I was on Wegovy for 14 months and lost 65 pounds. I went from 248 to 183. I felt incredible. People did not recognize me. I bought an entirely new wardrobe. I ran a 5K for the first time in my life. I was the Wegovy success story.
Then my insurance changed and the new plan did not cover Wegovy. The prior authorization was denied twice. At $1,300 per month out of pocket, I could not sustain it. I stopped in November 2024.
The first two weeks off were deceptively fine. My appetite increased slightly but nothing alarming. I thought maybe I had "reset" my habits enough to maintain without the medication. Many people on the subreddits suggest this is possible if you have built good habits.
By week 4, the food noise came roaring back. Not gradually — it felt like a dam breaking. The constant food thoughts, the cravings for sugar and carbs, the difficulty feeling satisfied after meals, the urge to eat when stressed. Everything the medication had silenced returned with what felt like compound interest.
By month 3, I had regained 20 pounds. By month 6, 40. I am now 8 months out and have regained 45 of the 65 pounds lost. I am still lighter than my starting weight, but watching the number climb on the scale every week is psychologically devastating when you know what it feels like to be at your goal weight.
The research backs this up — the STEP 1 extension trial showed participants regained two-thirds of lost weight within a year of stopping semaglutide. This is not a failure of willpower. The appetite hormones and metabolic adaptations that drove the weight gain in the first place reassert themselves when the pharmacological intervention is removed. Obesity is a chronic condition, and GLP-1 agonists are chronic treatment, not a cure.
I share this not to discourage anyone but because realistic expectations matter. If you start a GLP-1 agonist, plan for the possibility that you may need to stay on it long-term — and make sure you understand what your insurance situation and financial reality will look like in 2, 5, 10 years.