u/Thin-Disk4003

Top weight was 360+. F, 5’2”.
I’ve lost half my weight. (Rollercoaster, a lifetime’s worth!) The most recent 50ish # have been on tirz.

60# remain to goal. In six days, i become a cyborg; the first of three joint replacements at age 58. First up, a hip that has degraded so badly that leg is 2” shorter and has contributed to new scoliosis in adulthood (along with MS’s own contributions, ugh).

Would truly appreciate some good juju from y’all as the next 9-12 months are going to be full-on ‘embrace the suck’ time. May be a little more daunted by this than i am admitting to my in-person support system.

Appreciate you all!!!!

Looking forward to the next month or so sampling both of Mind Games’ discovery sets. The packaging is elegant but overkill, material-wise.

Any favorites you’d advocate to start with?

I’m a fully grown woman. Why are the tiny mini bottles suddenly my thing? They are just… pleasing? 🤷🏼‍♀️

Enjoying a wide range of samples, too.

Guess it’s less damage to the wallet than it could be otherwise.

Seller has plenty of sales so hopefully this is authentic Le Labo Le Thé Noir 29. It doesn’t smell the way i remember, but perhaps that’s the difference between my friend’s body chemistry and mine. Thank you for your help.

Halloween reveler must have lost their angelic side.

OC

If you’re looking for a little something sweet, this is my go-to indulgence.

• 3/4 cup unsweetened frozen raspberries (still frozen)
• Around half of an 11 oz chocolate protein shake
• About a quarter cup zero-sugar Reddi-Wip. (It’s sweetened with sucralose, so a teeny bit won’t be bad like a sugar alcohol if you need to pay the Aerosol Whipped Cream dog tax.)

This clocks in at around 6g fiber, 16g protein, 12g net carbs, and 170 calories if your shake is a 30g protein, 160 calorie variety like ours. The raspberries start thawing when you pour the chocolate shake over them, so it becomes a slushy little treat.

Plus, raspberries are good for you and a decent source of Vitamin C.

I’m not your momma, but still want to remind all of us (including me) to hydrate more than what thirst may be telling us.

Stay safe out there.

Our area is under an Extreme Heat Warning. We live in the US, in an air conditioned loft. Since starting tirz, I’ve become a bit more comfortable in warmer temperatures, so the thermostat is now a full 5F higher than last summer. It won’t offset increased energy costs in general, but that’s a good side benefit.

Have you reset your thermostat since starting tirzepatide?

And for those of you suffering in places experiencing extreme heat without AC, I’m truly sorry. I hope you have ways of staying safe.

Perhaps a silly question: Your opinions please on whether Vibram Five Fingers Graspifiers would hold up ok as pool shoes a few times per week?

The model sold as water shoes isn’t as comfortable.

Care instructions label says machine wash cold and drip dry.

Man, i love these shoes! I’ll order a second pair for dry land if the consensus is ‘good to go’ wearing these in the pool.

TL;dr: Under 200 for first time since middle school. Life story blah blah, quality of life improving.

Y’all, i don’t know why i feel compelled to overshare with you today. I am no where near goal. I have an interim milestone that’s just a number. So many of you have really meaningful achievements and inspire me every day. Another Reddit user has become my friend in this journey, and she listens to me and has been such a wonderful encourager and cheerleader on this journey. (Allison, if you are in this group, talking boutchoo!). Pretty grateful for her friendship.

My worst weight was 360ish in the early 2000s. Probably higher because i didn’t have a scale that went over 250 at home.

Many of you have similar histories. Obesity since childhood. Family history on my Mom’s side, same. Every diet known to the Western hemisphere. Teenaged me saw Oprah and her wagon of fat and did the liquid VLCD regimen with my Winn Dixie cashier job and babysitting earnings. Surgical intervention. Fasting. Medications. Exercise overload. Tried everything short of amputation, only to rollercoaster for most of my now-58 years. Multiple sclerosis undiagnosed and untreated for over 30 years didn’t help matters.

Between MS and obesity, my quality of life was untenable. (Trying to be polite, but it was in the shitter, ok?) I joined Dignitas, fearing the future. Last year, MS progressed to the point where my neurologist told me to consider taking long-term disability. He’d make the case to insurance and had no doubts about approval. I’d become a wheelchair user and was exhausted to the bone with MS fatigue and cog fog. I was fortunate to have good disability insurance. I gave up a career i enjoyed and worked incredibly hard to build.

Weight at that point was at 280ish.

When i retired last fall, i made a promise to myself and to my neuro (he is the 🐐and enthusiastically told me about Wegovy, Ozempic, Mounjaro and Zepbound years ago even when they were still in the FDA pipeline; our insurance, however, explicitly excludes them all.)

The promise: My new full-time job was to improve my wellness. I had been too exhausted by work on top of progressive MS to make it to physical therapy appointments, let alone exercise. Without insurance coverage and me taking a 40% hit to income as the formerly higher earner, we absolutely could not swing Zepbound out of pocket. It was back to white-knuckling.

OMAD, low carb, high protein diet helped a lot. I tracked ketones and glucose, along with weighing and measuring and logging all intake, including water. PT twice a week, and started walking in the pool at the Y. Lost 35 pounds between January and March. Lost momentum when we spent time in my husband’s home state to be with his Mother at the end of her life. Gained 10 back, but got right back in the saddle (that’d be one hurtin’ horse at my weight!)

The food noise came roaring back when i was out of ketosis. It took a lot longer to even marginally quiet down this go-round. Went from that saddle to the struggle bus.

Had one of those moments when the universe puts someone in your life at the right time. Was undergoing low dose radiation treatment (not cancer, but treated by radiation oncologist) and mentioned to a substitute doctor how hard i was trying to lose weight. She shared with me her own struggles, and referred me to an affiliated metabolic weight specialist practice that neither i, my primary care doc, nor my neuro the 🐐knew about.

That specialist has tried moving heaven and earth to get Zepbound approved for me. She is a pro at knowing the exceptions, but still couldn’t make magic happen. I felt like the only class III obesity person without sleep apnea or diabetes sometimes.

Another intervention of the universe happened. Our water heater crapped out. When i offered lunch to the tech who replaced it, he declined. He then opened up to me and told me he had lost a lot of weight and had packed his lunch, and- GET THIS- he was taking “cheap Ozempic from overseas”. Pollyanna here had no clue that was even a thing!!!

Started looking online. Learned about the grey market, how to use crypto, allll the things. Really, really was uncomfortable with that. (I’m medically immune suppressed, so I have to be even more cautious.)

In that internet exploration, though, Reddit ended up showing me an ad for Gimme. I was as unfamiliar with compounded tirz as i was with the grey market. Surely when the shortage that was in the news ended, it couldn’t still be available compounded. I was *flabbergasted* at the price. It was manageable! Talked to my husband, determined we could be even more frugal, and decided LFG.

Started tirz March 18. It even helped arthritis pain. Since starting, i’m down another 42 lbs. I won’t blather on about this miracle medicine; you know already.

And for the first time since middle school, i weigh under 200.

80ish more to go. But, i no longer need the wheelchair, for now. Am mostly off using a rolling walker and am back to a single arm crutch. I can get to my appointments independently most of the time now.

Couldn’t have gotten this far without the inspiration and guidance so many of you here have generously shared.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.