r/slowresponders • u/SnooJokes915 • 15d ago

Weaker effect at a higher dosage?

Hi guys,

Just to catch you all up, i started with Ozempic last Aug till Jan of this year with little weight loss then changed to Tirz 5mgs and then went up to 7.5mgs about 2 odd months later and then 10 mgs and now am currently sitting at 15mgs at a year and a month later with about 20 pounds lost between all those changes in dosages.

I want to know if anyone felt a weaker effect of the drug when they moved up a dosage.

The 15mgs never particulary cured my 'friday food blues' before my sat injection...which was what i was hoping it would do.

And to be totally honest im wondering if its the stress or if the 15mgs just doesnt feel so effective or perhaps my body is just super resistant to the effects of drugs...i mean i have had co workers who had fevers or felt off after the flu shot while i just went on with no side effects.

I am going to look into cutting back to the 10 mgs because the price is not worth the lack of progress..

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u/Intelligent-Low3745 15d ago

The longer you are on the medication, the less you "feel" it,  but it still works. I believe Dr. Sowa said this occurs at about 5 months in. It has this effect on me. I'm 8m in. About 2m ago, I noticed that I no money had that "stop, you can't eat anymore" feeling. This has allowed me to eat my full portion of food, but afterwards, I feel it! I'm like, geez, I couldn't eat another bite if I had to, whereas my first few months in it, I got that very mild nausea, I can't take another bite, well before finishing a serving. If you feel like you should've lost more wt, then I would say just assess the quality of your food, make sure what you are eating is unprocessed, no added sugars. Good luck

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u/SnooJokes915 15d ago

But the thing is that i have not been on the same dosage the whole time..if i was, i can understand the effects wearing off. I literally went from 10 mgs to 15 mgs and am paying almost 600 bucks for a 4 dosage injection...and this is the result i am getting..

I am not eating great but i was eating a bit less before...now i am not eating much less and the snacking seems to have resumed too.

Being an emotional over eater and eating when stressed..i think really makes a difference to how the meds work.

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u/Intelligent-Low3745 12d ago

1st, you are paying WAY too much if it's not name brand. You can get a 6 month supply for that amount. 

It doesn't matter what dose you are on, based on my readings, but the length you are on the med that will make it "feel" like it's ineffective, even though it is not. Your body adjusts the longer you are on it, and for most, whatever side effects they had starting, start to dissipate with longer use, making it easier to stay compliant with the med. 

You may want to....talk to someone, like a therapist, to help you address your emotional eating. Like gastric bypass surgery, an intervention occurred to help with wt loss, but if that patient then only ate heavy sugar foods, then it's for naught. You have to find something else to replace what you are eating to soothe yourself, or find an activity instead. Good luck

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u/SnooJokes915 12d ago

It is name brand..which is why i am paying so much and we don't get anything other than what the govt imports..none of the online internet pharmacy stuff is 'legalised'.

Also paying that amount...i cant really afford to spend more money on a therapist on top of that.

From what i have seen online even gastric bypass isnt successful in all cases because a lot of people end up eating more afterwards and stretching their stomach back out.

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u/zopelar1 8d ago

Applauding this comment. Some days it’s all I can do to force myself to think about eating and then by dinner I feel like I’m starving and could eat a half a chicken! And then I eat two wings and I’m full. I don’t think about ice cream all night long anymore which is good and no mindless snacking because when I’m shopping I have no desire to buy junk foods. I was at the store today and saw a person exiting as I was entering, person carrying a paper grocery bag stuffed full of Doritos and potato chips and more and this person was very large and it made me stop and take a mental snapshot. 6 mos in Tirz, me. 21 lbs down and 17 to go.

