Wegovy and Mounjaro are both once-weekly injections. The active ingredient in Wegovy is semaglutide and the active ingredient in Mounjaro is tirzepatide. They help people lose weight by relieving feelings of hunger and reducing cravings. They do this by targeting key areas of the brain that regulate appetite and calorie intake. This means you feel less hungry and feel fuller for longer. You may also find that you do not enjoy high-fat and sweet foods as much. This helps reduce your calorie intake further.

The idea of injecting yourself can be a little daunting at first. Don’t worry, it’s straightforward and the needle is very small. You will receive a step-by-step guide on how to inject when you receive your medication. You can also speak to our prescribing team who will be happy to go through it with you. If you need extra help, they will even arrange a video-call to take you through it step by step and check you’re doing it right.

There’s a few places that you can inject, it’s up to you where you choose. Areas you can inject are:


• Upper arms
• Tummy/abdomen (3-5cm away from your belly button)
• Upper legs (front of thighs)

If you haven’t used your pen yet:

• Keep your medication refrigerated between 2°C and 8°C.
• Keep your pen away from the refrigerator’s cooling element to ensure it doesn’t get too cold!
• Do not freeze your medication and do not use it if it has been frozen.


Once you have used the pen:

• You can keep it at room temperature (up to 30°C).
• If you can, you should continue keeping it refrigerated between 2°C and 8°C.
• Keep the pen cap on when the pen is not in use.
• Do not expose the pen to direct sunlight.


You should not store your pen at room temperature for more than 6 weeks for Wegovy, or 4 weeks for Mounjaro.

It’s understandable that people are sometimes wary of new medications. The first thing to say is that GLP-1s aren’t new. While they have only recently been licensed for use in weight loss, this group of medications have been in use in diabetic patients for many years. This first one was licensed in 2005, so we they have been around for nearly 20 years. The first trials of semaglutide, the active drug in Wegovy, was in 2008 and was developed as a once weekly injection in 2012. All medications that are licenced have to go through extensive, in-depth trials and studies before they are approved to be prescribed to the public.

Wegovy and Mounjaro aren’t suitable for everyone so it’s important you answer the questions on the consultation form as honestly and accurately as possible. Not all patients are eligible for our programme. There are strict rules outlined in the drug license about who is and isn’t suitable for these medications. You must have a BMI of 30 or over, or a BMI of 27-30 along with a diagnosed complication of obesity, such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol.

Having Type II diabetes does not exclude you from the programme providing you are either diet-controlled or are on a regular stable dose of metformin that is managed by your GP. People with Type II diabetes who are under a specialist hospital diabetes service or are on other medications for their diabetes apart from metformin are not eligible. We are very sorry but for safety reasons, people with Type I diabetes are not suitable for our service.

All medications have potential side effects, and this includes GLP-1 agonists. This doesn’t mean that they affect everyone who takes it but it’s important to be aware of the most common ones. Remember that everyone is different. People often report occasionally feeling sick at the start of taking the medication. This usually passes after a few weeks.
The most common side effect is mild to moderate nausea, which usually improves over time.
Very common (more than one in 10 people will experience these)


• Headaches
• Vomiting
• Diarrhoea
• Constipation
• Nausea
• Abdominal pain
• Fatigue
• Weakness


These side effects usually reduce in frequency over time and are mainly seen during the dose titration period. Although most patients tolerate the medication very well, if you do have any side effects then don’t worry, you can speak to the Slimmr prescribing team who can help you and offer advice on how to manage them.