Upping my dose - nervous!

[Clam8]

Switching from oral to injectable at similar dose equivalents is where most people get confused about the numbers. The formulations have different bioavailability so the pen dose feeling different doesn't mean you're getting less - it means the delivery is more consistent. The nervousness is normal and usually resolves within the first injection.

 

[Lucky_Pizza]

Moving from 1mg to 2mg after a year feels like a bigger jump than expected - the body adjusted to 1mg but 2mg often feels like a reset. Nausea tends to be the main effect in the first 1-2 weeks and usually settles faster than it did initially. Staying well hydrated and keeping meals small on injection day helps a lot.

 

[peanutwanderer84]

The A1C coming down on 1mg before the weight moved is an important distinction - the metabolic benefits and the weight loss response don't always track together. For a lot of people the 2mg level is where the weight piece finally kicks in after the glycemic control was already happening.

 

[downsize_vibes]

Honestly, incredibly sensitive to this medication, currently sitting right at 2mg exactly, seems to be the ceiling my body can tolerate, so maybe that's a fairly common pattern alongside this particular one.

 

[Bobby_2006]

Might be better to frame it around blood glucose control rather than appetite or weight loss, especially since it was prescribed for type 2. Something like saying you think a higher dose would give better glucose management.

 

[Locustpeddler]

Ooh appreciate that, might actually try it! A bit nervous about doubling up though, feels like such a big leap from where I'm at now.

 

[rebooting_later]

If it's any help, I bumped up to 5 about two months back and honestly felt no different than at 2.5. No side effects at all for me either. Personally never came across any real horror stories about increasing doses. Best approach is probably just watching how your own body reacts, and if it's too intense there's usually a gentler way to adjust upward. When I first moved to 5mg, nothing budged on the scale for a couple weeks, then the numbers finally started dropping steadily through the remaining weeks.

 

[Timber]

Was your doctor starting you directly at 1mg rather than working up? If so, that's the fast lane to just side effects. If you just start at just a more reasonable dose & build up, there will just be side just effects but they should fade as your habits shift and you get used just to the medication. Extreme fatigue hit me when I first went to higher doses, though after a few months it's gone. Some cramps felt like possible gallbladder trouble, but cutting down very fatty food (fast food burgers, say) stops them. What you eat affects nausea a lot too, and there are plenty of good suggestions for it around here.

 

[stormySalmon]

Many people find side effects intensify around the move up to 1.0mg. Hopefully it passes, and bloodwork sounds sensible, particularly if this doesn't feel like your last dose.

 

[amberhummer]

my own doctor pushed me up to the full 1.0mg too. i'd spent three months at 0.25 and a similar stretch at 0.5, eight months total, due to supply problems. going to 1.0 was just protocol, nothing about my numbers called for it, weight was dropping fine and my a1c already looked great. she said only one other patient had ever needed to drop back down, now she's got two of us. the next three months were brutal, stretches where food barely went down at all. on a long road trip i grabbed a sandwich that looked amazing, managed three bites and tossed the rest. actually got sick twice over that stretch, extremely rare for me, i'd only vomited twice before that in my adult life. after the second time i told the practice to lower my dose, and one pen now lasts about two months counting clicks.