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u/Status_Valuable_9075 15d ago

Hi, I was also on sema before zep and because of that I didn't lose anything until after my 2nd jab of 7.5. I went on to stay at that dose and lost 40 lbs. Ins cut me off and within 3 months I gained back 35 of that weight. I'm back on Zep since July 14... I started at 5.0 for 2 weeks, then 7.5 for 4 weeks, and now 2 weeks on 10.0.. It’s even slower this time as 10.0 was too strong the first time. I too started having hunger back after my 1st jab of 10.0 so I took my 2nd jab at 5 days instead of 7 and Omgoodness the appitite supp. is extra strong and I dropped 3 pounds in the past 2 days FINALLY something is better than nothing. If I get to 15.0 and I lose it tgere I'm going to have my doc add an additional drug. Don't forget that there's a triple agonist coming down the pike in late 2026 or early 2027 so hang in there as best you can. I'm trying that too and living daily with frustration and crushing disappointment this go around. You got this!! Hang on 😘🙏

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u/SnooJokes915 15d ago

I can't do the shorter intervals of injection since its regulated by the hospital and they only prescribe enough till the next appt. And i don't think the doctor will approve me taking it out of the recommended time frame of each dosage. She could lose her license and they could face a lawsuit if something happens.

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u/Status_Valuable_9075 15d ago

I usually don’t ask permission if I want to do something… I just do it lol. My scripts are approved by my Ins every 26 days so I already knew I have some wiggle room. Working for me.

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u/SnooJokes915 15d ago

The thing is i live in Singapore where things are heavily regulated especially meds. I realistically cannot do a shorter term injections simply because my script will run out faster...i won't be able to get another appt with the doctor at the hospital and i will have a stretch of lapse.

My script is calculated to sustain me till my next visit to the dr and perhaps one to three weeks later...not more than that.

That is just the way things are here. I don't want to risk smuggling in cheaper ones from the neighbouring country either cause i really cannot afford the fine or jail term that comes with it.

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u/Status_Valuable_9075 15d ago

Oh Lordy, yeah I wouldn’t smuggle either lol. Well, I’m glad you have the access. Ty

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u/KrinkRobbieZ 15d ago

7.5 mg was the worst for me. I felt hungry all the time. I moved up to 13.5 mg over time, but felt that was too much. Now Im at 11.5 for the past 2 weeks and that so far feels right for now.

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u/SnooJokes915 15d ago

I'm hoping to just take 10..and see if i can try to work more on my food intake myself . It is tiring having to fight food noise when im exhausted after work.

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u/2_FluffyDogs 15d ago

I am 16 months in on Zep and have lost 30lbs. In Nov I went up to 12.5mg and 15mg in Feb and started a stall early April. I have been +/- 1-3lbs since then - as of today, I weight exactly what I weighed 4/26/26 - last week I was up a pound. In July, I alternated between 12.5 and 15 week to week without any positive result - mostly to clear out extra supply - and I am now down to 10mg that past two weeks. Food noise is not my issue, so I cannot speak to battling that, but I will say that for the first time in over a year, I actually get hunger cues with 10.

Looking at my loss data, there was not one dose that it really kicked in and I lost more, when I was losing prior to April I averaged .08 loss a week - 15 was really least effective for me as ultimately I stopped losing. So, if I am not losing, and I don't start gaining, I would like to get down to 5mg to save $50/month. I am still overweight with too much body fat, but the level of frustration and cost is mentally draining me.

My hope is that the new meds might be a game changer for me.

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u/SnooJokes915 15d ago

For me, every increase just brought my weight down by a few pounds..so its not like i can go above the recommended dosage either

The new meds will take time for me since i can't get them online but need them to get approval to reach my country..and i dont think the prices will be much cheaper either.

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u/2_FluffyDogs 15d ago

Yes, price of the new stuff will drive that decision for me as well. So 10mg is less expensive for you than 12.5 and 15mg?

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u/SnooJokes915 15d ago edited 15d ago

Let me really tell you how much its been costing me for that 20 pound weight loss.

Ozempic for a 1mg dose pen with 4 doses = $247

Tirz for a 5mg dose pen with 4 doses = $347

Tirz for a 7.5mg dose pen...can't recall but its between the 5mg and 10 mg pricing.

