Total Health in Midlife Episode #207: My Friends Are Using Ozempic. Should I?

It seems like everyone is losing weight these days. Celebrities, your coworkers, maybe even your friends. You can’t scroll through social media or sit down to dinner without hearing whispers about Ozempic or Wegovy. And let’s be honest, when you see it working for other people, it’s hard not to wonder, ‘should I try it too?’

Now, if you’ve been wrestling with that question, this episode is for you. Because here’s the thing, I get why it’s so tempting. A drug that quiets food noise, curbs cravings, and shows quick results. It’s like the weight loss answer we’ve all been chasing for decades. But is it really the answer? And what happens when you go off of it? Will the weight come back?

I want to help you explore this with an open mind, no shame, no judgment, so that you can make the best decision for you. Whether you’re leaning towards the drug or feeling like there’s got to be another way, I’ve got your back. We’re going to explore all the questions that you might be having around this decision, and I’ll help you make the decision that’s right for you. Trust me, you do not want to miss this.

Welcome to Total Health and Midlife, the podcast for women embracing the pivotal transformation from the daily grind to the dawn of a new chapter. I’m Elizabeth, your host and fellow traveler on this journey.

As a Life and Health Coach, I am intimately familiar with the changes and challenges we face during this stage. Shifting careers, changing relationships, our new bodies, and redefining goals and needs as we start to look to the future and ask, what do I want?

In this podcast, we’ll explore physical, mental, and emotional wellness, offering insights and strategies to achieve optimal health through these transformative years.

Yes, it’s totally possible.

Join me in this amazing journey of body, mind, and spirit, where we’re not just improving our health, but transforming our entire lives.

Hey, everyone, welcome to the Total Health in Midlife podcast. I’m your host, Elizabeth Sherman, and I am so super glad that you have decided to join me today. Now, it feels like everyone is losing weight. Celebrities, coworkers, even your friends. Suddenly, they’re all looking smaller, and it’s no secret why.

Over the past few years, semaglutide has been the topic of conversation. You might know it as Ozempic, Wegovy, or some other variation, right? These drugs are everywhere. They’re the new weight loss miracle that’s dominating conversations. And let’s be honest, it’s hard not to notice.

Maybe it’s at dinner with your friends where someone quietly mentions that they’re on a they’ve started taking something. Or you’re scrolling through social media where celebrities are dropping weight faster than you can hit the like button. It’s that quiet hum in the back of your mind. Like, what is their secret? And should I be doing it too?

Here’s the thing, we grew up in a world that practically worships thinness. You can never be too thin or too rich, right? That’s what they told us. The smaller you are, the more you’re praised. But it’s not the first time that we’ve been here. Is it? Think back to Fen-Phen. People couldn’t get enough of it until it was pulled off the market for health reasons.

And then, there was Ali, Olestra Chips a miracle here, a promise there. And now, Semaglutide is having its moment. It feels different, but that pull, that desire to be thin because that’s what society rewards. That’s exactly the same.

So, today, I want to talk about it because maybe you’re wrestling with this decision too. Maybe you’re thinking, ‘should I try this? Is this what I need?’ And I want to help you figure that out. Not by shaming the drug or pushing an answer on you, but by looking at the bigger picture. Because this isn’t just about weight loss. It’s about you, your health, your happiness, and what real solutions actually look like.

Let’s talk about why GLP 1 drugs are so compelling. I get it. For so many women, the promise of finally quieting that constant food noise, the cravings, the mental chatter, the tug of war between, ‘I want it and I shouldn’t have it.’ It feels like it could be the answer and a huge relief. And beyond that, there’s real science in favor of these drugs.

For some people, these drugs don’t just help with appetite. They’ve shown promise for addressing addictive behaviors too. That’s a big deal if you’ve ever felt out of control with food. And let’s be honest, seeing the results on the scale, that feels good.

There’s this sense of control and a momentum that comes with watching the numbers go down. For women who’ve spent a lifetime battling their bodies, it can feel like, finally you’ve found the answer. But here’s where I need to pause and share some mixed feelings about it.

