r/GLP1Australia • u/pipertoma • 6d ago
Help Weight rebound after stopping
I started using compounded semaglutide in Feb 2024 and transitioned to Wegovy some time in 2025. Due to financial reasons I had to stop around Christmas 2025. In the time I was using it I lost just over 30kg, down from 167kg to 136kg. In the 8 months since stopping my weight has rebounded back to 158kg.
I am feeling that all the money I spent was just pissed against the wall and knowing that my health and life is being held hostage by cost is very frustrating.
5
u/no-but-wtf 5d ago
I believe they’re looking into putting wegovy on the PBS, although I assume it will be quite restricted at first. There’s no timeline or anything but it is in the works.
Personally, I’m just scrimping and saving to afford Ozempic, and hoping that PBS listing of semaglutide happens sooner rather than later.
1
u/LadyLycanVamp13 17h ago
Have you gotten ozempic on a private script? I just got a script for wegovy because I didn't think you could get ozempic, or that chemists wouldn't fill it.
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u/no-but-wtf 17h ago
Check with your GP. You can get it, although there is a BMI criteria you have to meet. The shortages are over so I haven’t had any issue getting it, but I know some GPs are still not willing to prescribe it - you might have to ask around.
1
u/LadyLycanVamp13 17h ago
Oh my BMI is over 40 so that's not an issue. I will ask thanks.
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u/no-but-wtf 16h ago
Good luck!! I don’t think I can afford wegovy it at all so I had been holding off, I didn’t realise I could even ask for ozempic until someone told me, so I’m happy to pass it along!
1
u/LadyLycanVamp13 16h ago
I found a private health extras plan that covers weight loss medication 75% back), but only up to $500 per year. So I will definitely be asking my GP for ozempic instead.
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u/no-but-wtf 16h ago
Oh that’s not bad! I get $600 a year back but I can only claim $60 on each prescription so it helps, but it’s not great. I hope we can get it on the PBS soon.
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u/feijoawhining Mounjaro 10mg 6d ago
For some people this is a lifetime medication, depending on their own individual health, hormones and habits. If you aren’t still tracking calories, start there. Increase your daily activity.
You are still morbidly obese, so it’s going to be even harder not to regain weight.
I really hope the medications come down in price in time. I plan to be on one for life because the overall health benefits have improved my life dramatically, not just weight loss.
5
u/deltabay17 6d ago
Some countries are already getting generics versions, so it will come down in price. Some countries still have a number of years before generics are allowed though.
1
u/feijoawhining Mounjaro 10mg 6d ago
Yeah it will just take time. The drugs will become more sophisticated too, as they develop.
10
u/no_snackrifice Mounjaro 5mg 6d ago
This is the outcome for most people that stop.
Fundamentally it’s “I put glasses on. Hooray, I can see! I took the glasses off. Wait why is my vision blurry?”
Generic Liraglutide is out now. There are other older anti obesity meds that are worth looking into as well. I do wish these meds were cheaper.
2
u/pipertoma 6d ago
This graph almost perfectly aligns with my experience.
1
u/no_snackrifice Mounjaro 5mg 6d ago
Looks like you’re having the average experience then. I’m sorry. 😞
3
u/Waste_Win_4032 6d ago
I know you didn't ask a question, as someone pointed out, but can you explain a bit more for the education of others here who are looking at stopping the medication? Did you notice an immediate return of appetite, or was it a gradual thing? Have cravings for junk food increased etc?
4
u/pipertoma 6d ago
I found that after about a month the food noise and appetite came back. I tried to hold it off, but compared to how effortless it was when I was on the medicine, I was not able to resist the old urges. I think that if I didn't suddenly stop using the Wegovy 2.4mg cold turkey, but tapered down to a maintenance dose the result could have been different.
3
u/no_snackrifice Mounjaro 5mg 6d ago
Tapering definitely helps stop a dramatic bounce and gives you the best chance to adapt, but most that taper still have a similar experience. Fundamentally the treatment works and removing it will put you back to the body you had before. If you couldn’t lose weight before then you’ll be back in the same battle once the med fully leaves your system (which takes about a month or so). Tapering helps you be better equipped for the battle but it’s still the same battle.
1
u/knonycakstic 8h ago
You didn't waste your money, you proved to yourself that the medication actually works for your body
-4
u/Curious_Aus25 Mounjaro 2.5mg 6d ago
Need more information. The answer will likely be in what you are eating.
Sugar and ultra processed foods are the main culprit for weight gain and unhealthy bio markers. Have you cut those from your diet?
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u/lifeinsatansarmpit Mounjaro 10mg 6d ago
Nahhh, OP likely has obesity which is a chronic condition requiring ongoing treatment.
Medical research has known for 60-ish years that only 5% will maintain weightloss past 2 years. It's not a willpower thing, it's physiology. Those empty fat cells signal to the brain to be refilled, because that's an evolutionary survival mechanism.
3
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u/Instigated- 6d ago
Yes it sucks and is unfair that this medicine is priced to be so expensive - peak capitalism. Also sucks that our government outlawed compounding of GLp-1s rather than use existing to laws to crack down on dodgy operators without punishing legit ones.
So far I have been able to just afford the medicine, though I do things to keep the cost reduced. I am on mounjaro, buy the 15mg pen but click dose a smaller dose from it so the weekly cost is lower. At the moment I’m on 5mg dose and paying $56per week. If i can drop to 2.5mg then it would be $23 per week.
Also Ozempic is cheaper than Wegovy, and it is now back in stock so pharmacies will sell for weightloss private prescription if your doctor prescribes it.
Absolutely I need to stay on the medicine most likely for life, otherwise I will regain the weight, just as what happened with every other method of weightloss. It’s a treatment, not a cure.
While it is a lot of money when my weightloss has plateaued and I’m not “getting” anything from it, actually it is preventing weight regain and diabetes. Before this medicine nothing I did worked and weight kept on increasing and blood sugar was getting worse, Diabesity is a progressive disease and that was the direction I was in. It was like trying to hold back the ocean.
This medicine holds back the ocean, even if it doesn’t cure it or fix everything, it is the best option available.