If I took a photo of my skin that is mildly tanned, you’d think I have no tan at all. But my natural skin tone is alabaster glow in the dark white….CNCCurrency said:
Hey over 50 ladies! Get in here, Let's talk
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Mt 1 will only tan you as much as you would naturally tan. Now Mt 2 is differentFlowerFairy said:If I took a photo of my skin that is mildly tanned, you’d think I have no tan at all. But my natural skin tone is alabaster glow in the dark white….
I added .3 Cagri for awhile and it made my weight start up again after a stall. I didn’t need to increase the tirz or Reta while I was doing the CagriFarmgirlRebel said:
Saggy skin is no big deal. I love being thin and the skin doesn’t bother me. You will do this!chunkyTN said:
Yes, I switched to MT2 because I didn’t see anything with MT1. I CAN tan- but only if I’m taking g paba to prevent burning. The best tan I ever got was when I spent 2 weeks at the beach in middle school. My mom made me take the paba and Ihad a real tan. Came home, no daily sun exposure and it all peeled off. BOO.CNCCurrency said:
I was you about 2 years ago- except Sema did nothing for me. Switched to Tirz and lost slow but steady until around January of last year- switched to Reta because on Tirz I was losing, but I slept every minute I could and had horrible constipation. Plus nothing tasted good. I titrated up on Reta and down on Tirz, I didn’t just switch. Once on full Reta Ihad some stalls; I’d made it to 40 lbs from goal and stopped. I was really frustrated, but my body was changing even tho I wasn’t losing. I decided to go back on the Tirz-Reta combo and I’m 20 lbs from goal.. and thinking about changing my goal again.chunkyTN said:
If Sema is working, stay on it- that gives you more options in case you max out on Sema and need Tirz and Reta. If Ihad not had the horrible sides from Tirz alone, I’d have stayed on Tirz for the duration- I was only on 5 mg.
And for full disclosure- I had a modified duodenal switch in 2001. Lost 120 lbs and stopped because my surgeon gave me a proximal bypass instead of the distal bypass the surgery describes. He only admitted this after I jumped through hundreds of hoops, because I was only halfway to goal (Ihad chosen a DS because it has the highest success rate for the super morbidly obese). He then pronounced me a success because I’d lost over 100 lbs and basically washed his hands of me. I kept that weight off for 15 years until a doctor put me on a med that made me gain 50 lbs in a month. One thing I did appreciate about my surgery- I couldn’t lose weight no matter what I did (including medical fasting), but I also didn’t gain. Until that med. And I couldn’t lose that 50 lbs. I was not a happy camper- and that doctor was angry that i refused to take any more because of the weight gain, even though it didn’t fix the issue it was prescribed for. So- my journey went like this;
Age 3- my weight tripled in a month, no change in intake, diet, activity- pediatrician said I was about to have a growth spurt; I’m still waiting. I was active, involved in sports, but fat. Played soccer in high school and college, played softball, was on swim team- but fat. Got up to 320, despite trying everything- most were successful to a point but it all came back plus more. Seemed to average about 10 lbs a year and was getting desperate. I researched surgery because nothing else worked and the duodenal switch with biliopancreatic diversion seems the safest and the fewest side effects and best outcomes. So on May 30 2001 I had the surgery. I weighed 419 the day of surgery. Lost to 274, maintained that until 2015, the medication put me back to 320. Until I found Tirz, there I stayed. Now I’m down to 220, original goal was 200, now considering going lower because I’m still pretty fluffy. So-
Highest weight- 419
Post DS- 274
Post med gain- 320
Current weight- 220
Goal weight- debating 170.. original 200
So- hang in there and have faith. If you have questions, ask me!
FlowerFairy said:
I'll be 100% honest about the Sema. My husband is paying for it from a compound pharmacy and he doesn't know about the gray. So I do the sema shots and I top off with tirz for the food noise.
I know I probably should tell him but he's really paranoid about the gray stuff and I'm doing really well with what I have going on.
