This has been my first week on 7.5mg and it’s been fine. I’ve hit my 3 stone loss and I’m feeling great. I’ve also just watched the ITV ‘Tonight’ program ‘The Skinny Jab: Who’s getting it’ and they make it sound like I’m doing something dodgy.
I took the jab on Sunday night, and I felt slightly queasy on Monday. All I ate was a protein shake and a 340 calories ready meal that I couldn’t finish. I have to say I was pleased, it meant it was working. Tuesday I was less queasy but still feeling 100% suppression of appetite and food noise.
The rest of the week I have felt completely fine. I have been going to the toilet ok. And I have seen my weight go down 1.4lb
Then last night I watched the ITV show. They featured one person who bought their jabs from a beautician they chatted to on WhatsApp, who sent her 4 insulin syringes in a bag, I think I read somewhere else that she paid £20 for it. And surprise surprise, sounds like it wasn’t the genuine article, and she was violently sick. They spoke to doctors who confirmed they can only prescribe it to people with type 2 diabetes, and that it is only available via tier 3 weight loss referral which has a wait list of up to 4 years in some parts of the country.
They made it sound like we are doing something dodgy, buying it online. But as long as you are buying online from a proper pharmacist, and that you are not lying about your weight to get it. One of the other people featured told her pharmacist that she was 13 stone when she was in fact about 9st stone.
What I am doing is buying my prescription from a proper pharmacy I am simply paying for my prescription privately. This is no different from paying privately for an operation like a knee replacement instead of waiting 4 years for the NHS.
Admittedly the fact that they have not seen me and are relying on me giving accurate information and genuine photographs, leaves the process open to abuse. But what system isn’t? This is a valuable commodity so there will be a black market for it. Just like my Louis Vuitton handbag that came from Turkey, looks the same, costs less, and guess what, it’s a fake.
I have purchased all my jabs from Asda Online Pharmacy. I wanted a name I knew. They asked me for lots of information, including my doctor’s info, they asked for photos and were clear this if there was any reason to suspect that my photos were not genuine then I would not be approved. They also provided me with a letter to give to my doctor to let them know I was taking this drug.
I had an appointment with my doctor as my very first step, because I knew there was no way my husband would support me in buying ‘drugs online’ and injecting them into myself, without speaking to a doctor first.
She said I was eligible for a Tier 3 referral; she didn’t even weigh me to check, which I thought was a bit cheeky! She said she had no idea how long I could be waiting. And that she would ‘support my decision to buy it privately’ and reassured me that ‘buying it privately would not affect my eligibility to get it on the NHS (if I ever get the opportunity) because I am totally allowed to have a mixture of NHS and private treatment’. I walked out of the doctor’s surgery and already had the page open on my phone to click order.
If you want my opinion, the simple way that this could be tightened up, is if your own GP had to make the referral for you to the private prescriber of your choice.
If you want to be confident you are making the right choice, I suggest you speak to your GP, then order from a pharmacy you have heard of or at least checked out, and if someone is offering you a deal that seems to be too good to be true, then it probably is.
20 weeks in I have no regrets. I have already reached a size and weigh that I am comfortable with and previously this is where I would start to relax and believe that I could just stay at this weight. Which would see me slowly start to regain the weight. This time I feel happy where I am but know that I am going to carry on, and even if I continue to lose 1lb a week I am very happy with that. I am only 8lb away from the lowest I have been in about 20 years.
I ordered my first size 14 items of clothing. One is a summer dress, that is just thin straps and hangs down, so not remotely fitted in any way. It fits fine. It is quite ridiculous how happy it will make me feel when I wear it on holiday knowing that on the label is the number 14. I have also bought a denim skirt that I currently have in a size 18 that is now too big. The size 14 goes on and zips up, but it is too tight around the waist. So, this is now the only item in my wardrobe I have to slim into.
It is now 3 weeks till my holiday in Egypt and I am looking forward to it so much. I keep looking at the shorts I have bought. I know that I will feel more relaxed in my head because I will feel more confident in my body.
Is there a risk of taking a new drug, that has some controversy surrounding it? Probably. But is there a risk to my health of being massively overweight? Definitely.