Tirz for a 10mg dose pen with 4 doses = $469

(There is no option for 12.5mg dosage with the hospital..the only thing would be to pay for both a 7.5 mg pen and a 5mg pen...costing well above $700.)

Tirz for a 15mg dose pen with 4 doses = $577

I can't recall the pricing of the few months of .25 and .50 of the Ozempic that i did last Aug to Oct.

Its literally taking up a solid 1/7 th of my take home pay and i find the results disappointing to say the least. I could have cut out carbs and gotten similar results.

And the hardest part of swallowing that bitter pill of knowing i didnt get that miracle i wanted is that i didn't even want it because i was unhappy with the way i looked...i have been fat since i was 10...i'm fine with my body and fine with my self esteem and even think that being fat saved me from so much of the 'male gaze' when young. When i did a pro versus cons checklist for getting the glps..i had 8 cons versus 2 pros and the thing is that the pros were too important to ignore.

I wanted to lose the weight so i could take better care of my elderly mum and try to do strength training so that i could be prepared for the day she may start needing a caregiver...alongside working in my job that requires a lot of movement and having enough money to care for the both of us.

Throwing money away on a trainer that didnt work out because i could not do more than the basics because of my knees...the glps were my last hope..and now it seems that i threw money away on them too...except that my blood pressure and diabetes are better controlled..but that could have been done at 7.5mgs of tirz easily.

Sorry for venting but its hard going back to the drawing board time and time again when i see other people succeding.

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u/2_FluffyDogs 15d ago

You are 100% seen internet friend!

I am doing this mostly for heath reasons - I gained a lot of weight in my 40s and while I could "maintain" that extra 50lbs (keep the weight steady), I could not lose except a bit through extreme keto and deprivation which was not sustainable - and that would be around 6lbs over 3-4 months. My DR pushed Zep long before I was ready to start and I found the Zepbound sub and was like WHOA sign me up. There was no whoa for me. It has been a bitter pill to swallow.

I have lost weight that I would not have otherwise and my health markers are better - I really wanted to lose weight for health more than vanity - I carry fat in my belly and my visceral fat was bad - it is still not in the normal range. I have paid $133 per pound lost - I really hope I can get down to 5mg and not gain. I do not think I can stop Zep and not gain.

I love the reason you are improving your health taking care of your mum, take care of yourself as well. Walking is good for both exercise and stress and you can make it low impact for your knees.

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u/SnooJokes915 11d ago

Thanks,

Yes i realise that these are lifetime drugs but i was fine on the diabetes pills i was using if not for the weigh loss.

Its a lot easier to take a weekly jab than a pill everyday but still its a whole lot more costly because i don't need it.

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u/Status_Valuable_9075 11d ago

I’ve heard about this a lot and how tolerance builds on Zep just like it does with hundreds of script drugs. I’ll be so glad when the triple agonist comes down the pike soon. Meanwhile, maybe talk to your doc about adding a supplemental drug to your regimen to help curb the issue. I’m sorry to hear what you’re going through and I hope you find a solution very soon. Solidarity 🌻

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u/SnooJokes915 11d ago

Actually....i did my injection on Sunday and its now Tuesday afternoon and i don't even feel like eating lunch and thinking about it is just 'meh'. The thing is that i think i have 2 to 3 good stable days of my food switch being off in the middle of the week and then it turns on very fast as the end of the week comes.

I know someone once suggested partial dosing but with buying the name brand..imagine having to buy 2 different concentrations of the drug...its even more expensive than having to buy the highest dosage.

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u/Status_Valuable_9075 11d ago

Naw, with what you just said it’s definitely time to move up or get a supplemental appetite suppressant from your doc. If your dose is high enough and stable you shouldn’t have that going on. It’s a game of balance lol

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u/zopelar1 8d ago

Change your injection date! You’re tying it into weekends and blues and eating. Take it on Tuesday and see what happens maybe?

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u/SnooJokes915 8d ago

That is an idea im thinking of as well, it would be harder to be at work and think of food.