I was told when I started and was incredibly nauseous to watch the amount of fat I ate - that it led to more nausea. I didn’t believe it. But now, 7 months in, I’ve found that it’s somewhat true. If I eat too much red meat, or pizza or anything greasy I’ll have nausea, even if i hadn’t just dosed. In the end I’ve settled on split dosing every 3 days and the nausea is manageable if I watch the high fat food. I’m 7 lbs from goal, and have lost ~40lbsGrandmaJ said:
Thanks for this...this is what I'm looking for as I don't want to max out if at all possible on the GLPWecandothis said:
I love reading about everyone's experiences! Question before my 5th dose tomorrow. I am still having some nausea on 2.5 tirz. I am big on following the science, clinical trials, dosing recommendations and maximizing the outcomes. I know that I should jump to 5 this dose but I am really worried about the side effects.
I told my doctor that I am using a telehealth provider for compounded tirz and she prescribed some anti-nausea meds but told me to refer back to the telemed doc for dosage questions. I am not sharing I am using gray. I am tempted to follow the recommendations and go up to 5 and use the medication if I have side effects. Or am I overthinking following the data as opposed to just trying a slightly higher dose for a couple of weeks? Thinking about 3.75 which would be an increase of half my current dose. Thoughts?
I told my doctor that I am using a telehealth provider for compounded tirz and she prescribed some anti-nausea meds but told me to refer back to the telemed doc for dosage questions. I am not sharing I am using gray. I am tempted to follow the recommendations and go up to 5 and use the medication if I have side effects. Or am I overthinking following the data as opposed to just trying a slightly higher dose for a couple of weeks? Thinking about 3.75 which would be an increase of half my current dose. Thoughts?
Clinical trial dose escalation is not the same thing as what you should be doing. They are designed to get the maximum effect in a fixed amount of time while accepting that some people won't be able to tolerate it and need to drop out.GrandmaJ said:
The trial shows a statistical average of what someone can expect on any given dose. It's not meant to be a roadmap to follow directly. If you're having unwanted side effects at 2.5mg you should reduce to 2.0mg and stay there as long as you're getting results.
If you are losing, drop to 2 mg and see if the nausea resolves. If it does, you can try again to increase IF you are not still losing weight. Don’t up unless your weight loss stops, ok?GrandmaJ said:
AgreeFlowerFairy said:
percent!
I’m strongly a believer in doing what makes you feel comfortable and what works for you. If you are still losing weight, I would also be tempted to wind back on the tirz. The trials were designed to get folk up to 15 mg as past as they could while trying to minimise side effects / drop out rates.GrandmaJ said:
Hey-o! It’s reassuring to see so many other women here I can identify with 
It’s great to read all your stories!
I’m 50+ … single, officially post-menopausal, ADHD, hi blood pressure, and deal with chronic anhedonia. Also suspect autoimmune issue, but doctors kick the can down the lane and won’t commit to anything
I have 3 adult kids - most are married and all in their own homes; I’ve been an empty-nester for about 7 years, now.
I used to be extremely fit and very active outdoors. I used to trail run in the woods 60 miles a week. One of my kids is a Marine Corps veteran and said even during Bootcamp, they didn’t run as much as I did per day lol. Now, I’m just laying on the couch all weekend with no energy and barely any drive.
I’m 5’-3” and maintained around 105-120 lbs most of my life. Minus 3 back to back pregnancies
Typical eating style is Mediterranean with bouts of keto to mix it up.
But the past 5 years, my weight has crept up…. I’ve gained about 40 lbs mostly due to fatigue & depression/apathy.
I’ll be starting Tirz in just a few days, and I’m very excited. It will be interesting to see how the side effects play out (GERD, fatigue, anhedonia, etc) because I’ve been dealing with all that in some form for 10+ years. I take Prilosec, pace myself, and try to stay plugged into the world even though most days I prefer to be a hermit.
But I feel that grandkids are on the horizon and I want to become active and outgoing again for myself and for my family…
It’s great to read all your stories!I’m 50+ … single, officially post-menopausal, ADHD, hi blood pressure, and deal with chronic anhedonia. Also suspect autoimmune issue, but doctors kick the can down the lane and won’t commit to anything
I have 3 adult kids - most are married and all in their own homes; I’ve been an empty-nester for about 7 years, now.
