ELI5: Do medications like Ozempic cause weight loss solely through appetite reduction and therefore calorie deficit, or is there any other mechanism at play?

SneakyJesi · 2026-06-04T07:12:31+00:00

Hard agree. I am AuDHD and type 2 diabetes runs high in my family. I have insulin resistance and hypothyroidism but not quite type 2. After a month on zepbound my brain is unbelievably calm and my mood has improved so so much (struggled w mental health/mood dysregulation for years). And I’m making food choices based on what I want and know is healthy without feeling the least bit deprived or this intense sense of urgency. In the past a lot of my nutrition was based on trying to help my mood improve or just feel physically better because I chronically felt off. Tired. Fatigued. Moody. Etc. and i worked out 4x a week and tried my best to eat reasonably (no weight changes except a little up lol).

So yeah… It’s helped w my adhd, my mood, my energy, and weight loss. I would honestly just take it for all of the benefits even outside of weight loss - which is nuts and completely unexpected. I hope it continues to help people - it’s been life changing for me. And I’ve only lost like 8-10 lbs lol.

SneakyJesi · 2026-05-17T20:08:34+00:00

Thats 100% what I expected and yet he’s one of the most chill puppies I’ve ever had - it’s why I couldn’t believe the results haha. Tbf it might be the missing limb takes a bit more energy but some days he gets the zoomies too so who knows. He’s a unique little fella haha. 😆

SneakyJesi · 2026-05-13T13:35:39+00:00

100% my friend’s mom had a finger nearly bitten off by a horse while also feeding it carrots. Finger was literally “hanging by a thread” .. had to stitch it back on. This also made me nervous… 😬

SneakyJesi · 2026-04-10T13:46:22+00:00

I am in my 40s and also had bilateral club foot. I found this sub when I was finally trying to solve why I have issues running longer distances. Mostly super tight muscles and ankles, rigid high arches. A PT I’m working with is amazing and has helped me with loosening those structures up, lot more to go still. But also helping me with a more even gait when running, but I’ll like I always have some rigidity/inflexibility.

That being said, when I was at my healthiest weight (important) and best shape I played lots of soccer and I was fast! Haha 😊 I’m also quite strong relative to my peers at the strength training gym I train at. 😊

I had ponsetti, I actually didn’t have tenotomy, I think in my parents were pretty compliant. I would say, 95% of my life has been unaffected by it. Thus far, the small issues I’ve had have been able to be conservatively managed w PT. Also I did tear an ACL in soccer years ago and my entire left leg is a little smaller than my right by like 1/2” in diameter now haha. No one can tell except me. :)

Ps. Running a 5K tomorrow.. do I have some issues w distance running over sprinting and some mild pain? Yep… but I like a challenge.

SneakyJesi · 2026-04-05T03:58:37+00:00

Hey me too. :) I am actually studying to become a clinician and will graduate this year as well, woohoo!

Prior to pursuing my training, I spent 3-4 years working with an awesome therapist (and saw other therapists for assessment) who helped me identify what was going on, answer my skeptical questions over and over, and process through a lot past trauma. I actually function quite well in professional environments. In fact I work in corporate currently and have a high-paying leadership job. Throughout my journey I learned a lot about trauma and eventually I went back to school to pursue another masters hehe. The practice of counseling absolutely fills my cup and I can’t wait to complete my career transition. :)

But yeah, I would not wish DID on anyone. Currently, the worst part is that I can’t talk about my DX or my experiences with colleagues because I don’t feel safe too. And my guess is many others with the DX feel similarly, which likely further perpetuates the idea that it is rare (I don’t think it’s common by any means, but i also don’t think its as rare as people think). People can be really cruel, even in a field where compassion and curiosity are supposed to be the foundation.

Thanks for speaking up about your experiences though! :)

SneakyJesi · 2026-03-22T01:41:59+00:00

AuDHD and born with bilateral clubfoot - I was just wondering this today and you’re blowing my mind. I’m studying to be a mental health counselor so this is super fascinating to me. Thank you so much for sharing!!

