I take the minimum dose of Ozempic. I tried increasing it to the next level, and it made me feel malaise, for whatever reason. I suspect there was degeneration in muscle tissue, particularly in smooth muscle, such as my heart, and I felt weak and had angina. So I tried decreasing the dose back to the minimum, and I felt good again. I definitely found I felt better once I began taking it, due to the better control of my blood sugars, in the first place. It also stopped my weight creeping up. I didn't necessarily lose weight, but it enabled me to stop gaining, and because I was feeling better, I exercised more, and ate less. I was doing more fun things and not sitting on the couch snacking.

I don't mind injecting because similar to when I took insulin during my pregnancies, the needle is very small and thin. I alternate injecting into the upper arm on the underside near the elbow, which is easy for me to reach. I dislike injecting into my stomach or thigh. It does leave a tiny bruise which persists for a couple of days. I inject once a week, on the same day and time each week, so it is easy to remember to take it. And I take the minimum dosage.

Another reason to keep on the lowest dose was cost. In spite of getting a doctor's note and form filled for insurance, they wouldn't cover it. Apparently the amount exceeds my deductible. I already am taking Pilocarpine for the Sjogren's, which is pretty expensive, so the addition of another expensive drug was not approved. So any Ozempic I am taking, I am paying for myself. Thankfully I can afford it easily now I am working. Again, feeling better means I can work more and earn enough to pay for this new drug addition.

Having had a gastric bypass already, I do eat a lower amount of food, even though I don't low carb any more, or at least, I can't focus on carnivore. I tolerate eggs quite well, and try to eat canned soft meats a fair amount too. It's not the best choice of meat, but it is something my stomach can handle. Today I had thinly sliced home baked pumpkin yeast bread with butter and mashed spam with mayo. Delicious, high protein, carb but high in soluble fibre, and keeping amounts low because I can't eat a lot now. I had a single slice of a meat pizza. And I had toast with spreadable cheese for breakfast. Always incorporating protein, always keeping amounts low, always needing to keep things soft and easy to digest.

I am concerned about my oldest daughter, though. She has admitted she is taking Ozempic for weight loss. She barely eats now. She is on the full dose of 1 mg/week. She always had constipation since she was tiny, with congenital low gut cellular motility. How is the Ozempic changing that situation? Yes, she's losing weight, and as mentioned, weight loss is a good thing for health overall. She is at high risk for diabetes and cancer from both maternal and paternal families, so keeping her weight down is very important for increasing her lifespan and also quality of life. But does the benefit outweigh the risks? She's currently on holiday, but when she gets back I will be discussing some of these issues and sharing your excellent links and articles here.