Ask Sam King how she lost weight and she’ll smile and say, ‘Simple healthy diet and exercise.’
But that was only after she tried the new wonder drug Ozempic, which not only helped her lose weight, but caused nausea, vomiting and dizziness so bad that she was bedridden.
“I know Ozempic works for a lot of people and I’m thrilled for them,” says Sam, 35, a travel writer from Hampshire. ‘But for me the drug caused me nothing but ill health and I didn’t lose weight.’
Sam, who started putting on weight in her 20s at her heaviest three years ago, weighed 19 stone.
‘I tried every diet – Slimming World, diet shakes, keto – nothing worked. I would spend two hours at the gym and lose a pound in three weeks and then put it back on. I wore men’s clothes to cover up and I had no confidence.’
In 2022, she felt so exhausted that she saw her doctor. ‘I explained that I was overweight and had tried everything. My doctor was sympathetic and told me about this new drug called Ozempic.’
Sam King, a travel writer from Hampshire, was recommended Ozempic by his doctor
At the time, Ozempic (the active ingredient is semaglutide) was relatively unheard of, a drug primarily used to control blood sugar in people with type 2 diabetes. A side effect is decreased appetite, and 18 months ago doctors started prescribing it ‘off label’ as a weight loss drug.
Then in September 2021, Wegovy (which also contains semaglutide) was approved as a weight loss drug.
‘My doctor initially gave me a prescription a month. They didn’t reduce the fatigue to my weight, but I knew that if I was slimmer and could exercise more, I might feel more energetic.’
The drug was to be administered by a daily injection into the stomach. “I wasn’t particularly keen on it, but I quickly got used to it,” she says.
Sam had read up online about stories of people losing massive amounts on Ozempic with social media stars hailing it as a miracle cure, and she hoped she would soon experience this too.
“I was so excited,” she says. Sam was also at this point so ‘desperate’ to lose weight that she would have ‘tried anything’ she says.
Her appetite initially remained unchanged. The doctor had advised her to cut down on alcohol and ensure she followed a healthy diet of fruit, vegetables and protein from meat and fish.
But within days she felt nauseous. ‘It was all consuming and I found I couldn’t leave the house. Luckily I work from home so I could work. But then the nausea got so bad that I had to stay inside all day and couldn’t leave the couch. I would feel so nauseous that I would actually be sick – at first once a day, then several times. I felt terrible.’
When Sam went back to her doctor for her next prescription and was told that these side effects were normal and she should continue.
‘But it got worse. The fatigue – the same fatigue that, ironically, I had gone to the GP for in the first place – got worse. I couldn’t lift my head from my pillow. I knew exercise was part of weight loss, but I couldn’t get up. I would be sick all day every day.’
After three months she had lost 6kg – but my doctor told me it was probably due to my vomiting and dehydration. I was given anti-sick pills but nothing touched it. I had never felt so sick.’
These side effects are not uncommon. “Nausea affects about 15 to 20 percent of people, vomiting occurs in five to nine percent, while diarrhea is eight percent and constipation three to seven percent,” explains William Van Niekerk, a consultant plastic, reconstructive, aesthetic surgeon at The Privat clinic in Harley Street.
Sam continued on Ozempic for three months and lost a total of 3kg. ‘I was so frustrated and envious that these people online were saying they were losing stone and I had barely lost any. My body looked the same, I just looked tired, dark circles under my eyes and shaky and weak from the disease.’
As Dr Semiya Aziz, a GP based in London with a special interest in weight loss and management, explains: ‘Ozempic’s ability to help people lose weight varies from person to person. Factors such as genetics, baseline weight, metabolic health and adherence to treatment can all influence treatment outcomes.’
Sir. Van Niekerk adds: ‘Ozempic is not a free ride to lose weight – you still have to make lifestyle changes and do the work.
Sam King will now recommend healthy diet and exercise as the best way to lose weight
“An additional reason may be that the dose is not high enough. To reduce the risk of side effects, people usually start with 0.25 mg for the first four weeks and gradually increase the dose, so it may take longer to see the benefits. It is important that decisions about dosage are guided under the care of an experienced doctor.’
Sam decided to stop the drug after three months, feeling confused as to why it wasn’t working for her despite taking it as recommended. Her weight loss had been minimal and, she says, mainly because she felt so ill.
She still suffers from vertigo which has not gone away.
Sam’s has since seen videos and read reports of some people keeping their weight off after Ozempic while others gain it back.
“It made me realize there’s no magic wand,” says Sam.
A year ago Sam went to Australia and decided to try to lose weight the old fashioned way.
‘It started a diet here which was basically calorie controlled meal plans. I stuck with it and went from over 14st to 12st in about a year, which I am now.’
She says she is shocked that a ‘normal’ diet worked for her after all these years.
“I thought Ozempic would be a panacea, and it seems to be for some people, but it certainly wasn’t for me.”