On one hand, I do see the value. I know this drug can be a game changer for some people. And I’m not here to demonize it or shame anyone for taking it. Or considering it if that’s where your brain is right now. If you’ve struggled for years to get a grip on your eating or your weight, of course you’re curious about a solution that promises quick, visible change.

But on the other hand, it’s not a magic fix. No matter what the commercials say, it’s not a ‘take it and forget it’ kind of solution. Because here’s the hard truth. If you don’t address your relationship with food and your body, if you don’t heal the patterns that got you here in the first place. Then these drugs become a lifetime drug.

When you stop taking it, the weight comes back. And I don’t say that to scare you. I say it because I’ve been there, and I know what a mindfuck it is to gain a lot of weight fast. I don’t want that to happen to anyone else. And what about the other questions? What happens if insurance stops covering it? What if the long term effects are more complicated than we actually know?

The reality is, when we rely on external tools like this, we’re putting our health, our well-being, in someone else’s hands. And that can feel really super shaky. Here’s the thing. There’s a bigger conversation that we’re not having. Being thin doesn’t necessarily mean you’re healthy or happy.

I learned this the hard way, and I’m going to share more about that in just a minute, but for now, I want you to take this with you. These GLP 1 drugs are a tool. They’re not the answer. So, if you’re feeling torn, if you’re craving that weight loss, but something inside of you feels uneasy, you’re not alone and you’re not wrong to question it.

So, let’s dig a little deeper into this because I’ve been there. I know what it’s like to believe thinness will solve everything, only to realize the real work starts somewhere else entirely.

So, I want to share a story to illustrate what I’m talking about. Years ago, I competed in a figure type bodybuilding competition. I had worked for months to achieve what was considered to be the quote unquote perfect body. I followed every single rule, I counted every calorie, I spent hours lifting, running, and walking until I was so tired that I could barely think.

I told myself that it would be worth it, that getting on stage, leaner than I had ever been before. To see visible muscles would finally make me feel proud, confident. We were driving to the competition in Houston that weekend in my convertible. And it was November and the weekend before my birthday.

My husband was at the wheel, focused on the road, and I sat there in the passenger seat just staring down at my stomach. Even at my leanest. The leanest that I had ever been. I couldn’t stop seeing the folds of skin and fat where my body naturally creased. I had done everything right. Everything I was supposed to do.

I was tan. I was competition tan if you know what that means. My fingernails were French manicured to perfection. I had spent months just dieting down and building up muscle to this version of me that I thought would bring some level of happiness. And yet, sitting in that car, I felt empty. I felt weak. I felt like it wasn’t enough.

The final days leading up to the competition had been extremely brutal. I had been eating double boiled chicken breasts and unsalted peanuts by itself and drinking almost no water. My period had completely disappeared for a few months. My energy was gone. I wasn’t strong and I was fragile. I was hollowed out.

But I convinced myself that it would all be worth it. That praise, the compliments, the quote unquote looking like, I had it all together would make me feel worthy. I barely remember the day of the competition itself. Just flashes of stage lights, mirrors, and women around me spraying themselves down, fixing their tans, their hair, their makeup.

I remember stepping off that stage and feeling nothing. No pride, no relief, just exhausted. But I do remember what happened afterwards. That night, we went out for pizza and afterwards I begged the hotel front desk for more of their chocolate chip cookies. We stayed at the Doubletree. It was like my body woke up and realized, ‘hey, food is finally coming.’

I didn’t know it at the time, but that moment set something in motion, something that I couldn’t stop. I was powerless. A few weeks later, I found myself standing in our kitchen and I remember it clear as day. It was late afternoon, and the house was quiet. I was alone. In front of me, I had a can of open peanuts. The coffee can size.

I don’t even remember how I got there. Or how long I had been standing there at the counter, just reaching into the container, pulling one peanut out at a time, eating it, without thinking. I told myself to stop, I needed to stop. And yet, I couldn’t. My brain wasn’t listening, my body wasn’t listening. It was as if something else had completely taken over.

