Anonymous wrote:I have about 8 more pounds until I hit my goal weight (which will be about 40 pounds lost). I’m currently on compounded from Willow at $300 a month. Semaglutide is the only thing that has ever worked for me and I don’t think I can go cold turkey. But, I’m not sure I want to spend $300 a month on this the rest of my life especially if I just go down to a maintenance dose. How have others approached maintenance once down to goal?

Doctor said two things when I raised concerns about maintenance before starting that I think were really key: 1. If you've landed in the obese category and needed to lose 30+ pounds, you are more likely to need to be on the medication for life because that correlates to a capacity for overeating, questionable diet/exercise choices, and/or your body's metabolism isn't functioning properly. If you are in "the need to lose 10-25ish range" and have good habits, you likely will be able to do step-down maintenance and then cease taking the medication altogether. 2. It is a myth that GLPs do not work if you stop and try to start again later. So, if you stepped down to injections 2x month and then decided to take a break for 6 months, you could pick up and start taking the medication again because you were seeing weight gain, it would work.

I am on tirzepatide and take .75 mg/week for maintenance, which is less than 1/3 of the starting dose. I honestly feel like I never want to stop. I'm 48 years old and ever since I was 13, I was constantly worried about my weight, fighting hunger, binging, starving, hating myself, thinking about starting a new diet. Ugh. What fueled it all, I think, was hunger. I hate being hungry. I can't control myself well in the face of it. The GLP takes the edge off. In the beginning, it was extreme appetite suppression, even on the starting dose. But now, on my little microdose, it's just taking the edge off. I get hungry, but not ravenous. I feel full for many hours after a normal meal. I still want dessert, but I don't feel bereft or deprived when I don't have it.

I think I will take this forever because it's been so healing for me. I feel happy with my weight for the first time in forever, and relaxed about maintaining it.

It is super cheap to take this dose. I just 4 weeks of the highest dose (15 mg) for $299 and get 60 mg which will last me until almost summer when the vial expires.

I would never buy compounded meds, they are unregulated and unsafe. Talk to your doctor about this.

The prices are dropping quickly on the compounds and that will continue with the TrumpRX news today. You shouldn't be paying $300/mo for sema now. Look at Reddit for the deals happening now. Taper down a bit. I never went past 10 mg on tirz and now do 2.5 or 5 mg every 10 days or so.

I read that sometimes people have good luck with metformin as a maintenance med.

Anonymous wrote:I have about 8 more pounds until I hit my goal weight (which will be about 40 pounds lost). I’m currently on compounded from Willow at $300 a month. Semaglutide is the only thing that has ever worked for me and I don’t think I can go cold turkey. But, I’m not sure I want to spend $300 a month on this the rest of my life especially if I just go down to a maintenance dose. How have others approached maintenance once down to goal?

You pay and stay on it even if spreading out the doses to save some money. If GLP 1 is the only thing that has ever worked for you you will gain the weight back when you go off. people think weight loss is the hard part, but in reality maintaining the weigh loss is the really hard part.

Anonymous wrote:My doctor does a slow wean of spreading the dosage out until 10 days then 12 days then 14 days - she has one patient who has maintained for a year by only doing it once a month.

Out of how many? 1/100? 1/10?

My guess is it’s low…even 1/10 is terrible odds

My doctor does a slow wean of spreading the dosage out until 10 days then 12 days then 14 days - she has one patient who has maintained for a year by only doing it once a month.

Do go off of it. Just don't. You do not want to gain it all back. Do a maintenance dose at whatever cost.

Intermittent fasting with Jason Fung.

The appetite comes roaring back - and then some - when you stop. I recommend lowest dose - you can wean to every other week.

I lost 40 lbs as well, and now do the starting dose (.25 for me) every two weeks. It was enough to maintain for about 2 years, but I have recently gained 5 lbs so I am going back up for a couple of months to get that off.

I do expect to be on it for a long time. I pay $175/month but really that lasts 2 months since I do it every 2 weeks. So that is very manageable.

Reddit has a whole forum on this recommending the cheapest virtual clinic etc

I would pay and try finding the lowest dose. I also see people splitting doses or stretching them out to save money.

My insurance covers it and I saved up a stack by refilling every 21 days. Buys me some time on case they drop coverage.

I have about 8 more pounds until I hit my goal weight (which will be about 40 pounds lost). I’m currently on compounded from Willow at $300 a month. Semaglutide is the only thing that has ever worked for me and I don’t think I can go cold turkey. But, I’m not sure I want to spend $300 a month on this the rest of my life especially if I just go down to a maintenance dose. How have others approached maintenance once down to goal?