Has anyone had any luck getting endo to prescribe victoza for type 1…to help with weight loss and/or prevention of BG spikes (off label use for type 1)??
I had mixed results. No weight loss, but did have fewer or shallower spikes – HOWEVER, for me, as I continued to take it, the side effects became more prominent and the benefits were less. By the time I stopped, it seemed like I had all side effects and no benefits. ALSO - when I stopped, I had a sorta “rebound” effect – my appetite increased terribly, plus I absolutely CRAVED carbs! Haven’t had carb cravings like that in a long time. Took over a week to get past all that…
Ok. Thanks for your true input. Since being diagnosed 1 1/2 yrs ago-- I have put on a lot of weight (I KNOW some was warranted bc I lost too much pre-diagnosis). But I am eating very low carb (trying keto) exercising like a madwoman but can’t lose anything and the numbers keep rising Feeling frustrated and yucky…
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I have been using it for almost a complete year now. My insurance company does pay but at a higher rate due to it being type 2 not type 1 approved.
Keep in mind that what works for one may not work for the next.
I have lost weight and my post meal spikes are reduced. But my weight loss has been a combination of three things. More exercise. I walk everywhere and everyday and multiple times each day. I average about 10 miles a day. (Walk to and from work each day, on my feet all day at work and we got a puppy a year ago so lots of walking her to burn off that puppy energy.) I am part of a clinical trial and working with more than one endo have realized I was taking way too much insulin which was causing lows, so I was basically feeding the insulin which caused the weight gain. And I of course started Victoza.
So with that 3 prong approach, I have lost quite a bit of weight. I was. High of 163 in December 2014 and am at 120 now. Just slow and steady. No magic, just a lot of little changes that have made a big difference. Good luck and hope the appetite suppressant works for you as it has for me.
I’m in sorta the same boat – only a few years later (and added frustration?) I, also gained a lot of weight post-diagnosis; however, none of mine was making up for weight lost to diabetes pre-Dx – I did lose some weight before I was diagnosed, though it was YEARS before diagnosis and due to a lot of effort on my part, so no “free losses.” I continued and even stepped up my exercise and improved my diet (which was already pretty good!), but the minute there was a break in daily exercise of even 2 days, weight came on - and kept on coming. Nothing I tried seemed to help.
Last couple years, I did manage to make a “dent” in the weight gain by switching to a pump from shots, which lowered my insulin requirements by 35%. I also changed to a very low carb diet (at least most of the time), which further lowered my insulin needs. I lost a little less than half the added weight – but still have a LONG way to go and no ideas on how to make that transition. As I said above, my experiment with Victoza did not give me the results I wanted. I’m currently trying Symlin with the same goals. Have not yet lost and weight with Symlin, but my initial observations are that it does seem to help a little – the effects are similar to Victoza, but much more muted. Also, Symlin only seems to be useful for larger meals, doing very little, if anything, for small meals. On the plus side, I have experienced ZERO side effects, which for me is extremely rare when taking anything!
Keep us posted as to what you decide and how it works!