And so, that was when my weight gain started. I gained 30 pounds in a month, 30 pounds. My body grabbed every calorie I gave it and held on tight. Desperate to rebuild what I had been stripping away for months before. My clothes stopped fitting. My reflection changed so quickly that I felt like I was watching someone else in the mirror.

And all of those compliments that I was getting beforehand, the ones about how fit I was, how disciplined I was, how amazing I looked, those dried up just as fast. I panicked. I threw myself back into running, into lifting, into supplements, anything that promised control.

But my body didn’t respond. No matter what I did, I couldn’t stop the weight gain. I felt broken, like a fraud. I was supposed to be the expert, someone who knew how to live a balanced and healthy life. And there I was, powerless to stop myself from eating peanuts at the kitchen counter.

That was the moment that I realized something had to change. Because here’s the thing. Thinness doesn’t fix what’s happening in your head. If you don’t address your relationship with food, with exercise, and with your body, nothing you do will ever feel like enough. Whether it’s starving yourself for a bodybuilding competition or taking a weight loss drug like Ozempic. The result is the same.

If you lose the weight without addressing the deeper issues, what happens when the weight comes back? What happens when the drug isn’t available anymore? No one thinks it’ll happen to them, and I sure as hell didn’t.

But I’m sharing this with you because I know how easy it is to believe that thinness is the answer. That if you can just lose the weight, If you can just quote unquote, fix yourself, everything else will fall into place.

But let me tell you, it won’t. I don’t want that for you. You deserve better. You deserve peace, trust, and a relationship with your body that doesn’t feel like a fight. And I promise you, it is possible. Whether you choose to take Semaglutide or not, you don’t have to go through this alone.

 So, here’s the thing. We’ve got it all backwards. For decades, we’ve been taught to believe that if I’m thin, I’ll be healthy. But the truth is, health isn’t a side effect of thinness. It’s actually the other way around. So, I want to share a story to illustrate what I’m talking about.

Last week, I had a conversation with a friend about a mutual friend, Candace. Now, Candice has been on Ozempic for the past year and has lost an astounding 60 pounds. Naturally, when my friend Sarah and Candice were looking at pictures from a year ago. Sarah was completely shocked at how different Candice looked. She just didn’t remember that Candace looked that way. She always looked like what she looked like right now.

And so, Sarah asked Candace, ‘do you feel any different now?’ And Candice paused and reflected for a moment, and then she said something that really stuck with me. She said, ‘no, I feel the exact same as I did before.’

Now, even after such a dramatic physical transformation, Candace didn’t feel any better about her body or herself. Instead, she started searching for other things to fix. So, it led to this string of she broke up with her boyfriend, she remodeled her house, and she bought a new car. But beneath all the surface level changes, her relationship with herself stayed exactly the same.

And so, this is what I see so often. We expect weight loss to solve problems that it can’t possibly address. Maybe you think, ‘if I’m thinner, my partner will treat me better. Or I’ll finally feel confident if I lose the weight. Or my life will feel less stuck if I look a certain way.’

But here’s the truth. If you don’t heal your relationship with your body, the weight loss won’t fix it. Our brain has this sneaky little way of moving the goalposts. Once the weight loss is gone, it zeroes in on the next quote unquote, problem. Whether it’s sagging skin, muscle tone, the color of your hair, whatever it is, something else entirely different.

And just like Candace, the feelings of not good enough follow us into that smaller body because the problem isn’t your body. It’s the way that you think about your body. And so, this is why I say, ‘thin doesn’t fix what’s happening in your head.’  

Here’s where I really want to focus. Whether you decide to try semaglutide or not, the real question you need to ask yourself is, what happens next? So, let’s say that you take the drug, and it works. The weight comes off, you feel lighter, and maybe you’re even hearing less of that constant food noise. That’s amazing, right?

But here’s what we know. If you haven’t addressed the way that you think about food, your body, and how you care for yourself. Then, the minute that you stop taking it, or if your insurance decides to stop covering it, the weight comes back. And trust me, I know firsthand how devastating that can be.

But here’s the part that we don’t often talk about. The drug might quiet the inner critic that points out the fat, for now. But the inner critic doesn’t just disappear. The voice that once fixated on your weight will simply move on to something else.

