Taking Byetta ..sorry so long
Just wanted to share my story about Byetta with those who have stopped losing
weight or those who no longer seem to be getting the "full" feeling from Byetta.
7 months ago, after taking Byetta for about 6 months, I began to crave food
again. This was after a loss of 40 pounds. Not because I ate less. I had been
on a 9 to 10 carb serving a day food plan for at least 2 years before Byetta.
Most of the time I was able to follow this way of eating, but it had been so
hard. Visions of food kept dancing through my head constantly. <grin. With the
Byetta those visions just seemed to dissapear for those 6 months.
Needless to say I was so upset when this happened. I didn’t gain weight, but I
always thought I was hungry and had started eating a "little bite" of things
that weren’t on my meal plan. I kept saying to myself why in the world am I
taking another 2 shots of something each day when it’s not doing a thing and I
want more to eat all of the time anyway. Then I would remind myself that my A1c
was staying at 5.5 to 5.8, I wasn’t gaining and I hadn’t had to go back to the
huge amounts of insulin I had been taking before Byetta.
So I kept on taking those 2 shots a day…I take insulin 4 times a day too so
believe me I didn’t want to face the needle another 2 times.
Last month I started noticing the full feeling again occasionally, then it began
to be more often. Then this month the weight is starting to drop again. Don’t
know why it worked so well for 6 months, seemed to only be working as far as my
blood glucose readings were concerned for the next 6 months and then began to
work as far as the full feeling and the weight loss again, but am certainly
thankful that I kept taking those 2 shots a day.
Anyway, we are all so different in how we react to medications, but just wanted
you to know that the weight loss did begin again in my case. I love the lizard
so much. For me it has been an absolute miracle drug. Still could do without
the shots and hope they approve the once a week thing really soon, but in the
meantime the lizard and I are good buddies.
Nancy
June 14th, 2007 at 7:33 am
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June 14th, 2007 at 12:11 pm
So I kept on taking those 2 shots a day…I take insulin 4 times a day too
so believe me I didn’t want to face the needle another 2 times.
***
Hi Nancy:
Are you still taking insulin four times a day as well as the Byetta? I was
able to maintain a 6.0 to 6.6 a1C for several years on insulin but it
stopped working recently and I had put on quite a bit of weight, even whien I
was
going to weight watchers. It drove me crazy and finally made me ask my
doctor about Byetta after a friend shared her weight loss. The appetite
suppressing side effect was strong during my first two weeks and has already
slowed
down but not stopped completely and I lost ten pounds. However, it isn’t doing
much to lower my sugar so I am going to switch to the 10 mcg this Saturday
after only three weeks. My doctor is going on vacation for two weeks in August
and wants to see if I can tolerate the 10 pen before he goes. I tolerate
the 5mcg very well and have only had a headache the first few days. I’m
thinking the lizard likes me and plan to start the 10 on Saturday. I have an
important meeting in Boston on Sunday about a two hour drive and am assuming I
will be well enough to do that. Have other people transitioned from the 5mcg
to
the 10mcg without getting sick? I’d hate to be overcome with nausea while
I’m on the road… Any thoughts?
Thanks, Suzanne