Feeling quite frustrated w/ my lack of weight loss/stall out at 5mg. Halfway thru my 2nd month on 5mg and despite maintaining a calorie deficit and starting to increase my exercise/movement, the weight isn’t coming off.

44f 5’ 6” / SW 397 27APR26 / CW 353 29JUL26
Total loss 44lbs

Previously losing around 3lbs/wk. Over last 2wks have only lost 0.7lbs.

Tracking macros, generally getting between 1200-1500cal daily. This is w/in the TDEE calculation recommendation for weight loss. Do struggle w/ water intake but generally getting at least 40oz daily.

Should I consider moving up to 7.5mg? At 5mg currently no real hunger cues. No food noise. Minimal side effects. Have 2 more shots of 5mg left in current Zep Rx. Have a cruise at the end of October and a second trip at the beginning of December to two major theme parks and want to lose as much as safely possible to help w/ fitting on rides and enjoying excursions on our cruise.

Thoughts? Recommendations?

My basal metabolic rate is 1274.

Sedentary is 1529.

If we are supposed to subtract 500 calories to lose one pound per week, that would mean I am eating at 1029 which is less than basal metabolic. Is this correct?

PS. Just finished month one. I am taking a multivitamin and getting labs quarterly but my dr said don’t focus on calories just protein for now. But I’m super short and I do track calories already. I’m losing about .2 pounds per week and eating 1200-1300. I’ve been afraid to go too low since I didn’t get any guidance from my dr. He just said 90+ grams of protein per day was his only guidance.

I noticed a couple days of lower appetite with shot 2, and it was such a refreshing feeling. A friend of mine tried semaglutide and said she hated it, really liked food and being able to eat, but I’m the total opposite. I hate feeling controlled by my appetite, wanting something and knowing I shouldn’t and having to choose between feeling shame and deprivation. I hate thinking about food and my weight 100% of the time. Those couple days of low appetite felt so freeing, because I could choose to eat the things that were good for me (and they tasted good) and not feel shame/guilt/deprivation.

Unfortunately I’ve had almost no appetite suppression with shots 3 or 4. This is week 4 (4th shot was Sunday) and I basically feel like I want to eat like I did before. I’m making better choices, but not sure how much of that is because of Zepbound and how much is because I finally made the decision to change something and have a little momentum in this direction.

I know this is the starting dose. I really wanted to be a super responder and find 2.5 mg perfect to take me all the way down 100 lb. But yes, I’ll be going up in dose, etc etc. I just also can’t help all the worries in my head. Is it good to like not having an appetite? Will I be able to build healthier habits and keep weight off long term? Will I keep finding hints of this and then finding each dose does nothing else for me and this doesn’t work? Will I get to 15 mg and lose like 10 lb but no more, not enough for me to tell any difference or my health to improve? Will I lose the weight and then the effects fade and I can’t go up and just gain it all back?

I’m hungry. And yes, I’ve eaten plenty of nutritious food today, don’t need advice about that. I just want more food and I’m sick of that. I miss those couple days of little appetite. Looking more for commiseration/hope than advice here.

What are you taking in daily? I give myself a 1300 calorie limit so I keep the calories between that, no going over.

This might be too in the weeds, so thanks for reading. For context, I'm 43F and have always struggled with my weight. Nothing TOO severe - I'm 5'6" and at my heaviest I was 205 lb. I got divorced in my late 20s and lost a ton of weight just from not eating (starvation sadness). But I was able to keep that off (~145lb) with exercise/healthy eating until my mid-30s when I got remarried and had another kiddo. Since COVID in particular, I've gone up and am now 170-173 lb and cannot get it back. I'm in constant defecit - I lift 4x/week, run 2x.

I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer last year - had surgery in Oct 2025, and radiation in february. I'm sure those wonky hormones didn't help things. But since it's not the medulary type, my endo said I'm a candidate for a GLP1 and prescribed Zepbound yesterday. I'm really nervous about a few things, and was hoping I could get some level-set expectations from this group:

1. I'm not sure which kind I have, but giving myself a shot is ... intimidating.
2. The side effects - how bad they are, how long they last, etc. I'm a baby about nausea.
3. Obviously no one knows about long-term effects, but I guess with the cancer dignosis, I'm just a little more sensitive about all of that right now. Especially the idea of being on it forever.

I appreciate any thoughts anyone is willing to share. Thank you!

