I am just over a month of diabetes diagnosis. I was put on metformin twice a day. I just went to new primary care and she wants to add Ozempic injections once a week. She says it has also helped with weight loss. Has anyone tried this yet? And if so any advice or reviews?
Not familiar with this and wonder if weight loss is the main factor behind it. Would be interested to follow your question and responses.
Best of luck.
Don't know anything about this one specifically, but that class of medicines is widely used now - in spite of a somewhat scary list of warnings. But frequently metformin alone is not enough, even if you are limiting your diet properly and getting daily exercise as you MUST.
What are your BG numbers, what was your A1C at diagnosis?
And if you would like to say, just how much weight do you stand to lose?
Ask your dr. if the metformin would be enough to keep your blood sugar levels within 80 and 115. I say this because some doctors participate and get rewarded for pushing certain drugs.
Vickie, good that youre doing research on the meds.
I look after my diabetic mother. She’s used insulin daily and then with dietary changes, transitioned to metformin and eventually went off metformin.
You might want to read the information about side effects on the manufacturer’s websites. Its important to read all the information because, well, reading about the side effects motivated me to help my mother improve her diet to try and control her diabetes.
I was shocked when I found that many diabetes meds cause diabetes and diabetic complications.
My mom was on insulin with every meal, morning and night. I don’t remember the name of the two types she was on- long and short acting insulin. She never took the weekly injection.
Bori us right. Docs never tell you that you can control with diet and exercise. I can’t tell you how much easier it is for my mom now that she’s off the meds!!!!
I was told she would never be off meds. But it took less than 6 months of proper diet, supplements and acupuncture to restabilize her blood sugar levels.
Ozempic is meant as an adjunct to diet and and exercise. I think it's fairly new as there isn't a lot of data regarding side effects in humans only that a rapid decline in blood glucose can worsen renal function and retinal
damage.
And yes drug companies do offer incentives to Dr's that push their drugs as do local authorities for detection rates.
I work in blood sciences and it seems like everyone over the age of 40 who's overweight gets a diabetic screen or a glucose tolerance test if they visit their Dr.
Hi Kelly, thanks for posting. Ironic that its known to cause rensl problens. Kidney function is very linked to diabetes.
As I’ve looked after my mother for the last two years, I’ve been through at least 25 different meds with her. Every single medication causes kidney or liver problems or both. When these two organs are compromised you get very rapid decline in health. Both kidney and liver regulate fluids and elimination of toxins that greatly affect circulation and toxicity in the body.
While mom was in hospice, we took her off all the meds. We were told she would die without the meds. Now, the withdrawl of the meds was very bad and caused a bunch of temporary problems that nearly killed her. Even so, her health improved rapidly once off the meds. The hospice nurse said it is very typical that when people are taken off meds, their health improves and they recover from their illnesses. That was nearly two years ago. My mother has a very strict diet and recieves regular acupuncture and chiropractic treatment. She’s doing fabulous without meds, taking herbs and supplements instead.
It’s certainly worthwhile to look into diet, supplements and alternatives. Keep in mind that vitamin and mineral deficiencies can cause a lot of health problems.
My bg numbers range from 121-189....but average around 150. At diagnosis my A1C was 9.2. Honestly....I should probably lose 60-70 lbs but would be happy with 50
Acupuncture is a different approach. I have not heard of that
Vickie, that sounds just like me. My sugar spikes are worrisome because it can cause organ and nerve damage. It's so difficult to control bg because I enjoy eating but today's foods are loaded with sugar and starch. What are we to do ? Eat lettuce for 6 months? I just ate a piece of cake and now I feel like ... Need some more willpower and words of encouragement.
Vickie snd Bori, it could be you have multiple subclinical health issues.
I say this from experience. I have thyroid disease and have had an extremely difficult time treating it. The meds I was taking for my thyroid (didn't help the thyroid symptoms) cause increased blood sugar levels. Meanwhile, since the meds didn't work ss expected , the thyroid disease carried on, which can lead to chronic pancreatitis and rkevated a1c. But now after 5 years of meds tgat didnt treat the thyroid disease AND caused massive side effects, I’m pretty much a hot mess. The concern of high blood sugar not even worth my time to test, considering all the other stuff I’m dealing with and the autoimmune disease so bad from the thyroid meds that I wouldn’t dare risk taking more meds. And let’s not forget the massive weight gain caused by this lovely combination of thyroid disease, ineffective meds and side effects.
Between mysekf and caring fir my mother, I track all the known side effects of drugs and read many posts. My conclusion is that the “known” side effects disclosed by drug companies are limited to the side effects that are highly likely, not rare. I take the side effects of medications VERY seriously!
My new doctor prescribed Ozempic to me 3 days ago. I am type 2 diabetic brought on by side effects of a daily pill I take for post-breast cancer. I’m on metformin and gliclacide. She suggested the Ozempic and not the gliclacide. My A1C is 6.8 and rarely do I run high numbers. I weigh 158 lbs and am active every day biking or walking. I started .25 mg Ozempic 3 days ago and have had terrible nausea and diahhrea constantly. Went in to see her today to say I do not want to take it and she suggested taking 1/2 of the dose next. My brief experience has not been good - it’s no wonder a person loses weight as food is revolting to me right now with my stomach churning. My numbers are lower because I’m barely eating anything. Not sure I’ll stick it out. Feeling like crap doesn’t work for me. Hope others have a better experience than me. Sorry I don’t have great news about it.
Thank you for responding!
Vickie,
I have been diabetic for 35 years. I have been on insulin since the beginning. I was excessively overweight, and had a gastric bypass 10 years ago. I lost 160 pounds. My blood sugars went way down, but became very erratic. I asked my doctor about Trulicity. He suggested I try Ozempic, since I have heart trouble also. That day my A1C was 7.8. Two months later, I went back to the doctor. I had dropped my insulin dosage by 25% throughout that time span. I had lost 16 pounds in two months and my A1C was 6.9. I have been on it another month, and I have lost anther 9 pounds, and my BS are running between 95 and 107 at fasting. I do not have thyroid problems, which was the most important side effect. It takes away your hunger, especially night cravings. I am sold on it and would recommend it to anyone who is having difficulty with A1C variation and erratic blood sugars. I am a unpaid spokesperson to all the doctors in my doctor's of how wonderful Ozempic is.
That sounds so encouraging! I just bumped up to the .50 dose last week...but have already lost about 7 pounds and bg is much better. What is your dosage?
I am on .5 now. I started on .25 for 4 weeks
Could you tell a big difference when you moved to the .5 dose?
Some difference. I was not hungry as much. They have a 1mg dose. I had thought about asking my doctor, if it would help my A1C go even lower, but I will not see him until January. Right now, I am content with the progress I have made.
I think I read a post a while where they talked about some of the diabetes meds were strong appetite suppressants.
Just something to keep in mind.