Rachel Reilly believed that consumption will help her lose weight and alleviate her polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). Instead, she says it went to an emergency department twice.
Reilly doctor prescribed Zepbound-one of the GLP-1 drugs that became synonymous with transformational weight loss and has been beneficial, including improvement of diabetes, cardiovascular health and sleep apnea-and perhaps even PCOS. Reilly saw videos of people who said GLP-1S helped their PCOS symptoms, and when she started her medication, she felt hope. “I feel that people are not really talking about his unpleasant sides, so I had a kind of impression that it would be fine,” she says Yahoo.
Many people achieved their health and weight loss goals due to GLP-1 medicines, some have received large social media observation documents. However, no medicine is perfect, and some people are frustrated with drugs or say that side effects are not worth it. We talked to three of them about what made a mistake and what they want them to know before they started.
“I have chosen the quality of life compared to weight loss”
Most of his life Reilly fought against his weight and PCOS, which is often with insulin resistance. She tried to exercise and work with a nutritionist, but none of them were very different from the symptoms of her weight or pca. At the age of 25, she was ready to try another option.
In April, Reilly made her first Zepbound shot. The drug suppressed Reilly’s appetite, but it was not even beneficial to her well -being. “I used to suffer from an eating disorder and it was like [disorder] It was easier to give up because I wasn’t hungry, “says Reilly Yahoo.” Basically everything you do, eliminating that hunger, making it much easier to reduce calorie intake. “
In total, it lost 19 pounds, but increased to the dose (to 7.5 milligrams in case) -Tandartin GLP-1 procedure to maintain progress-reilly awakened every morning. She had diarrhea and nausea and felt exhausted all the time. Her two era trips were caused by diarrhea dehydration within a few months. It also developed “sulfur bubbles”, which caused her to have pancreatitis. “There are so many people in these medicines, but they won’t talk about [the side effects]says Reilly. – They just want to post [on social media] About how much weight they lost and “go!”
Reilly doctor suggested that her dose be reduced by 5 milligrams, hoping that its side effects would be milder. But she still felt scary. She stopped taking Zepbound in July, trying to have another dose in mid -August and withdrew again. “After a while, I was like, ‘I’m going to choose a quality of life, not weight loss,” says Reilly.
“Yes, don’t do it anymore”
Like Reilly, Stephanie McDaniel tested Glp-1 (a complex version of TiRzepatide, the active ingredient Zepbound) stopped due to side effects and tried again, before deciding that it was not suitable for her.
However, McDaniel had a completely different side effects. Shortly after October He began Tyzepatide, noticed what she thought was the signs of typical injection site irritation: some redness and itching. However, by November, It was no longer just a small itch. Around her belly button, a rash of rash develops, which was pussy. Soon the rash spread when urticaria, as well as on the thighs, abdomen, hands and neck, appeared in her armpit. “I haven’t really experienced anything like that in my life,” McDaniel says Yahoo. “I was so scared, so confused – I didn’t even imagine what was going on.”
The nurse doctor thought that McDaniel had one or more infections and prescribed antibiotics. It seemed to help clean up the rash, but McDaniel also paused his GLP-1 injections. When it started to lose weight again in a few months, the same symptoms occurred. Her doctor found that McDaniel was among the small subgroup of people (approximately 1% to 3%) that develop allergies to GLP-1 injections. “Over time, it improved because I no longer had myself but the biggest was, Yes, don’t do it anymoreTo, McDaniel says.
“Some people want to survive stomach pain, throw up, fatigue”
28-year-old Sefra Hirston tried almost everything when it comes to GLP-1. She says her refrigerator is full of boxes of Ozempic, Wegovy and Zepbound. The first time they used Ozempic in 2021. It was fine, but eventually she couldn’t get it when she was missing. When she finally released the drug in 2023, she had a completely different experience, including nausea and vomiting. “It forced me to be afraid to try again” with Ozempic. Earlier this year, her doctor offered Zepbound instead, “And I finished in a hospital with a heavy acid reflux,” says Hirston.
Hirston also has insulin-resistant PCOS and is prediabetic, and from their online studies it seemed that most women with her condition “say it’s great because they lose weight,” says Hirston. She says she is highly motivated to lose weight and even got a recipe to try the third GLP-1, Wegovy. However, he is sitting in the refrigerator with other drug boxes so far. “When women lose weight, they are satisfied, and some people want to survive stomach pain, throw up, fatigue, and worse, says Hirston. “But when it starts to affect your health and give you an additional [diagnoses]It is not worth it. “Now she decides whether to give Wegovy a chance or to choose bariatric operations.
Why don’t GLP-1 treat some people?
Experts do not yet know why some people cannot tolerate these weight loss drugs. Although the side effects of the GLP-1 gastrointestinal tract are very common and controlled for many, 15% to 25% of people simply cannot tolerate them. Another of the five patients with semaglutide (active ingredient Wegovy and Zepbound) does not lose heavy weight, says Dr. Melanie Cree, Children’s Endocrinologist and Director of the Colorado University Anschutz PCOS Clinic, says Yahoo. “There is a perception that these are miracle drugs that work for everyone,” she says. “But the data was all the time,” Cree adds to show that this is not the case.
For many who have prediabetic or with type 2 diabetes, GLP-1 advantages are probably worth solving side effects,-Yahoo tells the endocrinology, diabetes and bone disease head Dr. Andrea Dunaif. But ‘a group of people we call metabolically healthy obesity if they don’t have them [health problems] Related to a big BMI, there is nothing in a hurry that requires losing weight, ”says Dunaif.
Despite the side effects that causes Reilly, McDaniel and Hirston decide to quit GLP-1, everyone says they will never deter those who want to try one of these medicines. “I hope my story doesn’t scare people,” says McDaniel. “I just feel like an unfortunate girl and want me to take medication; I know that GLP-1 helps many people.” She adds, “If you are going to do it, talk to your doctor first.”
Still, she wants more GLP-1 users in social media to share more than only disadvantages of success. “It’s hard to find someone who checks [these medications] Because he drowned in a positive experience, says McDaniel.-I think it is important for people to be open, listen to both sides and make a reasoned decision for himself. ‘