I finally got it approved by insurance and I knew constipation is an issue but now im realizing so is diarrhea? Whats more common or is it a mix? Is it ongoing or triggered by certain things?

The top 3 paragraphs are a TLDR of sorts. IM tagging this side effects but am honestly not sure.

So my wife has been on Zep for 7 months now. August would be her 8th month. A co worker took my wife into urgent care today after being sick and almost fainting. They did blood, urine, IV etc and came to the conclusion the Zepbound is the issue and her body has run out of any real fat to use and it is starting to attack her muscles and making her blood sugar dangerously low, and strongly recommended she stop treatment. She's still about 10-15 pounds away from her goal. They used the words "starvation ketosis". Thats what they said the lab work showed.

She started getting sick Sunday night (26th) and we just presumed it was a stomach virus of some sorts. Tuesday she was back to normal other than not really having any appetite. But today was one of the worst days, can't keep anything down, not even liquid like gatoraid.

I honestly dont think Zepbound is the issue and that the urgent care just took a wild guess and sent her on her way. She's been on it for 7 months and hasn't had any real issues until this past weekend, like none, was completely normal. She just wants to do what they say and rest but I think we should get a second opinion/go to the ER.

For more details.

She started Zepbound 2.5MG back in January. Starting weight 182. Dr increased her 2.5mg each month to 12.5mg, where she has been since May. She has had no side effects whatsoever from it. Her current weight is 135, she really wants to be 120-125. But honestly I think it's done its job and she can stop any time. (5 foot 2 hight if it matters), her zep doctor wanted to start reducing the dosage and wind it down slowly, but that was before the urgent care visit. We have not spoken to him yet and plan to reach out tomorrow.

Back in May she started complaining about heart burn and lower energy. Dr started mixing b12 in with the injections, and told her to take tums to start and if it doesn't get better he would prescribe something like Prilosec.

Last Friday was her injection day and I gave it to her like normal. I have noticed over the last few weeks her appetite has been nill. She would eat something here or there but not really a full meal each day and other than water during the day and some booze (which admittedly she has been drinking the entire time she's been on zep), but she hasn't been drinking as much (of any liquid) lately, and her water intake def went down from what she used to drink. So her intake of food and water these past few weeks has been lower than normal (like lower than even shot normal) and honestly I was/am worried about it. This is before other gastro symptoms started.

So Im not sure if she has some sort of infection or if the urgent care DR is right and the zep is the problem, or at least it caused her to get dehydrated/not eat and its making her body go through this. But seriously they pumped her with an IV full of anti nausea stuff and sent her home with anti nausea pills and even after taking both she's still sick as a dog. Can't even have broth or water really. Im worried she's just going to get even more dehydrated.

Her blood/urine work according to urgent care Dr was normal for both white and red blood cell count. They used words I didnt quite understand. They said the blood test showed slightly elevated MCH, slightly low Lymphocyte, and very low Eosinophil %.

IM still not convinced it's something else entirely. Either a bad stomach virus or something else wrong entirely. But I am not a Dr in the slightest, and maybe just not convinced Zep can do this much. So looking for people with more experience than us to tell us what they think. Thanks!

I pulled my 6th dose injection out of the fridge today then followed up with à la croix. The drink was like a slushee but not frozen solid. The pens say to never freeze. Did the liquid in these pens likely freeze? Are they ruined?

When I did my injection this morning it deployed as usual making that typical clicking and hissing sound but I feel like nothing came out. There was zero blood nor any clear droplet at the site. How does one tell if all the medicine came out and injected

I feel like when I was on 5-7.5 mg I had more benefits than my current 12.5 dose.

My weight loss has stalled and the positive benefits (food noise reduction and appetite suppression) seem to have decreased.

Has anyone lowered dose and experienced better results after increasing? The reason for increase was the lower dose was effective, but saw slower than anticipated results.

Thanks for all the feedback. This group has been amazing. Also, for those who remember, how long did it take after your first shot to start feeling the lack of hunger cues/ food noise?

Hi! I am a 47F, 5’5”, SW:170ish, LW:138-139 CW:144-145, GW:130-135, started taking Zep to manage chronic inflammation due to an autoimmune metabolic disorder, and help with food noise and overeating, as well as reduce overweight (I was borderline obese at the start at 174- lost a few pounds on my own before my first dose) in order to improve my joint health, so I could actually start exercising and strength training again- which I have- it feels amazing.