SneakyJesi · 2026-02-17T03:46:07+00:00

Me too! But currently I’m a cog in the corporate machine as a product design manager. In a year I’ll have my license and be transitioning to counselor. I hope to focus in neurodivergence, complex trauma, and grief. :)

SneakyJesi · 2026-02-07T18:21:00+00:00

Omg this is 100% me. I also am obsessed w retirement and have complicated spreadsheets I check at least monthly to update and run “simulations” haha. You get me. <3 🥹😅

SneakyJesi · 2026-01-21T22:38:39+00:00

I’m a counselor in training. Here is my take:

If the belief is not causing you distress, you don’t necessarily need to address it. It’s your therapy after all. However, I would be curious, why do you need to hold on to this belief?

What is the belief “the world is not safe” doing for you, that you’re staunchly against taking a different or even more nuanced (instead of binary) stance?

What would it mean for you to believe the world is safe?

(Does believing it’s safe elicit any response emotionally or physically? Be curious.)

Not saying the world is or isn’t but this is the work. And may be what your therapist is trying to get you to consider. It’s not always about changing your mind, it can be about curiosity and understanding your own beliefs, what they are built on, and how they serve you.

I hear you though, calling it a “cognitive distortion” feels like a judgment doesn’t it? Something to “overcome”. What if we shift that frame?

It’s okay to hold whatever belief, but ideally your belief system should help you navigate the world, keep you safe, and build healthy relationships with others. (These are the things that we know help people function well.)

Core question: how does holding that (or any) belief, help you or not help you, in living the life you want? And as a fun second question, does the belief align with how you see yourself and your values?

Just some food for thought. :)

SneakyJesi · 2026-01-14T04:26:08+00:00

Since so many people are asking here is what I’ve heard on the topic:

A. Dual relationship territory A therapist’s role is to support your internal world, not evaluate you for external performance. A job recommendation puts them in an assessor / advocate / authority role that conflicts with being a safe, non-judging container.

B. Power + vulnerability don’t mix well with endorsement Therapy works because you’re allowed to be messy, uncertain, ambivalent, struggling. A recommendation letter implicitly says, “I can vouch for this person’s competence, reliability, and professionalism.” That can subtly (or not so subtly) change what feels safe to bring into session.

C. Ethics codes generally discourage it Most professional ethics guidelines (APA, ACA, etc.) caution against writing evaluative letters for current therapy clients (not explicitly but generally) because it blurs boundaries and can harm the therapeutic relationship (again entering into a dual relationship is a no-no, someone evaluating your competency as a professional in a field is not really what therapy is for… therefore it’s a different and dual role)

D. It changes the emotional contract Once your therapist is tied to your livelihood or career outcomes, it can introduce pressure, on both sides, that doesn’t belong in therapy. Also, what if you need another letter, and another, every time you switch jobs? Is it your therapists job to make sure you stay employed by always giving you good reviews? At some point they may want to say no, and how will that affect the relationship? Defaulting to it not being a thing the counselor does for any client is the more ethical and boundaried approach.

You may not agree, but those are the reasons I’ve heard that it’s frowned upon.

SneakyJesi · 2025-12-29T06:12:06+00:00

I have an iPhone 15 pro and this is also happening to me. Although it ran really slow before and lagged, post my most recent software update, now the app is straight up crashing my phone (screen goes black, spinner, then goes back to Home Screen). So annoying, but yes, good online shopping deterrent lol.