Your sagging skin. The lack of muscle tone in your arms. The way your body is changing as you age. Because the truth is, there will always be something for that inner critic to find, unless you learn how to quiet it. And the drug? It’s not going to do that for you.

Even if the scale moves, even if your jeans fit looser. You might still find yourself standing in front of the mirror, hearing that voice say, ‘it’s not enough. You’re not enough.’ And I don’t want that for you. Because I know how exhausting it is to keep chasing that version of yourself that feels just out of reach, only to realize that no amount of weight loss can silence the critic in your head.

But what if you had support? What if you had someone to help you build habits that kept you feeling strong, energized, and in control, no matter what the scale says? What if you had someone to help you shift your relationship with your body so that you could finally stop fighting it and start to appreciate it?

That’s where coaching comes in. Coaching isn’t about judgment. Quite frankly, I don’t know what the best route for you is. I don’t tell you what to eat or force you to do grueling workouts that you hate. I help you to understand your relationship with food so that you can stop obsessing over every single bite.

It’s about quieting the voice in your head that says that your worth is tied to the size of your jeans. And it’s about finding movement and exercise that feels good, not punitive. Imagine that for a second.

Imagine, sitting down to a meal and quite honestly feeling calm. Not overthinking the calories, not beating yourself up for what’s on your plate, just eating and enjoying the company, and then moving on with your day. Imagine, looking in the mirror and seeing your body for what it is strong, capable, healthy, and worthy. Without the cruel commentary running through your mind about ‘why it’s not good enough.’

Now, if you do choose to take the drug, coaching can help you protect that investment because the weight loss is one thing. But keeping it off, feeling good in your body for the long haul, that comes from building habits and behaviors that support your health, not just chasing a number.

And if these drugs don’t feel right to you, if the risks are too high, if the idea of injecting yourself feels wrong, or if you’re just not on board, coaching can still get you where you want to go. We focus on the behaviors that make you feel amazing. That fuel your body in a way that works for you. Moving in ways that bring you joy.

Managing stress and shutting down the negative self-talk that’s holding you back. Doing this work isn’t about being perfect. Good health isn’t about following someone else’s plan. It’s about finding your way to lasting, sustainable health and finally feeling at peace with yourself.

You don’t have to do this alone. You’re not broken. You don’t need fixing. You just need support. A guide to help you navigate this journey and make the changes that will stick. And I promise you, it is possible. You deserve to feel good in your body. You deserve to feel strong, healthy, and confident whether or not you take the drug. And if you’re ready to take that first step, I can get you there.

So, here’s what I want you to know. Whether or not you decide to take semaglutide or any of its variations, you don’t have to do this alone. If you’ve been feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or just tired of spinning your wheels. I want to invite you to have a conversation about it. This isn’t about me trying to sell you anything or something that you don’t even want. It’s just a conversation.

One where we talk about you. What’s going on? Where you want to be? And what might be getting in your way? Together, we can figure out how you can start taking steps towards feeling good in your body, and shutting down the negative self-talk, and creating health that actually lasts. There’s no pressure, just support. Just you and me having a real conversation about your goals.

So, if you’re ready, go to elizabethsherman.com/call, and schedule your strategy call today. It’s quick, it’s easy, and it could be the first step towards finally feeling at peace in your body. Because you do deserve to feel strong, healthy, and confident.

You deserve to look in the mirror and feel proud, not just of what you see, but how you feel inside and how you got there. And no matter what you decide about the drug, I’m here to help you get there.

So, let’s talk. I can’t wait to meet you. That’s all I have for you today. Have an amazing week. I’ll talk to you next week. Bye-bye.

Thank you for tuning in today. Now, if you enjoy the podcast and are ready to take the next step in addressing your health concerns, I would love to invite you to schedule an I Know What To Do, I’m Just Not Doing It strategy call.

In this 60 minute session, we will explore what’s holding you back and create a personalized action plan. You will gain clarity, support, and practical steps to move you forward. Visit elizabethsherman.com/call to book your call now. You can transform your health and I would love to be there to help.