My Mounjaro Journey Week 10 - Getting Cold Feet

 Hello

I've really struggled with my appetite this week.  I've actually had a rumbling tummy at times and have been craving sugar.  It could all be in the mind because I've managed to lower my blood sugar but it's actually felt more like I'm using willpower alone.  I've definitely eaten more over the course of the week but it hasn't showed on the scales. Of course, it might catch up with me next week.

The issues with diarrhoea, bloating, eggy burps and constipation have really diminished as the weeks have gone by, which is obviously good news, but I have been suffering with really cold hands and feet.  In fact, my feet are cold even when I'm active. I Googled whether this was a known side effect of the drug and it is.  It's something to do with low blood sugar levels that can cause narrowing of blood vessels which, in turn, affects vascular responses, leading to reduced blood flow to the extremities and a feeling of coldness. I think, in layman's terms, that just means it affects the bloods circulation to your hands and feet.  It should eventually go away according to the information I've read but I'm currently writing this with my feet on a hot water bottle.

It's been a bit strained in the SheMed community this week. Nothing new there really but the bone of contention this week is the dose people are being prescribed.  The way the study works is that we all start on 2.5mg for four weeks.  This is a loading dose which gets your body used to the medication.  After the first four weeks, and providing there are no serious side effects, everyone is moved up to 5mg.  Once you're on this dose, you will remain on it providing you continue to lose weight, which makes sense.  What's the point in moving up to a higher dose if you don't need to?

Well, there are some very upset people who seemed to think they were going to be prescribed a higher dose every month.  They claim not to have any suppression at all and are upset that they aren't losing as much weight as they expected.  Some claim they're only losing weight through sheer willpower and that they're wasting £99 per month. Personally, I think if people wanted to dictate what dose they would be on, they probably shouldn't have signed up to a clinical study. 

I know that sounds unkind but, as with social media in general, there's far more moaning than there are upbeat posts.  Losing weight is hard and these injections are just a tool. You still have to put the work in and that means calorie counting to ensure you have a deficit and doing more exercise. I get the impression that some people thought it would just magically melt the fat away. For the record, if someone invents that jab, sign me up!

The good thing about being on the study is that I know my progress is being properly tracked.  Every time I apply for another dose, a clinician checks how I'm doing, whether I've had side effects, how much weight I've lost and then prescribes the next dose. I fully expect my next pen to be 5mg and that's fine; however, some of the griping seems to be suggesting that SheMed are keeping people on a lower dose because there's no monetary benefit for them to increase it.  Apparently, other providers increase the cost as you move up the dosage.

There are some lovely posts in the group too; so it's not all doom and gloom.  As the weeks are passing, lots of lovely ladies are getting more confident and are posting before and after photos. You can really see their progress and it spurs you on.  Success breeds success and I'm confident even the naysayers will do well in the end.

So, this weeks results, despite eating more:

Weight  - 14st 9lbs
Mounjaro dose - 5mg
BMI - 38.7
Total loss - 1 stone 6lbs

I'm very happy with my progress so far and keep expecting to plateau.  It will happen because that's the nature of a long term weight loss plan but, that's for another time.

Ta ta x

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