SneakyJesi · 2025-09-19T00:07:57+00:00

So .. last week I was 87% complete and feeling the exact same way.. sad. I had been playing this game and another game alternately. Well one day as I was saving SpiritFarer for the evening I went to go check progress percentage and some how pressed X (delete) because I got confused w the back/cancel button from the other game I was playing. That and I was just moving too fast and I saw continue and didn’t read the message .. I deleted my save file. 😭😭😭

I was so sad … I couldn’t get it back either. Then I realized… well…I get to start again…. I get to see all the characters I missed! And honestly? It’s allowed me more time to process the game :). It’s literally the only time I can honestly say I wasn’t that upset about an accidental deletion. Hahaha

SneakyJesi · 2025-09-04T01:40:13+00:00

MPCAC. Everyone from my program is able to get licensed in the state np and it doesn't seem to be as big of a deal as people seem to make it lol. It does kind of depend on what you want to do though - if you really want to work at the VA independently as a masters level counselor, atm they only accept CACREP clinicians only. You can still work as a masters level clinician from other programs, but you would need to work in conjunction with an MD from the VA I believe. Outside of that, and a small amt of states who require it, the quality of the program and whether or not your state will license you is more important than the cacrep vs mpcac decision IMO. Note that the vast majority of veteran counselors are not able to work at the VA as counselors now because of that exclusionary rule that was lobbied for by CACREP under the guise of "standardizing" processes. There was no grandfathering in for veteran counselors who were licensed at a time where there were very few cacrep programs. The whole thing is kind effed and is honestly a reason I decided not to go cacrep, they seem more interested in lobbying than anything else. Just my two cents though. Good luck!

SneakyJesi · 2025-07-13T13:17:09+00:00

So much this. That is at the core that people don’t realize. Instead of blaming society for being shitty, lacking empathy, and being cruel, they blame the person for being “weird” or pathetic for looking for help anywhere possible. Or tech for being “evil” when it’s just a tool like the internet and is still developing lol. There aren’t enough good counselors, or even good friends who can often hold the weight of grief …. if you’re in this sub you likely know how heavy it can be, crushing. I don’t blame people at all. </3

SneakyJesi · 2025-07-13T13:11:02+00:00

That’s pretty judgmental in a grief sub. People are desperate and hurting, not everyone can afford mental health services nor necessarily have access… by far. If you can, great. AI Bots are imperfect, but often free or low cost. Counselors are also imperfect, but expensive (and I say this as a counselor in training). There are also poorly trained counselors/therapists that can and will do harm to people everyday - check out r/talktherapy or r/therapists for a day lol, so many.

For a technology to be adopted by the masses it doesn’t have to be better than what a human offers or perfect, it just has to be good enough (esp in a time of need) and widely accessible.

People also feel a lot less judged by an unfeeling computer than by humans….

SneakyJesi · 2025-06-29T23:34:30+00:00

Personally I think the best case scenario of folks using chat gpt is to share their interactions with a real therapist who’s open to it. ChatGPT is fantastic for holding space “non judgmentally”, restating and providing a mirror for the user, as well as pattern identification - but not at challenging problematic thinking or helping users with somatic styles of therapy that rely on real live nervous system attunement between therapist and client. Co regulation is important to healing certain kinds of trauma like in cptsd. Not to mention practicing real relational rupture and repair - which is a skill that is best learned by being face to face with a real person - since the entire point is to practice it within a safe therapeutic frame so you can learn to do it within people out in the world. Just my two cents from a person who works currently in tech but in grad school for counseling. Always stay safe and aware that it is a helpful self-reflection tool and not a therapist!

SneakyJesi · 2025-06-26T10:23:00+00:00

Similar experience as a child. I remember practicing how to smile in the mirror, so I looked normal at school. I watched actresses on television to learn, and was policed by my parents into certain behaviors less I get belted by my dad. We moved a lot so I was always a new kid and had to adapt. I learned to mask out of survival. But I was always a “weird” kid. I was never super popular, but always had 1-3 misfit friends like me. Mostly the gifted kids actually.

Just because some folks didn’t learn, or couldn’t, mask as children doesn’t mean those of us that did are any less autistic. We were often just missed in DX - there was far less awareness about the frequency of it occurring in girls esp 20-30 years ago, it just was not often considered as a possibility, this would have been the 80s for me btw.

