they can never share that they used these drugs due to the fear of being judged. So, let’s change that.

At the beginning of this year, I was put on Mounjaro due to health complications. But before anyone jumps to conclusions, it was not because I’d ‘let myself go’ or ‘wasn’t looking after myself’. After having rounds of blood tests, scans, and an MRI, no one could tell me exactly what was going on with my health, but what was clear was that I was displaying many symptoms of polycystic ovary syndrome, or PCOS for short. Exhaustion, insulin resistance, brain fog, hair loss, and hormonal irregularities are just a few of the symptoms I was struggling with.

So, I began injecting myself weekly and thought ‘that would be that’: my health issues would improve, and I’d be able to go about living my life normally again

It was then that the GLP-1 drugs were suggested to me, not because I needed to lose weight, but because at this point, doctors were discovering that these medications seemed to have an incredibly positive impact on women who struggled with PCOS. It was not relevant for me, but apparently, it even helped with the infertility often caused by PCOS. This alone is a massive step forward for women who struggle with PCOS, when previously we would just be dismissed by doctors, being told to either “come back when you want to get pregnant” or to just take the pill (which is a type 1 carcinogen, in case you didn’t know).

So, I began injecting myself weekly and thought ‘that would be that’: my health issues would improve, and I’d be able to go about living my life normally again. Because, after all, the media only ever presented these medications as ‘cheating’ or as an ‘easy’ way to quickly lose weight, so I wasn’t going to experience any issues at all … right?

Wrong.

Constant nausea, low moods, increased anxiety, and stomach pains were just a few of the side effects I faced during the period of time I was on this medication. The worst one by far was the nausea. Mounjaro completely suppresses your appetite and, pair that with the nausea, it makes it incredibly hard to eat consistently. This meant I often felt faint and dizzy, and I also had to stop any sport or exercise I used to do (I went on one run, do not ask me about it!). Mounjaro was not the easy solution I had been promised.

People seemed to care more about the weight I had lost than my health or the impact of these medications on me –  they were convinced it was an ‘easy’ way to lose weight. It was like they had completely forgotten about why I was on the drug in the first place

All of these side effects suddenly made my day-to-day life a lot more difficult. Sometimes I couldn’t even sit through a lecture because the nausea was so bad, and what made this tougher to deal with is the fact that I am emetophobic (the fear of throwing up). So I was not only feeling constantly unwell, but my day-to-day anxiety was through the roof, and it started to seriously affect my sleep as well. I was lucky enough to have reasonable adjustments put in place for some of the challenges I faced, but I couldn’t help but wonder at the time how celebrities or the media could call these drugs ‘easy’! How could somebody working a nine-to-five, for example, continue to do so if they were experiencing the same side effects as me?

Soon, the side effects would become too much, and thankfully, I was cleared to come off the medication. Not only was I excited about getting rid of all of these side effects, but I also wanted to see what impact the medication had had on my condition. What I didn’t expect to be met with was comments from people around me. I was being asked if I was sure I didn’t want to stay on it longer, “just to lose a bit more weight”, and some even suggested I immediately start taking another type of medication that might prevent me from putting any weight I had lost back on. People seemed to care more about the weight I had lost than my health or the impact of these medications on me –  they were convinced it was an ‘easy’ way to lose weight. It was like they had completely forgotten why I was on the drug in the first place.

Ultimately, if you find yourself in a position where you need to be prescribed a GLP-1, remember that your experience will not be exactly like mine, as we all experience side effects differently

Having read about my experience, you can see now why I am frustrated at the negative way these life-changing drugs are portrayed in the media. Everyone who is prescribed a GLP-1 is taking it for a reason and never deserves to be looked down on in the first place. I’m hoping my experience can show how it’s not this ‘magical’ drug that people take because they’re ‘too lazy’ to lose weight. A condition like PCOS often prevents women from losing weight, so you can imagine how helpful this sort of drug can be, and why it is so important that the myths calling weight loss drugs an easy solution need to be shut down.

Ultimately, if you find yourself in a position where you need to be prescribed a GLP-1, remember that your experience will not be exactly like mine, as we all experience side effects differently. Having  finished using the medication, I can tell you that it really helped me. Yes, I still regularly struggle with many symptoms, but nowhere near as frequently as I used to. There was also one side effect that was even more unexpected than the rest, one that my endocrinologist found incredibly entertaining. Mounjaro completely got rid of shopping impulses! No more sneaky snacks! Food shopping became so much easier.

During those few months when I was taking the medication though, that might have been the only thing that became easier. However, the ways in which it helped reduce my symptoms were worth it, and I hope in the future that this treatment becomes widely available to anyone struggling with PCOS or similar conditions, and that they’ll be unashamed to speak about their experiences once we can banish the false rumours around GLP-1 drugs for good.