It’s more complicated than people think
Natasha Robinson has long struggled with high glucose, insulin and A1C levels, which caused her to gain weight and become extremely tired. For several years, the 37-year-old man from Dallas took the diabetes drug metformin, but saw no progress. So, as someone who works in higher education and whose in-laws are pharmacists, Robinson took matters into his own hands and searched for better alternatives.
She eventually met Ozempic and suggested it to her doctor.
Ozempic is an FDA-approved prescription drug — taken by injection in the thigh, stomach, or arm — typically used to help lower blood sugar in people with type 2 diabetes. That’s the brand name semaglutide, which stimulates insulin production and also targets areas of the brain that regulate appetite, according to the FDA.
With her doctor’s approval, Robinson started taking Ozempic in January 2022 and is now opening up to PEOPLE about the reality of taking the drug over the past year.
“To be honest, I was a little nervous, because I don’t like needles. So the idea of giving myself an injection was pretty scary,” she told PEOPLE. “But I started the drug to try and get my body to do what it was supposed to do – properly use the insulin my body was creating.”
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–Natasha Robinson
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Taking the drug was quite the fit for Robinson. At first she had a lot of nausea – a common side effect of Ozempic. However, the side effects subsided over the months.
“The nausea was pretty rough at first,” she explains. “I always take my injection in the evening, and around noon the next day I started to feel really tired and nauseous. It lasted maybe two days and then I felt a lot better and actually had a little more energy that I had before.”
“Now I will have a little nausea, but it’s definitely not like it was the first month where I felt constantly nauseous for several days,” she adds.
Robinson also noticed that, although the number on the scale did not concern her, she began to lose weight after about a month of treatment.
“I noticed right away that my cheekbones were showing a little more,” she explains. “One morning I woke up and said to my husband, ‘Do I have bruises?’ Because I had this little area that my cheeks were showing and it looked like little bruises, that was really my first indication that something was changing.
Robinson’s face change could be the result of another common side effect, dubbed “Ozempic face”, where weight loss deflates key areas of the face and volume is lost.
–Natasha Robinson
In October, the mother of two lost 52 pounds. and his health had improved considerably in the areas his doctor had hoped for.
“My blood work really shows a major change in markers of inflammation and in my insulin and glucose,” she says, noting that she has a lot more energy. “I feel so much better than I was and I just didn’t realize how difficult life was getting before.”
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Despite his improved health, one lingering factor worries Robinson: the cost of Ozempic.
Robinson currently spends $24.99 a month on Ozempic, which she says she has no problem with. However, without her monthly coupon, her prescription would cost $175 per month, and without her insurance coverage, she would be spending over $1,000 per month.
There is currently no generic form of Ozempic, and the average retail cost without insurance can range from $1,205 to $1,368.
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Robinson says she is “terrified” that she may no longer be able to get her medication because her insurance company will soon require pre-authorization for Ozempic – an issue that many others also face.
“It’s a drug for life. Your body suddenly doesn’t remember how to use insulin properly or how to become more insulin sensitive. So I expected to be on a lower dose all my life,” says she, noting that she is already thinking of ways to get her medicine if something happens.
“I would probably order it in Canada if my doctor was willing to write me a prescription,” she admits. “Because $250 or $300 is much more reasonable than $2,000, or whatever it is without the coverage.”
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Robinson explains that while there are people who have taken Ozempic because of an online fad, she and many others are heavily dependent on the drug.
“I think the more we talk about obesity, diabetes, insulin resistance and PCOS, the more people learn that it’s not always that you’re lazy,” she says. “There’s this misconception that you’re lazy if you have health issues and you can’t lose weight. But sometimes it’s a lot more complicated than people think.”
Robinson, who also shared her experience on social media, tells PEOPLE it’s important her followers know the options available for their medical needs and feel comfortable creating a plan with their doctors that will best improve. their health.
She adds that despite some misinformation that may have come from recent trends involving Ozempic, she is glad these conversations are happening because they can help others like her. Ozempic – and other similar injections like Wegovy and Mounjaro – have recently been trending on social media and in Hollywood circles, as some people have used it for weight loss, even when not medically necessary.
“Celebrities don’t really help when they talk about drugs they took for a short time or accidentally – misinformation isn’t great – but the fact that we can have more conversations about these drugs, I don’t think that’s a bad thing,” Robinson says.
