21-05-2025
I lost five stone on Mounjaro, it is not the cure says Tik Toker
Connie Bulloch, from Cambuslang, started taking Mounjaro in June 2024 after putting on weight following an operation on her womb. During the recovery process, she put on a stone and a half.
The 28-year-old said: 'I was already overweight. I decided that I needed to do something…I was already looking up surgeries abroad and I just really wasn't happy with myself. I was quite depressed."
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Connie, who was previously 15 stone and 10lbs, said taking the drug has made a huge difference to the way she views herself.
She told our sister title The Herald: "I'm now able to wear what I would never have imagined wearing. Like even having my arms out is a big deal to me.
'It's not cured my body image. I still have loose skin around my belly. I've got loose skin around my thighs…but…I'm much healthier.'
Across the UK, Scotland has the highest rate of obesity with the latest figures showing two thirds of adults (66%) are overweight and 32% are living with obesity, the highest level recorded since 2003.
However, in the past five years or so, weight loss drugs such as Mounjaro, Wegovy and Ozempic have appeared on the market - garnering popularity amongst celebrities and then the general public for their effectiveness in helping people shed those extra pounds.
The drugs make you feel full so you eat less and instead burn fat stored in the body as they mimic a hormone released by the body after a meal.
Earlier this month, the first head-to-head trial of two weight-loss drugs has shown Mounjaro is more effective than its rival Wegovy.
The findings, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, showed that 32% of people lost a quarter of their body weight on Mounjaro compared to 16% on Wegovy after 72 weeks of treatment.
Before and after picture of Connie Bulloch who has been on Mounjaro for over 11 months now. (Image: contributed) Connie lost five stone and 3lbs on the drug and says she has aims of losing a further stone to take her to a healthy BMI.
The young woman who has a TikTok account where she records her weight loss journey, said comments on social media about her appearance before she took the drug made her upset and self-conscious about the way she looked.
She said: 'I made one video where just my hand was in it and people were calling me fat because they had seen my fingers so there was no body part which was left out of it.
'It made me feel, 'Is that how everyone sees me?' Do I just walk down the street and they think, 'She's fat, she's horrible' and it does affect you.'
Connie, who is a healthcare worker, said before going on Mounjaro, losing weight was turning into a 'full-time job'.
She has kidney failure but also Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)- a condition similar to PMS, but is often much more intense and can have a much greater negative impact on your everyday life.
Symptoms can include muscle pain, overeating and problems sleeping as well as feeling very anxious, angry, depressed or suicidal.
'I've had really bad periods, I've got PMDD (Premenstrual dysphoric disorder)... it's sometimes debilitating…so in those two weeks a month it's really difficult to stay on track [with your fitness], then you've got two weeks where you're seeing your personal trainer, you're going to the gym but those are cancelled out by the two weeks [before] so it was becoming a full-time job just to try and keep weight off."
Before she was aware of Mounjaro she was prepared to go abroad to get surgery.
'I thought they would be the only ones that would take you but obviously that is very dangerous,' she said.
Connie Bulloch spoke to The Herald on weight loss medication (Image: contributed) Connie tried to seek help for her weight through the NHS but she felt she was met with a brick wall.
'I tried to pursue the GP route in terms of my weight management. I got referred and they sent the referral back because I wasn't heavy enough.
'I was near enough putting on a stone every year but I wasn't allowed to get help from the NHS… so I was just going to let my weight progress until I do get heavy enough and the NHS will help me somehow.'
After scrolling through TikTok one day, Connie came across a video on the weight loss drug tirzepatide, more commonly known under the brand name Mounjaro.
Hearing a fellow TikToker talk about the drug's effectiveness motivated her to order it via an online pharmacy at the cost of £180 a month for four injections.
And she is not alone in pursuing this route.
More than one million people in the UK every month access weight loss drugs through private online pharmacies, according to data from life-sciences analytics company IQVIA.
The application process via these pharmacies does not involve any consultation with a GP but requires you to provide a full length picture of yourself and to fill out a form which asks questions about your health and well-being.
Side effects Connie has had when on the lower dosage(2.5mg) of the drug primarily consist of having a sore head and feeling cold all the time but when she increased her dosage to 5mg, the side effects became more severe. She therefore decided to go back to the lower dosage.
'I can vomit, you have diarrhea. For me, that's just not doable,' she told The Herald.
The 28-year-old has a complex relationship with social media - a place where she suffered abuse but also discovered a drug which helped her lose a significant amount of weight.
Despite losing more than five stone, Connie still struggles with how she looks.
'There are days when I look in the mirror and I really like who I am looking at,' she said, 'There can be days when I maybe have had a bad day of eating and I see the person that I was five stone ago.
"I don't know if that will ever change but I'm working on my own mental health to say, 'Listen, you can wear that' but that is difficult.'
She believes levels of online abuse are not as bad as they were a couple of years ago thanks to further moderation tools being introduced but she still worries about how young women view their bodies as a result of online content.
'Social media has changed a lot in terms of filtering out comments.
"So, now I personally don't experience as much negativity but then is that because I've lost five stone.
'It is becoming a lot more acceptable to have a curvier body but there is still so much on social media that can be quite harmful to people.'
Connie is unsure if there is ever going to be a time where she foresees herself not being on the drug as she is worried she will put on more weight if she stops taking it.
Asked if she is worried about how this is regulated and if there is any way people who are not eligible for such a drug can receive it anyway, Connie said: 'Yes, I would say there is.
'But now, you have to have a [full body] picture of you on the scale. Before, it was a picture of your feet on the scale so you could potentially hold something that was heavy.
'I also think the public need to take responsibility for themselves. Like you are the ones seeking this medication, make sure you are going about it in a way that is healthy because it can cause damage.'
A fairly new drug to the market, tirzepatide was approved as a weight loss aid in the UK in 2023 by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
Yet, there are still concerns about the risks it may hold.
In November last year, the death of a nurse from North Lanarkshire was linked to Mounjaro.
Asked if she had any health risk concerns before taking the drug, Connie said: 'I was petrified of that at the beginning.
"That's probably what put me off it for so long because I've had previous medical history but the way I was feeling in my head was also very dangerous, mental health-wise.
'So for me, it's almost been a lifesaver.'
Asked what she would advise young women who were considering taking the drug, she said: 'Definitely try diets first, if they work, great. But if not, I'd say Mounjaro is a helpful little push for you, it's something to keep you motivated.
'Make sure you are trying to go out walks and trying to go to the gym but if that's not working maybe Mounjaro is a shout for you.
'Don't lie to your prescriber…if you've got any questions let your GP know about it
'I'm incredibly lucky that it worked out for me.'
