Stopping Ozempic - what's next?

Georgie

Well-known member
My glucose has been dipping way too low lately, into the 50s, and I feel awful. The doc says it's time to stop the Ozempic. I'm worried about gaining the weight back and becoming diabetic all over again. Anyone else been through this and have advice?
 
You don't really stop being diabetic, Georgie. It's more like managing it. Maybe a lower dose would work or a different med if Ozempic is too strong? Get a second opinion if you disagree with your doc, but diabetes is usually a lifetime thing.
 
I always thought diabetes was a forever thing too. Maybe get another opinion before stopping Ozempic altogether, Georgie? It's what's controlling your blood sugar, after all.

I think once you stop, your blood sugar will probably go up again. My doctor told me I'd be on it for life.
 
With T2D and Ozempic, my A1C dropped a lot. I'm off the insulin pump now, just one insulin shot a day. Still on Ozempic! Medicare didn't want to pay for the pump because my C-Peptide showed my pancreas still works. Seems I'm less insulin resistant now and my pancreas is doing more of the work!
 
My doc suggested scaling back slowly, staying on the lowest dose possible, or switching to every other week.

Georgie What dosage are you on right now?
 
It's important to know how you get type 2 in the first place. Especially since most of us have less muscle if we haven’t seen a gym.

Insulin resistance is a symptom, not the real cause.

Being overweight and not having enough muscle will bring back the high insulin resistance. So... hit the gym, do squats, and do 20-30 minutes of cardio 2-3 times a week, or more. Think like an athlete, progressively overload. Do more over time. How much do you lift? More than last time. How much cardio? More than last time.

Eat a high protein, high fiber diet. Watch your body weight and calories. Stay around your TDEE. If you gain a few pounds over time, diet them off over a few weeks.

You can raise your TDEE by doing more cardio, so you can often offset 400-800 extra calories a day with 30-60 minutes of cardio.

Hope this helps.
 
I'm on Ozempic for T2D or prediabetes. My A1C was 10.1% with fatty liver.

I say "or prediabetes" because sometimes I stop Ozempic for a couple months to check where my body's at, and it goes to prediabetes levels.

I'm only on 0.25mg, and it keeps my blood sugar below 5.5mmol/l.

If you stop, your blood sugar will creep up. Ozempic gives you some wiggle room for "cheating". If you can't keep up the T2D lifestyle and diet when you're off it, it'll definitely spike again.
 
Georgie said:
My glucose has been dipping way too low lately, into the 50s, and I feel awful. The doc says it's time to stop the Ozempic. I'm worried about gaining the weight back and becoming diabetic all over again. Anyone else been through this and have advice?

Maybe instead of stopping cold turkey, you could try spacing out the doses like others have mentioned here? Then you can see how your body reacts slowly instead of all at once.
 
I saw someone online talking about stopping their semaglutide meds. They'd lost a TON of weight (like half their body weight!) and were worried about not hitting some 'perfect' BMI. It made me think about how important mental health is alongside the physical changes. It's great to have goals, but also important to be happy with what you've achieved.
 
I saw someone else talking about how the cost of their meds was really hitting their wallet hard. They were thinking about switching to a maintenance dose. It made me think about how expensive these meds are, and how that's a real concern for a lot of people. It's great that they're working for weight loss/A1c, but not if they break the bank.
 
Glucose dipping into the 50s is the clear trigger for stopping - hypoglycemia at that level overrides the weight benefit. The transition off Ozempic for someone with type 2 is a different calculus than for weight-only use because the glycemic management piece needs a replacement plan. Two-year insurance coverage limits are a real constraint - the timing question after stopping is how to bridge the metabolic work the medication was doing and what the next phase looks like.
 
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