I used to be extremely fit and very active outdoors. I used to trail run in the woods 60 miles a week. One of my kids is a Marine Corps veteran and said even during Bootcamp, they didn’t run as much as I did per day lol. Now, I’m just laying on the couch all weekend with no energy and barely any drive.
I’m 5’-3” and maintained around 105-120 lbs most of my life. Minus 3 back to back pregnancies
Typical eating style is Mediterranean with bouts of keto to mix it up.
But the past 5 years, my weight has crept up…. I’ve gained about 40 lbs mostly due to fatigue & depression/apathy.
I’ll be starting Tirz in just a few days, and I’m very excited. It will be interesting to see how the side effects play out (GERD, fatigue, anhedonia, etc) because I’ve been dealing with all that in some form for 10+ years. I take Prilosec, pace myself, and try to stay plugged into the world even though most days I prefer to be a hermit.
But I feel that grandkids are on the horizon and I want to become active and outgoing again for myself and for my family…
I hope you have an easy time of it. The side effects are random from person to person. I've gotten lucky and have been able to overcome the ones I've had with exercise and vitamins.Coggington said:
The shots have been a life changer for me. I started Dec 2025 over 300lbs and I'm down in the 200s now. Lots to go but it is working!
Hi RetaSisters! I started Reta for the first time 2 weeks ago today. The food noise disappeared almost immediately. So lovely--it makes me shudder to think how many hours (which add up to days and then to weeks and then to months and then to years and then to decades ...) I have spent thinking about food ....
Here are my (very short-term) results:
Age: 58
Height: 5'7"
Starting weight: 155.6
Current weight: 149.0
Body fat % start: 29.5
Current body fat %: 28.0
(I use a Renpho scale -- these %s probably aren't Dexa-accurate)
Protocol: 0.5mg Reta 2x/week (Sunday/Thursday)
Other peps I'm using: KLOW (3.2mg 5 days/week), CJC-1295/Ipa (400mcg 5 nights/week)
I've been at 149 for 3 days or so, so hoping to move off of that plateau eventually. I'm not sure I have a "goal weight" -- I think I'll know when I get there. My happy pre-menopause weight was 140ish, but I'm not as concerned with getting back to that as I am with body recomp (gaining some muscle/losing some fat). I want to be strong and live long! I am doing some strength training and re-committing to a minimum of 8K steps/day.
Reta has given me hope that I can feel like myself again. I hope it does the same for all of you!
Here are my (very short-term) results:
Age: 58
Height: 5'7"
Starting weight: 155.6
Current weight: 149.0
Body fat % start: 29.5
Current body fat %: 28.0
(I use a Renpho scale -- these %s probably aren't Dexa-accurate)
Protocol: 0.5mg Reta 2x/week (Sunday/Thursday)
Other peps I'm using: KLOW (3.2mg 5 days/week), CJC-1295/Ipa (400mcg 5 nights/week)
I've been at 149 for 3 days or so, so hoping to move off of that plateau eventually. I'm not sure I have a "goal weight" -- I think I'll know when I get there. My happy pre-menopause weight was 140ish, but I'm not as concerned with getting back to that as I am with body recomp (gaining some muscle/losing some fat). I want to be strong and live long! I am doing some strength training and re-committing to a minimum of 8K steps/day.
Reta has given me hope that I can feel like myself again. I hope it does the same for all of you!
Wow, You’re doing great! I really appreciate that in sharing your protocol you have added the dosage and how many times a week you are using Reta, KLOW & CJC-1295/ipaFortySeven said:
I am exploring adding peps and it is so helpful to get a clearer picture of possibilities. I know they are very individual and there are endless configurations, but still, it helps to see what others are actually using.
I’m only on the starting dose of sema and busy researching all the other peps available. Have you noticed any particular effects that you can ascribe to either KLOW or Cjc combo? It may be too early to tell…
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