'I took weight-loss jabs and had side effects that almost killed me'
Aimee, 34, was told she had a hole in her oesophagus and her liver was failing
Aimee was hospiatlised with liver failure (Kennedy News and Media)
A woman's bid to shed a few pounds using a weight-loss jab went horribly wrong when her hair fell out in clumps and she nearly lost her liver. Aimee Chapman began using the GLP-1-class weight loss injections in March last year after stumbling upon a post on social media. The 34-year-old hoped the fat jabs would help her lose weight and 'be taken more seriously' by doctors if she were slimmer. The family of drugs known as GLP-1 RAs, originally developed to treat diabetes, are now often being used for weight loss as they were found to suppress a patient's appetite. Aimee paid around £200 for a month's worth of jabs that she purchased from an online pharmacy - meaning it was completely legal and regulated. She lost four stone when she first began using the injectables, dropping from 14 stone to just 10 stone in four months. However, in June last year, Aimee began feeling more and more unwell - experiencing low energy levels, chest pains, diminished appetite and constant vomiting. After deciding to have her symptoms investigated in hospital, doctors discovered that Aimee had developed a hole in her oesophagus caused by vomiting 'more than 60 times'.
Aimee's hair started to fall out in clumps (Kennedy News and Media)
Aimee's liver then began showing signs of failure, with doctors even considering an organ transplant if her symptoms failed to improve. Luckily, Aimee was able to return home after 11 days in hospital - but soon began to notice her hair was coming out in clumps, a sign of vitamin deficiency that she believes is linked to the weight-loss jab. Aimee, who doesn't work due to her disability, is now calling on others who are considering using the injectables to do their research and consult a doctor. Aimee, who lives in Southampton, Hampshire, said: "I'd never even thought about it until I saw a post on social media saying you can just buy [weight-loss jabs]. "I noticed that as my weight changed, I was taken less seriously by doctors. My thinking was if I could weigh less, I would at least get taken a bit more seriously. It wasn't about getting thinner or looking better for me. That hadn't even crossed my mind.
The hair loss was linked to malnutrition (Kennedy News and Media)
"[After a few months of using the jabs] I started noticing I didn't have a lot of energy, I couldn't really do much. I was only eating a couple of times a week. I stopped being able to walk. I would take a couple of steps and have to stop. Then I couldn't stop being sick. "I was throwing up all the time and started throwing up blood. I was sick between 50 and 60 times. I collapsed a couple of times. My husband came home and found me passed out on the hallway one night. I was in a bit of denial about it being linked to the jab because I was fine up until now. I just thought I was poorly and it was some sort of virus." But when Aimee began experiencing chest pains, she went to Winchester Hospital's A&E where doctors discovered a hole in her oesophagus that was leaking air around her heart and lung. Aimee was then admitted to the intensive care unit when her blood pressure and potassium levels began to plummet.
Aimee lost so much hair she had to shave her head (Kennedy News and Media)
Aimee was later rushed to Southampton General Hospital's ICU when doctors noticed her liver function was deteriorating, prompting them to consider an organ transplant. Aimee said: "They were trying all sorts of things to get my liver levels back to normal. It was failing. "They had said it was down to the weight-loss jab but they didn't know why or how to fix it. There was so little out there medical-wise, doctors didn't know how to fix it. I was terrified. It all happened so quickly and I hadn't realised how serious it was until I was transferred and it sunk in that it was worse than I thought it was. "After coming out of ICU, the nurse told me this has happened because of these jabs and I can never take one ever again even if I had type-2 diabetes. I don't think they know whether this was a general side-effect or whether this was a rare case. I was really surprised about how much of my body it affected.
Aimee with her husband Christopher (Kennedy News and Media)
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"I was told the hole in the oesophagus can kill people and I may have needed a new liver. They said I could've died." Luckily, Aimee's health began to improve and she was discharged from hospital. But, the decline in her health and a consequential vitamin B-12 deficiency led to Aimee's hair falling out in September last year. Aimee said: "It kept happening and the handfuls kept getting bigger. I would be so sad. My hair was just above my bum when I went into hospital. My husband just said why don't you just cut it off? My hair was such a massive part of my identity and to cut it off just felt really traumatic. But I said to myself it was just hair, it'll grow back. "This feels like another result of the injections. I'm not going to tell people what they can and can't take but I do believe more research needs to be done into these jabs. I regret ever taking them. I'd say to other people thinking about trying them, don't do it online, go through your doctor who can give you blood tests and check how you're doing."
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