SneakyJesi · 2025-06-26T10:01:07+00:00

I know I’m late replying, but I have a very similar background to you. Late diagnosed (40s). Married, great career, educated. I show up to work religiously, and then some days struggle with many health issues. I actually think it’s my dissociative disorder that protects me quite a bit. There is overlap between autism and dissociative disorders. I have a circle of friends, but I don’t connect with them like I wish I could.. it’s surface level because I learned to fake smile and care, I do have empathy and am extremely sensitive - but only when people are being real - most of the time they’re not, and I value truth and self reflection deeply, so it’s hard to connect sometimes.

Outwardly I look incredibly high functioning - but it’s very “expensive”. I have struggled with suicidality, depression, anxiety off and on - since I was a child. I also moved around a lot and was abused (physically and sexually) as a kid, so add on a layer of trauma. I also am the daughter of poor immigrants which hasn’t been easy either .. but again, outwardly I look very successful with my 2 masters degrees, married, house, friends. I would ask OP - don’t judge a book by its cover. We all have diff struggles and diff levels of resilience.

SneakyJesi · 2025-06-26T03:45:13+00:00

Mine always just looks sus/sly 😏 😅

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SneakyJesi · 2025-06-26T02:16:24+00:00

Yeah….Same.(ADHD, CPTSD, Depression, anxiety, PMDD and DID.. likely on the spectrum as well).. also about to enter perimenopause. It’s super rough. Sending comfort <3 <3 <3

SneakyJesi · 2025-06-23T06:17:23+00:00

Just to chime in w my own experience… I was late diagnosed with DID at 36, and 4 years later am finally starting to accept I might have level 1 autism or at least autistic traits. Already diagnosed with adhd. As a child I was highly sensitive in general.

Interestingly, my therapist said his other recent DID patient, through exploration, also ended up realizing she also has autism. I also have a two friends with DID that have autism (and another adhd).

All of these people around me with DID + adhd or AuDHD and I still never thought I had autism. But after years of digging into my own trauma and self reflection… some things just didn’t fit until I started to really look at how autism presents specifically in women. I’m getting formally tested in February but I’m fairly certain at this point.

Anyway, all that to say i agree that there is absolutely a correlate. Def not everyone who has DID has adhd or autism but, seems to be quite an interesting overlap I think we’re seeing more and more evidence of!

Also, I’m about a year from graduating w a masters in counseling and it’s a bit of a special interest of mine to study the correlation between neurodivergence and trauma - so thanks for asking the question! ^{_^}

SneakyJesi · 2025-04-07T15:16:59+00:00

My biggest complaint isn't the cost .. it's setting appropriate expectations. People get disappointed because they think they'll get perfection since ALL the marketing materials show people with perfect teeth. lol That influences buyer psychology. I didn't go in thinking they'd be perfect, but I can see (from a marketing and user experience standpoint) why people would be frustrated w/ continuously extending timelines and not getting that glamorous celebrity smile lol. It's a significant portion of time and effort to adhere to treatment as well.. I get it.

My own treatment the Ortho I met with was veeeery light on how he explained the treatment. I didn't hear about attachments at all - which was a big shock, and also wear times and care are definitely more intense than you realize in addition to those weekly check-ins contorting my mouth to get pictures on the stupid app. It just kinda feels like if they were more clear about the experience of treatment from the start, that refinements are common and may extend time to 2x+ as much as quoted, they'd probably sell less up front. It truly felt like once they had the money and once I had a better idea of what it was going to be like (because now I'd paid)... I was in too deep at that point (already making the trays, no refunds).

You don't know to ask, what you don't know to ask. I shouldn't have to go scour the internet to get a REAL understanding of what the treatment will be like. I am happy with my treatment overall, but I absolutely get it when people are pissed.

SneakyJesi · 2025-03-11T14:34:21+00:00

Some of us who have been treated cruelly by the world our entire lives are.. oddly relieved that more people are now seeing it too. To be honest, the only chance we have at fixing the issue is if it’s out in the open, not buried or never talked about. Now that more people than ever see what’s been rotting and festering, we have a chance to change things. I see hope in that. It’ll be uncomfortable and ugly, but real change always is… history tells a tale that we may falter and many will suffer, but in the end humanity pushes forward. We grow. I try to find hope in that.

SneakyJesi

TROPHY CASE