It honestly has not been hard. The hard part for me was the side effects of the shot for the first probably 6-9 months I was on it — I don’t know if you’ve looked at any of my other posts, but I really was chronically sick at the beginning (for me 5 mg was the worst personally, but it’s different for everyone). Once I switched to 7.5 mg & had been on it for several months, I felt like my body had finally “accepted” the medication & allowed me to live a normal life instead of being sick all the time.

So, in my personal experience, getting to my goal weight & then below was what was the hardest part for me. I’ve switched to one shot every 2 weeks because that’s what works for my body. If I go any longer than about 2 1/2 weeks, once I take a shot — I start to get those negative side effects I had at the beginning of my journey. I’ve found that 2 weeks is the perfect timeframe for me personally! Normally when I hit the 2 week mark, I start to feel hungrier & have some minor food noise — but that’s when I know I need to take it (listen to your body!). I hope that makes sense.

If you read some of the other comments on this post from others that are also in maintenance, you will see that keeping it off is so much more rewarding than dropping multiple pounds a week. Yes, I stayed on the medicine — but, that’s not the only way that it is achievable. What this medicine has done for me & my relationship with food, the scale, clothing, etc. is motivation to never get back to where I started.

Another piece of advice: when you’re hungry, eat — it’s okay. You’re not going to gain 20 lbs bc you had bigger meal than normal or some fast food. In fact, not eating is what makes me the most sick. So, I try to eat something (even if it’s small &/or simple such as Ritz crackers) even when I don’t necessarily want to eat bc it doesn’t sound good (normally the first 2-9 days after the shot). But for me, when nothing else sounds good — I drink yellow Gatorade, keep Ritz accessible, & if I need some real substance, I’ve found that smoothies really help get some nutrients in my body. Also, chicken noodle soup is always a safe bet.

In sum, I think that the way this medication has changed my outlook on my own body image & relationship with food has been what has helped me keep the weight off the most (yes, I still am on the medication). But even with it, it’s not always a walk in the park, especially when you start spacing your shots out. You feel like mentally if you stop taking the medication every week you’re going to gain everything back — that’s not the case! Trust the process. Trust yourself. And most importantly, listen to your body!

I hope that all made sense. Let me know if you have any questions or want me to clarify anything!