Lady Cat Lady

Let’s start with the numbers, shall we? As of September 13, my total weight loss in five months on Wegovy is 39lbs. At my doctor visit, we discussed the fact that I was still struggling heavily with cravings, and I asked to be raised to .5 mg. My doctor obliged, I will be starting that this evening.

Wegovy is the weight loss version of semaglutide.  It is a peptide similar to the hormone glucagon-like peptide-1, modified with a side chain. It works in weight loss, when on a therapeutic dose, by suppressing your appetite through slowing down digestion. And, curbing cravings for sugary and high fat foods.

I am on my way/at the hospital/or already home from RFA on my lower lumbar spine and sacroiliac joints on my right side. After a long drawn out process, the day has finally arrived and I’m looking forward to experiencing some relief from all this pain.

Radio frequency ablation (RFA) uses heat to destroy tissue. For pain management, radio waves are sent through precisely placed needles to heat an area of the nerve. This prevents pain signals from being sent back to your brain. Nerves regenerate within 6-12 months.

This injury has inhibited my health journey by not allowing me to do any kind of cardio activity for longer than five minutes. It has impeded my life in many ways, both mentally and physically. I’m hoping this will take the edge off, so I can overcome it entirely through strength training and exercise without pain holding me back.

I am aware that results are not instantaneous. I have been told to expect a few days of muscle spasms from the procedure (I have taken time off of work), and about three weeks until I notice any actual pain relief from the procedure. That said, there’s a lot of emotional relief knowing this is actually happening.

It’s difficult to fully express how frustrating this last week has been for me. It was a roller coaster of emotions trying to get the correct referrals from the right doctors to the insurance company and get all the tests completed in time to get clearance from the cardiologist. (PS, my heart is doing well)

Pro tip: Don’t have a heart attack if you dislike going to the doctor. 🤡

(Inner Monologue: Time to admit you think you’re funnier than you are. 😏 )

For all you who are concerned because I said I wouldn’t go up in dosage and now plan to: Uh, I was wrong. When confronted with new evidence, I can admit when I made a poor decision. I didn’t realize all the cravings would come back when I said that. My bad.

For those worried about the side effects showing up:

One: Nick started .5 a while back, he’s doing well. Did not notice any side effects. He’s also still had no lowering in appetite or cravings.

Two: If I do get bad side effects, I can go back down to .25mg with one phone call, which still has the benefit of controlling my appetite, though not my cravings.

I have mostly continued a low calorie, low fat diet. But, will admit to succumbing to my cravings more often than I’d like to admit to even myself, as evidenced by the two pound weight loss this month.

I have continued going to the gym four times a week up until today. This, of course, will be paused while I recover. Doc said no weight lifting until she sees me again. That’s Oct 3. I will continue to do stretching, as my back tolerates.

If I don’t answer comments for a bit, please understand.

Wish me luck!

Happy Wednesday!