5 ms·
Okay, here's the thing. I Totally get that GLP-1's are absolute medical breakthroughs. But they are a _serious_ societal problem, IMO. My partner and I are bot
by nameless912 2y ago
Okay, here's the thing.
I Totally get that GLP-1's are absolute medical breakthroughs. But they are a _serious_ societal problem, IMO. My partner and I are both larger-bodied people; both our BMI's (it's a terrible measurement, I'm aware) hover just over 30. We've done a lot of work to destigmatize our own bodies and accept who we are so that we can teach our kids to have healthy self-images and not suffer the dysmorphia that we both went through for decades. We're active, we eat well, and we have great lives; we just aren't _thin_.
My partner has a new coworker who just started on Wegovy and has been poisoning my partner's brain with her terrible self talk. She calls herself a "fat bitch" at work, and raves about how excited she is to "lose all the fucking weight" before her wedding next fall, and it's bad enough that my partner has had to talk to her manager and HR about it. It's bad enough that my partner broke down the other day and told me she's struggling to see herself as anything other than overweight and unhealthy because the negative sentiment her coworker has of _her_ body is leaking onto everyone else.
These medications are absolutely essential for _some_ people who need to lose weight for medical reasons or need the other benefits they provide. But, they've also unlocked a cheat code for losing weight, and people like my partner's new coworker are focusing on only that aspect. The potential societal effects of making weight loss easier than ever before are kinda terrifying to me. I don't know what I'll say to my kids if they end up with our body type and come to me one day asking to go on Ozempic or Wegovy because "all the kids at school are doing it" and "being thin is what's normal now". I'm so scared that we've opened up a Pandora's box of making thin even more of an expectation because it's "easy" now.
I guess my point is, I _really_ wish the FDA would step in and make it clear that these medications are not to be prescribed for cosmetic weight loss, and they should bring the hammer down on online pharmacies like Hers (which is where my partner's coworker got her Wegovy).
EDIT: there are a bunch of folks in the replies telling me I'm lying to myself and misserving my kids by accepting myself. That's...odd, to say the least. Every metric I have that isn't my weight is perfectly fine. My blood pressure is normal, my cholesterol is normal, my A1C is normal, my blood sugar is normal, my doctor and I are very happy with my health. The number on the scale is _a_ representation of your health, but it's not the only or even best one. And the impact on my mental health has been astounding. I'm not going to change my mind about my weight because a bunch of folks using an extremely outdated metric of overall health tell me my number is bad.
- Veen 2y agoThat's nice. On the other hand, I'm fat because I eat too much. It makes me unhealthy and less attractive. I welcome GLP-1s and think they definitely should be prescribed for cosmetic weight loss. Others can use whatever psychological coping strategies they deem fit—I'll have the pharmaceuticals.
- nameless912 2y ago> it makes me unhealthy ...then it's not cosmetic weight loss? I don't think we disagree. If we prescribed these medications the same way we prescribe, say, blood pressure medication, I think I would be less worried. When you have high blood pressure, they of course put you on a medication immediately to get your blood pressure down, but the goal is to reduce the medication over time by helping you work on the underlying cause of the high blood pressure. Some people just have naturally high blood pressure and will need the medication support forever, and that's OK, but many people can engage in lifestyle changes that will give them most of the improvement they need. If we were approaching GLP-1's with the same mindset I think I would be much less worried about the future of our society with these medications. And for what it's worth, the above isn't a "coping strategy". It's body acceptance, which has made me a hell of a lot healthier than all the attempts I made at losing weight I didn't really need to lose in order to be healthy and happy.
- PapaPalpatine 2y agoSpeaking from experience, that is exactly how I used and was prescribed Ozempic. I stopped eating processed foods and cut nearly all my sugar intake. It was a total lifestyle change and I lost 40 pounds in the process. I’ve been off of it for nearly a month and I’ve kept off the weight so far.
- nameless912 2y agoHey, that's great! I'm really happy to hear that there are patients and doctors out there working together to use this medication correctly.