Four Years on Ozempie

Doctors promised me the injectable medication would stabilize my diabetes and even help me lose weight. Today, I'm still suffering the consequences

- Emily Wright

WHEN MY DOCTOR told me about Ozempic in 2018, it sounded like a solid option to manage my type 2 diabetes. At 33 years old, I had just been diagnosed, and my endocrinologist recommended the semaglutide injectable for diabetics-then a relatively new drug whose name wasn't yet synonymous with celebrity weight loss to keep my blood sugar down and potentially even put my diabetes into remission. I'd also been overweight most of my life, so the idea of losing 10 percent of my body weight while treating my diabetes was appealing.

The side effects for Ozempic include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. My endocrinologist said they would dissipate over time, if I experienced them at all. I didn't give the side effects much thought; I was already sold on Ozempic.

I started on a low dose of 0.25 mg, as most Ozempic users do, injected once a week. In the first few days, I had an intense migraine that didn't improve with over-the-counter drugs. I was also nauseated, and I vomited a few times. Eventually, the migraine went away. The nausea remained, but I figured it'd ease up soon enough. I was more focused on the results I was seeing: My blood sugar was lower, and in just a month, I'd lost 10 pounds. After years of dieting and exercising in a futile effort to lose weight, Ozempic felt like magic. I wondered: How long could I ride this out for? How much more weight could I lose?

After a month, my doctor increased my dosage, and my side effects ramped up. I was vomiting every few days, and my nausea was persistent. But the most significant change was my relationship to food. Everything tasted different-the carbonation of Diet Coke, for instance, started to taste bad, and fruits like pineapple were outrageously sweet. I'd also completely lost my appetite. I'd have to schedule reminders to eat; my husband, by comparison, would eat four times as much food as me every day. Food was no longer a reward or a joy but merely a means of gaining energy.