weight loss

I've been on Mounjaro for 2 years although it's primarily been for glycemic control. I was on Victoza, an earlier GLP-1 taken daily for around 2 years as one of the 4 meds I was taking for my T2 diabetes (acquired during high dose steroid treatments for the UC that led to my j-pouch 20+ years ago) I had a boatload of health issues - though ironically my pouch was not a problem - was on disability, obese and close to bed bound by 2021 when I decided to seek bariatric surgery. Since I have the j-pouch gastric bypass wasn't an option and after extensive screening I had a vertical sleeve gastrectomy in February 2022 at age 62. My A1C became a lot better almost immediately but at about 6 months post op I was having issues with even small amounts of carbohydrates spiking my blood sugar and between my endocrinologist, my GI and my colorectal guy it was determined that I could try Mounjaro to keep it steady and I guess prevent a return to insulin resistance. I took 7.5 mg for about a year and now use 5 mg.

        I lost 145 pounds to a BMI of 18.5 and have been maintaining this weight for over a year. I lost at the same rate both before and after taking the Mounjaro, a pretty consistent 1.4 lbs a week. All of my comorbidities resolved - even my egfr which had been Stage 3 Chronic Kidney Disease for a decade is now in the high 90s (it turns out that GLP-1 meds are proving to have a positive effect on chronic kidney disease for many people)  Ironically I have never had any of the GI side effects from either GLP-1 meds and by my second injection my bathroom visits had dropped in number and were just a lot closer to "normal" than ever (though again I was doing very well and other than the first couple of years with my pouch and 1 emergency obstruction I have had a very unproblematic j-pouch experience)

         One of my adult sons is now on Mounjaro for weight loss and it seems to be working exactly like the vsg did for me. I'm not sorry I had the surgery but as my endocrinologist says it's likely that GLP-1 meds are going to replace bariatric surgery for many people. For others it's a second excellent tool as obesity specialists know now that it's pretty much a chronic condition. Once a body has been obese it will tend to try very hard to remain or return to that state and in the course of a lifetime it will very likely require the use of some tool like these meds to prevent regain which is unfortunately the end result for 95% of obese people who reach a healthy weight on their own. I am just very impressed with all the extra benefits of these peptides, 2 years ago I would not have believed I could possibly have high normal egfr numbers, especially when I eat a very heavy protein diet.

         TLDR I have had a very positive experience with Mounjaro and I love that my 2 obese adult children may have an easier path controlling it than I did. It's not magic, just like sleeve surgery you will eat less and it will be helpful for you to probably modify what you eat too - but the medication when it works removes that obsession with food (food noise) and takes away the gnawing hunger you have from dieting. My son describes it just like I described the feeling post sleeve surgery: now we know how "normal" people feel and can get why they think it should be so easy to "just eat less" If it works for you (it doesn't for about 15% of people) it's pretty amazing imo.

Good luck!