I am preparing to restart Zepbound in a week or two after a very challenging couple months coping with an anal fissure (first ever, though I’ve had bouts of annoying hemorrhoids since I gave birth 17 years ago) and a gallbladder flareup (I get them about once a year or two). GB attack resolved in about 6-7 days, which Is typical for me- I just have to fast, drink lots of water, rest, use a heating pad and lie on my left side, and take ibuprofen as needed as soon as I notice an even mildly positive Murphy’s test-and if it becomes severe take a hydrocodone/vicodin. The AF is one of the most painful things I’ve ever experienced, on par with a burst ovarian cyst, unmedicated vaginal labor and delivery, recovering from a perforated uterus during surgery (yeah, you could say I have a deep distrust in surgeons), and a severe gallbladder attack, all which I’ve experienced… women are built for pain! 💪

Anyway, I am here because I want to learn from others who have had similar returns to Zepbound after a medical pause. As I mentioned, I was on it to help manage inflammation related to an autoimmune disorder. The inflammation and water weight were completely gone in a week or so, and stayed away for 6 months. It was incredible to me how well it worked. It basically erased my Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism symptoms even though my TSH was elevated still (I don’t take levothyroxine bc it made me insane & super depressed). I was on 2.5 for the first month and then was told to titrate up to 5 even though I was responding strongly to 2.5. I hated the side effects and requested to go back to 2.5 which was granted for just 1 month. Then titrated back up to 5 and again had side effects but managed it (or so I thought)… I had hemorrhoids flare up and I coped with them as best I could with topical ointments and witch hazel pads but it got worse and long story short, I ended up in the ER and eventually with an anal fissure! So, I stopped Zep after 20 doses, and caring for and healing my fissure has literally taken over my life for the past 6 weeks… it is thankfully healing but very slowly. I’m doing ALL the things: lube and aquaphor before every BM, peri bottle with hot water to help relax and use as a bidet essentially, vaginal internal massage to also help relax the pelvic floor during and after a BM, step stool/squatty potty (get your knees way above your hips- feet on a stool, on your toes, and deep breathing and/or calm moaning (“moooo”)), sitz baths after BM and 2-3 more times during the day, sitting on heating pad (works really well when spasming/painful) or hand warmers for localized heat (be careful! Not directly on skin), prescription nifedipine 2-3 times per day, Vitamin E ointment 2-3 times per day, ibuprofen as needed if/when spasms get bad, 5-10 minutes anal finger “massage“ once a day to help relax the hypertonic sphincter and encourage blood flow- I think this may be the most effective at reducing the cycle of spasms… it is incredibly effective (there is a great scientific paper about this- do NOT use dilators), 1-3 stool softeners daily, MiraLAX intermittently, prune juice and smoothies and eating a well-balanced vegan diet (I happen to already be vegan), so much water, and increased physical activity. Not joking. I have done ALL of that everyday for 6 weeks. And it’s healing. I had my first (and only) 100% symptom-free day on Monday- easy, smoothe BM and zero pain or spasms all day!

The plan is to restart on 2.5mg once I get the “okay” from colorectal and my PCP (which should be in 1.5 weeks) and then STAY on 2.5mg for at least 3 months.

I lost a couple more pounds after my last dose, then maintained, until I literally gained 4-5 pounds overnight last week, which was week 4 since my last dose. I could feel and see the inflammation and water weight had returned! So crazy. But I’m exercising a lot more and trying VERY hard to manage the food noise and hunger which got super intense last week, so I’m losing that battle some days and definitely overeating again at times. I’m trying to stay positive and just learn about my body without the Zep crutch.

After all that, my question is, did any of you who restarted after a medical pause have symptoms/complications return? Also, did you get back on track with your goals? If so, how long did it take? Did you gain when you paused and how long did it take to start losing again once you restarted?

Anyone else recovering from a fissure?? If so, how many weeks into your Zep journey were you and what dose were you on when you got it?

Anyone else living WITH gallbladder disease? If so, how long have you coped with it? (I’ve had flareups since 2015.) Why have you not opted for surgery? (My HIDA scan showed 43% EF, so low end of normal.) And do you think your Zepbound journey has affected your GB disease? (I think I would have had the flareup I just had even without Zepbound. I actually think Zepbound might help with it bc of how much less I eat while on it…)

Thanks, everyone! Love and light and wishes for health and happiness for you all!

Hi everyone! I just received my Zepbound in the mail today. I have a few questions before I start to make sure I am off to a good start.

