Went back down on my dose!?

[Lean_Pizza]

Hey everyone, my doc put me on Zepbound (SW: 295lbs). Since October I've managed to drop around 48lbs, but it feels like after the initial 2.5mg and 5mg doses, the higher ones just haven't been effective. Since January, my weight has been bouncing around between 246lbs and 255lbs. I'm not feeling any appetite suppression after I hit 7.5mg, and now I'm on 12.5mg and it seems to be getting worse. I've actually gained back 7lbs and I'm feeling stuck because I can't stop eating, like I have a bottomless pit for a stomach! It's so frustrating because I'm not even hungry, I just have this constant urge to eat. So, on my injection day, I used my 12.5mg pen to inject only 5mg. Do you think that was the right call? And please be kind, I'm also pretty active – I try to get in 10k steps every day! I'm just so frustrated.

 

[Minnie-the-Moocher]

Some doctors just try to crank people up to the max dose too quick, IMO.

If you're still shrinking on a dose, you should stick with it until you stall, then go up.

Lots of people go back down to a dose that worked before.

Fingers crossed it works for you!

 

[Reta_King363]

Perhaps you're deficient in iron or certain vitamins? That could be increasing your appetite.

 

[Dose_of_Reality]

I agree with @Minnie-the-Moocher - I've been on 2.5mg for half a year now. While my weight loss is slower than some, I've still lost about 15lbs. Going up to 5mg next week.

 

[Blair03]

Are you managing diabetes with this medication? If so, how are your blood sugar levels looking? You definitely need to chat with your doctor about all this.

 

[Georgie2007]

Well, hopefully, going back down helps! These meds are so strange in how differently people react. Good luck!

 

[MounjaroMama]

There's a doctor on the Fat Science podcast who talks about this sometimes. I think the idea is that, for some people, higher doses can actually cause resistance. Maybe that's what's happening to you, and a lower dose is what your body responds best to.

 

[SulphurBurpSurvivor]

I had a similar experience. It started with Ozempic. At the highest dose, I started getting hungry again. Then I switched to Mounjaro. At 2.5mg and 5mg, my progress stalled, but when I went up, my appetite went crazy and I even gained some weight.

I stopped completely for a month and then started again at a low dose. weight loss started again. I stayed at 2.5-5mg for about a year. I'm at 160lbs now, which was my goal, and I maintain it with about 3mg per week.

My doctor didn't really know why it happened. I think that at higher doses, my blood sugar might have dropped too low, which caused the hunger.

 

[rustic_lateadopter36]

Been on maintenance mode for half a year now. Haven't nailed the perfect dose and frequency combo yet. Did tirzepatide for 2 years, went 255 down to 190, never needed more than 5mg. Responding well to low doses. Currently cycling 2.5mg every 5 days, still fine-tuning. Gained a few but always lose it back. Don't think I'll ever fully stop a GLP. Everyone reacts differently and finding your groove takes trial and error depending on the medication and if you're combining anything.

 

[Georgie2007]

The only way to know is to see what happens with today's shot. Give it a couple of weeks. It won't hurt you to try. Everyone's different, so nobody can say for sure if you did the right thing.

 

[Lean_Pizza]

I agree just see what happens, hopefully it works out. You don't have to up the dose every month. I've been on 5mg for like 14 months now and it's still working great.

 

[Minnie-the-Moocher]

I think you should just titrate up to 15mg weekly. And figure out what you're gonna do next. Probably need to get some other meds for BED.

 

[Reta_King363]

I wonder if it's possible to split doses from one pen. Like, if you have a 1mg pen, can you dial it to 0.5mg safely? I'm not sure how those pens work...

 

[Dose_of_Reality]

Yes, @Reta_King363, you can! It's not officially supported, but you can count the clicks. For a 1mg pen, about 37 clicks is 0.5mg and like 18 clicks is 0.25mg. You might need to source extra needles eventually, though.

 

[Lean_Pizza]

That's really good to know! Thanks @Dose_of_Reality. I've been wondering about that too since I've been considering going even lower than 5mg, but I don't want to waste any of my pens.

 

[MounjaroMama]

I've also heard of ppl staying on really low doses for the long haul. I read about someone online who stayed on 0.5mg for a year and then went DOWN to 0.25mg for a few months. Their weight loss was slower, but they felt like it was more sustainable. I think that's a great approach!

 

[soggy_espresso22]

Split dosing during titration helped me eat better all week. With full weekly dose, I'd eat well three days then two easy then two hungry. Switching to half doses fixed it. At six months in I could go back to weekly since everything stabilized.

 

[ProteinPioneer]

This is crucial: 30mg in a vial stays 30mg no matter what. 1ml BAC = 30mg/ml. 2ml BAC = 15mg/ml. 3ml BAC = 10mg/ml. Divide total dose by BAC volume to get your concentration, then dose from there. Math: 30mg÷1ml = 30mg per ml.

 

[Sam_2005]

Check the holiday sale thread for the pricing details.

 

[calm_tinker21]

Rotator cuff was jammed up for a year. Did TB-500 at 2mg daily for three weeks, then BPC-157 at 1mg daily for another three. Some YouTube PT on the side. Cuff's about 90% now — probably still 10% behind because I'm lazy with PT. Keep them separate, not blended.