New data published in the British Medical Journal suggests overweight people shed large amounts when they take weight-loss drugs, but once they quit they regain it within 20 months of stopping the injections – four times faster than traditional dieters. “People buying these need to be aware of the risk of fast weight regain when the treatment ends,” warns investigator Dr Susan Jebb, from Oxford University.
Photographer Rosie Parsons, 43, from Exeter, is a mother-of-four (one set of 12-year-old triplets) and has struggled throughout her life with her weight. Here, she tells The i Paper about her experience taking GLP1 drugs to get slim.
About three years ago, I got up to the heaviest that I’d ever been. I was up to 19st 7lbs, which was very unhealthy for me. I’m only 5ft 5in, and I was addicted to carbs and sweets, and putting on weight really, really fast. I also had quite a few health issues due to it all – a lot of acid reflux, joint pain, getting out of breath.
Rosie Parsons, who has always struggled with her weight, pictured before she took weight-loss drugsI’d tried many different diets in the past – keto and others – and everything would work for a short amount of time, but was unsustainable for more than a few months. So I was looking on Reddit in the weight-loss forums, and I saw someone talking about this drug called Ozempic from America [Ozempic is not officially a weight loss drug, it is an FDA-approved medication for type 2 diabetes], describing it as a “cheat code” for weight loss. I thought that sounded brilliant, so when it launched in the UK, I was one of the first people to try it the Feburary 2022.
I was straight on it, via the pharmacy Juniper, as soon as I could. Because, at that time, people didn’t really know about it, they were like: “Wow, you’re losing weight so fast, well done, you must work really hard!”
But I hadn’t done anything at all – it was so easy; it just stopped me wanting to eat. I was going to the gym as well, but the Ozempic was really working. I lost 8st in 10 months, and I was really, really happy, and got so many compliments. I was able to wear all sorts of clothes I couldn’t find in the size 22/24 that I was. I felt good about myself. Then I got down to 11st 7lb.
Rosie after dieting. She says her confidence soaredI would have liked to have lost another stone, but the Ozempic stopped being so effective and I wasn’t losing more weight. I didn’t want to pay £175 a month (although it has since got much more expensive) to maintain this weight, so I decided to come off it to see whether I could maintain it without the drugs. I thought after 11 months of jabs, I’d be ok; my tummy might have shrunk and I’d been eating fairly healthily anyway.
But no, the sugar and carb cravings came back within three weeks and got worse and worse. I started putting the weight back on again, and starting panicking. I didn’t want to lose this amazing transformation. So I went back on Ozempic in 2023 for a few weeks, but it wasn’t as effective the second time around, and it didn’t suppress my appetite this time. I was very disappointed.
The weight kept piling on, and so later in 2023 I thought I’d go on Mounjaro, as that works on two different hormones. I didn’t notice much difference, it wasn’t helping loads, and the side effects were terrible for me, with awful stomach issues. I wasn’t able to drive anywhere or socialise, as I had to be near a loo all the time. I kept going, thinking I might get used to it, but realised I couldn’t carry on like that. It made me really ill. So I came off that after a few months.
Since then, I’ve got back up to 15st 7lb stone, so not as much as I weighed before, but I’ve put lots on, and I’m devastated. I am currently at a steady weight, working in the gym, and eating as healthily as I can, but I do worry about putting more on and about the future. I still struggle a lot with my weight.
I tried Wegovy, too, but as that’s just the same drug as Ozempic marketed under a different name, it didn’t do much for me. I really thought for a while that the problem I’d had my whole life with weight had been cured.
Rosie now, off the weight loss drugs, which stopped working for herBecause I was doing Ozempic at the very beginning, people didn’t know why I’d lost so much weight, but now if you’ve always been big and then suddenly you’re not, they assume it’s Ozempic. I find it hard because lots of people who started it a year after me messaged me asking now I lost it, how it worked, and I’d tell them about it – and now all those people are nice and slim, and I’m a year ahead, putting weight back on again.
Some people take it and keep the weight off but maybe they don’t have the same struggles, and have different reasons for being overweight. Some people might also be naturally slim, and then they put on some weight, and the drugs help them get back to their original size.
The assumption from naturally thin people that I must be lazy or stupid and that’s why I’m overweight really annoys me. I went to the doctor to ask about having a gastric bypass, and also asked about Ozempic, and they wanted to send me to see a health coach, and learn about nutrition. I don’t need that, I know what I should eat, I know what makes a nutritious meal, I go to the gym and do weight training, I know about protein and fibre.
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I really don’t eat much during the day, and I don’t ever have the free cake at the co-working space I use. I don’t crave anything. But in the evening, even though I’m busy and have the kids around me, I get sugar cravings and can’t resist, even to the point where I’ll go out and buy sweets. I don’t know why – maybe it’s hormonal – but there’s a feeling inside me that’s driving me to overeat, and I hoped the weight-loss jabs would help with that long-term.
I’ve have heard about this new drug, Retatrutide, and I will be trying it once it’s passed its safety tests. People online have bought on the “grey market”, but it sounds very dangerous so I wouldn’t do that. I am keen, though. I’m hoping now that we’ve crossed the first hurdle, the research will carry on to make better drugs and there will be new ideas, so that we’re hopefully closer to a permanent solution than we’ve ever been.Rosie Parsons is a personal branding photographer, helping women to show up confidently in photos; rosieparsons@rosieparsonsphotography.com
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