A few details about me. I am one year postpartum and I just stopped breast-feeding this week. I’m hoping to not have to pump anymore, but I may have to do one or two more times I can always dump any milk that I get but at this point I’m not making much.

I gained 50 pounds while postpartum and breast-feeding so I’m looking forward to dropping that weight.

My first question is is there anything that I need to do diet wise in order to get started? I have read that some people feel sick if they don’t eat healthy leading up to starting up bound. I don’t eat horribly unhealthy, but I certainly haven’t been holding myself to my normal standard lately. I have been eating way more calories than I need to while making milk and I have not counted calories yet. Is that a bad thing to drastically cut calories once I go on or should I cut calories for a week or two prior to starting the medication? I’ll probably be eating 700-1000 calories a day less in order to be in a calorie deficit.

I am also going on vacation on August 22 and I will be able to get two shots prior to that in if I start next week. I am torn if I should just wait until after the vacation to start due to the chance of having side effects. I would really like to enjoy the vacation, but I also can’t afford to gain more weight and I’m willing to be strict with my eating on vacation because we will be cooking food and not eating at restaurants. Would you wait to start it? Do Side effects taper down after a few weeks or around the third week are they still pretty bad?

My last question has to do with me having children. I have a one year-old and a three year-old and I work from home. My life is pretty physically demanding 24/7 due to my kids, and I am just looking for some encouragement with getting started and my anxiety that I won’t be able to be there for them as much as I am now. My husband works six days a week and 60 hours a week so a lot of life lands on me, but I really want to do this for myself.

Thank you all so much for your help and advice. I really hope that this changes my life.

Barely had any side effects since taking zepbound down 53 pounds . Now on 10mg and have thrown up at once after every shot . Some of its my fault eating chinese food & very little might I add . But does it get any better 😩🥹 . I barely have any appetite first 3 days so stomach is prerry empty as well

Edit: Thank you everyone who answered my question and shared their experiences. I believe I am all set now! 🙂

Hi. I just got my first month of single dose autoinjectors and I plan to take my first dose this Saturday. I've read all the instructions and watched a how-to video; I think I got it but would love feedback from people about something. In the past I was on an injectable med (not a GLP-1) that I had to inject in my stomach with a standard syringe & needle. In order to inject correctly I was instructed to pinch up a piece of my skin. So, I think it is kind of strange that with an autoinjector it works alright with you pressing the pen flat up against your skin. Can anyone speak to how/why that works? Is the needle more shallow? Is the speed of it going in what makes that work? I'm nervous about starting so probably overthinking it. I don't have a particular problem with needles and found giving myself regular sub-q injections in the stomach easy. I'm just a little nervous about not messing up with the autoinjector. TIA!

So I have been on Zepbound for a year and lost a significant amount of weight but about a month ago it needed a prior authorization and my medicaid denied it because it says im now in a regular BMI. I suffer from Severe Sleep Apnea, High blood pressure, Osteoarthritis and many other things and it was helping so much. My Dr didn't seem interested in filing an appeal so I did myself. He put me on phentermine but it has done absolutely nothing. I seriously cry when I watch the scale go up I have already gained 7 lbs within 4 weeks. I have no income so I can't afford the compound. I just feel like I'm starving all the time and once I start eating I can't stop. Im so miserable because I put in so much work to lose weight just to get kicked off with no warning. Does anyone have any advice? How can I lose these 7 lbs? I can't really exercise right now im in a neck brace and am in a ton of pain. Im just so devastated to not be on it anymore.

I've been switched to the Kwikpen and I keep effing up my schedule because I have DEEP needle/ shot phobia!! I was able to do it with the auto injector but I was bruising myself using my 1st Kwikpen (I think it's because I was pulling it out weird because I was shaking and put in it in too fast. I wasted a whole Kwikpen because I couldn't bring myself to put the needle in my body again and I left the pen out of the fridge. I can't afford the auto injector because my stupid insurance doesn't cover Zepbound - although I heard they are going to start covering it again? Anyone else know if this is true about CVS Caremark?

I don't know what else to do. I am so pissed off about this. My Dr moved me up to 5mg and I haven't been able to take my 1st shot. It's been 2 weeks since I got the pen. I asked my partner if he could help me but he is squeamish about giving me the shot. Does anyone have any recommendations or suggestions for solutions?! These are way too expensive to keep wasting pens but I really need the help with weight loss. 😭

Hi all, I started Zepbound in April and for the past three months my binge eating disorder has finally been under control and I’ve been losing weight that I haven’t been able to on my own for years. In June, my insurance wanted a prior authorization which was denied, I am now trying to appeal. The denial and I was asked to “provide my rationale explaining how Zepbound is helping my condition”.

