Ask Sam King if taking Ozempic was worth it in your quest to lose weight and she’ll smile.
Sam, who started gaining weight when he was 20, at his heaviest three years ago weighed 19 kilos, or 121kg.
‘I tried every diet available: world slimming, diet shakes, keto and none of them worked. I would spend two hours in the gym and lose half a kilo in three weeks and then gain it back. I wore men’s clothing to cover myself and had no confidence in myself.’
In 2022, she felt so exhausted that she visited her family doctor.
‘I explained to him that I was overweight and that I had tried everything. My doctor was understanding and told me about this new drug called Ozempic.’
At the time, Ozempic (the active ingredient is semaglutide) was relatively unknown, a drug used primarily to control blood glucose in people with type 2 diabetes.
One of the side effects is reduced appetite, and at the time, doctors were just beginning to prescribe it “off label” as a weight loss medication.
Subsequently, in September 2021, the drug Wegovy, which also contains semaglutide, was approved as a weight management medication.
Her GP recommended Ozempic to Sam King, a travel writer from Hampshire.
‘My doctor initially prescribed me one month. They didn’t link the fatigue to my weight, but I knew that if I was thinner and could exercise more, I would feel more energetic.’
The medication was to be administered by daily injection into the stomach. “I didn’t like it very much, but I soon got used to it,” he says.
Sam had read stories of people losing huge amounts on Ozempic, with social media stars hailing it as a wonder drug, and she hoped she would experience this soon too.
“I was very excited,” she says. Sam was also at that time so “desperate” to lose weight that she would have “tried anything.”
At first his appetite remained unchanged. The doctor advised him to reduce his alcohol consumption and make sure he followed a healthy diet made up of fruits, vegetables, and meat and fish proteins.
But after a few days he felt nauseous. “It consumed me everything and I found that I couldn’t leave the house. Luckily I work from home, so I was able to work. But then the nausea got so bad that I had to stay home all day and couldn’t get off the couch. I felt so nauseous that I even felt dizzy, at first once a day and then several times. “I felt horrible.”
When Sam returned to see his doctor for his next prescription, he was told that these side effects were normal and that he should continue.
But things got worse. The fatigue, the same fatigue that I had ironically gone to the GP for in the first place, got worse. I couldn’t lift my head off the pillow. I knew exercise was a component of weight loss, but I couldn’t get up. I’d be sick all day every day.’
After three months, I had lost 6lbs or 2.7kg, but my GP told me it was probably due to my vomiting and dehydration. They gave me anti-nausea pills but nothing helped. I have never felt so bad.
“I know Ozempic works for a lot of people and I’m excited for them,” says Sam, 35, a travel writer from Hampshire, England. “But the drug only caused me health problems and I didn’t lose weight.
“I was very frustrated and envious that these people said they were losing rocks and I had barely lost anything.” My body looked the same, I just seemed fatigued, with dark circles under my eyes and shaky and weak from illness.’
These side effects are not uncommon. “Nausea affects 15 to 20 percent of people, vomiting affects five to nine percent, diarrhea affects eight percent, and constipation affects three to seven percent,” explains William van Niekerk, plastic, reconstructive and aesthetic surgeon at The Private Clinic on London’s Harley Street.
As Dr Semiya Aziz, a London-based GP who has a special interest in weight loss and management, explains: “Ozempic is a prescription medicine for people with diabetes – it was designed primarily for this, rather than as a drug. to lose weight.
‘The active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy (the approved version for obesity) is semaglutide, and whether or not the drug helps with weight loss varies from person to person.
“Factors such as genetics, starting weight, metabolic health, and treatment adherence can influence treatment outcomes.”
Dr. van Niekerk adds: “Ozempic is not a free ride to lose weight; you still need to make lifestyle changes and put in the work.”
Sam King would now recommend eating healthy and exercising as the best way to lose weight
«Another reason could 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 notice benefits. It is important that dosage decisions be made under the care of an experienced physician.
Sam decided to stop the medication after three months, feeling confused why, despite taking it as directed, it wasn’t working for her. Her weight loss had been minimal, and she said it was mainly because she felt so unwell.
He still suffers from vertigo that has not gone away.
Since then, Sam has watched videos and read reports of some people who kept the weight off after Ozempic while others gained the weight back.
“It made me realize there’s no magic wand,” Sam says.
A year ago, Sam went to Australia and decided to try losing weight the old-fashioned way.
‘Here a diet plan was started that basically consisted of calorie-controlled eating plans. I stuck with it and went from 14th (89kg) to 12th (76kg) in about a year, which is where I am now.
She says she’s surprised that a “normal” diet has worked for her after all these years.
“I thought Ozempic would be a wonder drug and it seems like it is for some people, but it certainly wasn’t for me.”