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Many people trying to live a healthier life begin with weight-loss efforts that include eating well and exercising more.
But with increasing frequency, another weapon is being used in the ongoing battle to shed excess weight: weight-loss drugs.
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Pharmaceutical companies such as Eli Lilly (LLY) and Novo Nordisk (Non-governmental organizations) Manufacturing type 2 diabetes medications that have been proven to cause weight loss in patients.
Eli Lilly’s diabetes drug is Mounjaro, while Novo Nordisk makes Ozempic to treat diabetes. Both companies also make FDA-approved medications specifically for weight loss. Eli Lilly is Zepbound, while Novo Nordisk is Wegovy, the weight loss company.
These medications are GLP-1 receptor agonists, which slow the movement of food from the stomach to the small intestine, causing patients to eat less because they feel full faster and for longer periods of time. Medicines are available in the form of injections.
There are other medications as well, including Currax’s Contrave, which is taken orally and works differently in that it suppresses the desire to eat in the brain rather than the stomach.
As weight loss medications grow in popularity, more patients are sharing their experiences with them.
Recently, TheStreet sat down with Vinnie Pinter, 56, a physical therapist near Seattle, who explained her weight-loss efforts over the past few months using Ozempic.
Why did one patient decide to try weight loss medications?
Painter first discussed some of the reasons that prompted her to begin exploring the use of medications to lose weight in her quest for better health.
“I’ve done everything possible to try to lose weight. I don’t eat much. I exercise a lot. I watch what I eat. And nothing has happened,” Painter said. “I’m post-menopausal. I just started estrogen, and it wasn’t helping. Then you hear a lot about Ozempic and you see all the people and all the stars getting thin, and then I start to get jealous. But they have access to it.”
She said: “I work in the neuro-stroke service at the hospital as a physiotherapist. There were a large number of women my age suffering from strokes. Some of them were the same weight as me.” “But I had fatty liver. And I had high cholesterol. And it was such an amazing experience that, if I didn’t do something soon, I would be one of those people who had a stroke.”
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Painter explained that her job as a physical therapist gives her insight into the health issues people have that others may not be fully aware of.
“There are a lot of things that a lot of people don’t see,” she said. “I see a lot of women my age with major health problems, mostly because of weight.” “And genetically, I have high blood pressure.”
“So I knew I had to do something.”
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How did a physical therapist access and afford Ozempic?
Painter felt that her health insurance would not cover weight-loss medications because she was not severely overweight.
“I needed to lose about 25 to 35 pounds, which is not enough to sign up for insurance,” she said. “So I started doing some Google searches and found Henry Meds, which I did a lot of research on, and I looked at the reviews and made sure it wasn’t just a quickie-type thing. The reviews were all good and it was also $300 a month for injections, and they had Ozempic.” “
The painter explained that the injection is once a week. After a few weeks and the prescribed increase in dosage, she noticed that she did not feel as hungry and experienced some weight loss.
“My desire to eat disappeared, and then my desire to eat sweets disappeared,” she said. “And the thing that struck me was that alcohol didn’t taste as good anymore. Well, I love my wine, but I was trying to drastically cut down on my alcohol intake because it’s not good for you. But I didn’t want to.” It didn’t taste as good anymore, which was really nice, I would go to happy hour and just order soda, I wouldn’t crave carbs, I would eat more protein.
“I would say I lost maybe 15 pounds within the first three months,” Painter added. “And that’s a lot for me because I can’t lose weight, right? I checked it every other day and then it slowed down, and I lost maybe 10 pounds over the next five months. And then I stopped losing weight.”
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Ozempic’s positive effects were also accompanied by some unpleasant side effects, Painter said.
“I was feeling very nauseous and started to feel constipated,” she said. “So those were side effects, plus the heartburn. I was really tired and didn’t have a lot of energy. It was probably because I wasn’t eating enough calories. I was eating maybe 700 calories a day.”
In the future, Painter said she would like to take the habits she learned from using Ozempic and apply them to her life without having to use medication.
“I would like to say I wouldn’t go back to that, but I think I might,” she said. “I’ll see what happens at the end of the summer and see where I’m at. I think I’ve learned some good habits. I think I’d like to lose 10 more pounds, but I’m healthy with the weight I’m carrying. ‘Mat.’
“At 56, I don’t expect to be the same weight I was at 30, right? But I know, health-wise, I need to be at that weight or lower.”
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Contact Jeffrey Quiggle about your personal stories with weight loss medications via email at jeffrey.quiggle@thearenagroup.net.
The author of this story owns shares in Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly.