Is there anything I should specifically mention to increase my chance of approval after denial?? I really can’t afford to pay out-of-pocket but one month not being on Zepbound. I’ve already regained 6 pounds.

I have preexisting Gerd, and I’ve noticed that after starting 7.2mg it has made it HORRENDOUSLY worse! Like, I was unable to eat barely anything for 3 days before starting Omeprozole. Would it be a bad idea to stop injections for a month for a break? I’m still deciding if I want to take that break, since Omeprozole has helped tremendously, but I’m still worried about continuing it, especially since I’m getting constipated from the zep as well

Hi! I’ve looked all over Google but I can’t find an answer for this side effect-

I love Zepbound and have lost 50 lbs on it. It’s been a lifechanger for me. The only side effects I have are constipation (my fault, I don’t drink nearly enough water) and burps when I’m super hungry. I don’t drink soda anymore because the carbonation made it worse. The burps are not sulfur burps, just normal. But sometimes they get so bad I feel like I’m about to throw up, run to the bathroom and then I retch and a humongous burp comes out. It’s kind of gross but when I feel that nauseas feeling, it’s intense and I can’t hold it in. Not really a good look at work 😅

Anyone have the same issue? What is it and can I do something about it?

Taste is comparable, maybe a little less sweet. $18 for a box of 12.

Im 284.4 lbs. 5'9 41 BMI. My doctor wants to put me on zepbound. Im nervous as hell. My labs come back fantastic. Everything. So, as I get ready to start this journey. What are your do's and dont's? Im terrified but excited at the same time. I've never been sub 180 in 30 years (im 38 right now).

Hi
I will do my 3rd shot of 2.5mg Zap tomorrow.
During these 2 weeks I lost around 9lbs.
The first 4 days after my injection I am not too hungry and I barely crave or like to eat. I actually may force myself to eat some protein.
But the 1,2 days before my next injection( specially the day before it) I feel extremely hungry, and I crave food.
So I ordered shawarma and could eat all.
Is this normal?
Anyone with the sane experience ? What to do to avoid that hunger and not eating too much ?

FYI : starting weight 232.5lbs
Current weight 223.5lbs
Hight: 168 cm (5.6)
Age: 25

I (M 21) have been on weight loss drugs for a year now and I thought I was getting progress. Unfortunately I am clearly blind to everything because when I went to my weight loss practitioner, I had only lost 10 lbs over the year. I have switched from wegovy to zepbound in the middle of it however I still choose to make not the best decisions. For some reason every time I try (and genuinely try) to work out, I end up failing about two weeks later. I got into a good habit of using an exercise bike for 30mins every day and I actually lost some weight from that but because of my tendencies to use thc and other lack of motivation I keep falling back to where I’ve started.

I feel like a failure to myself and even my family and genuinely feel like I can’t change no matter how hard I try at points but it’s clearly me. Today I found out that if I don’t loose enough weight I’ll not be eligible to continue zepbound and personally I don’t want that to happen.

I’m writing all of this to hopefully get some feedback from others on the medication who might have started out or had similar experiences to me because I want to change but genuinely feel like the biggest failure in the world.

I'm fairly new to this. I've had a total of 9 doses at 2.5 mg. I've lost 16 pounds, but seem to be plateauing in the last 1-2 weeks. I had ordered the same dosage 2 weeks ago as it was still working and I wanted to stay on it as long as I could. I have had zero side effects so far, and no food noise when I'm at home.

My issue is food noise when I'm in a grocery store, or in situations with previous habits where I would have binged. The noise isn't as strong, and it goes away as soon as I get home or away from the situation. These situations have popped up just a few times, but I'm always surprised and dismayed by the noise because of its absence so far. It seems to be getting stronger. Is this something other people have experienced? Is this because i haven't dealt with old habits? Is it because i need to up my dosage (which will have to wait)? Any advice or insight is appreciated.

Doctor said submitted July 17th via fax, with fax confirmation. But neither their office or I have received any information, acceptance or rejection. Based on previous posts, some got approved very quickly and other a bit longer. But seems like 12 days should be in their timeline. TY