INTRO My GLP1 journey

[WittyKitty]

Hey all — I'm new, and I'm grateful I stumbled onto this little pocket of the web.

Midwest, female, past 50, and my whole life has been one long "project" with weight (wish I could cancel that subscription, but the membership never expires, apparently). I'm overweight and also athletic and active — the stigma doesn't care. Thinner folks definitely get treated differently than I do, and years of that has left a mark: assumptions, judgment, being brushed off, plus a low-grade shame that lingers no matter how hard I try.

2024 was when I began GLP-1s via a wellness provider. Semaglutide did work — roughly 15 pounds came off — but the rising dose and rising bill wore me down.

Next came tirzepatide: solid results, painful cost.

At the end of last year, retatrutide was suggested, and for me it's been truly effective — beyond just what the scale says. I feel better. The weight is coming off gradually and safely. My health markers and everyday sense of wellbeing seem better.

Yet… I recently realized I'm being wildly overcharged. For 4 mg/0.5 mL, 2 mL costs me $800, and after seeing what so many of you have posted, that number is obviously inflated. A U.S. compounding 503A supplier is where it comes from, but the math is not mathing.

I'm not rich, and I want to keep going with reta since it works and my health finally feels like it's heading the right way. So I'm researching heavily and entering a world I don't know, which is honestly scary. It's overwhelming, it's frightening, but I'm committed — because age makes this tougher, and being female doesn't make it any easier.

Big thanks to everyone here who posts about their path. It's already given me a clearer view and made me feel less isolated. I'm not asking for information, but seeking corroboration that I'm on the right way. Thank you!

 

[Poezoe]

Wow, before anything else, spend some time reading up in this community and locate a vendor that suits your needs. A number of them keep stock in US warehouses, though you should get ready to keep far more cash on hand — chances are you're forking out more than 10 times what gray costs.

 

[zpped]

WittyKitty said:

Hey all — I'm new, and I'm grateful I stumbled onto this little pocket of the web.

Midwest, female, past 50, and my whole life has been one long "project" with weight (wish I could cancel that subscription, but the membership never expires, apparently). I'm overweight and also athletic and active — the stigma doesn't care. Thinner folks definitely get treated differently than I do, and years of that has left a mark: assumptions, judgment, being brushed off, plus a low-grade shame that lingers no matter how hard I try.

2024 was when I began GLP-1s via a wellness provider. Semaglutide did work — roughly 15 pounds came off — but the rising dose and rising bill wore me down.

Next came tirzepatide: solid results, painful cost.

At the end of last year, retatrutide was suggested, and for me it's been truly effective — beyond just what the scale says. I feel better. The weight is coming off gradually and safely. My health markers and everyday sense of wellbeing seem better.

Yet… I recently realized I'm being wildly overcharged. For 4 mg/0.5 mL, 2 mL costs me $800, and after seeing what so many of you have posted, that number is obviously inflated. A U.S. compounding 503A supplier is where it comes from, but the math is not mathing.

I'm not rich, and I want to keep going with reta since it works and my health finally feels like it's heading the right way. So I'm researching heavily and entering a world I don't know, which is honestly scary. It's overwhelming, it's frightening, but I'm committed — because age makes this tougher, and being female doesn't make it any easier.

Big thanks to everyone here who posts about their path. It's already given me a clearer view and made me feel less isolated. I'm not asking for information, but seeking corroboration that I'm on the right way. Thank you!

If someone in the US is offering you reta, they're operating outside the law already. The FDA hasn't given it the green light. You're being taken for a huge ride. Which compounding pharmacy is it?

Anyway, that much reta ought to run you roughly $5.

 

[chavez636]

Hey Witty Kitty,

I'm based in Dublin, Ireland. My first pen was Monjaro 5mg, and it set me back 350e; that one pen covered a full month. The results were massive — at last the scale started moving. I began at 237lbs and in month 1 I was down 8lbs. Then UK pricing roughly doubled, and that increase reached Ireland too, so at the chemist my pen went up to 650e. That is no exaggeration. To chase a better deal we crossed the border into Northern Ireland, which belongs to the UK, and got our pens for about 390e — a substantial saving.

Strange, isn't it, that the moment a drug proves effective, the government and big pharma push the price up twofold. People were getting health improvements that were extraordinary, since obesity ranks among the biggest killers, and yet the price goes up twofold. A very sad state of affairs.

As time went on I switched to buying Monjaro pens at higher doses because the value was far better. By then I had shed more than 23lbs — unbelievable!

Later I came across retatruide via a few reddit posts, and I got lucky: my mom brought a pen back for me from Dubai. After doing some research online I discovered this forum, which took things to another level. While hunting for the vendor connection I came across some amazing companies. All at once the cost problem disappeared for me, because now I can go around big pharma. For a working class family that cannot spend thousands of euros every year to fight obesity, this matters enormously. Anyway, I wanted to tell you my story and I hope it helps. GLP1Chat Rocks — such a great community. Take care.

 

[WittyKitty]

zpped said:

WittyKitty said:

Hey all — I'm new, and I'm grateful I stumbled onto this little pocket of the web.

Midwest, female, past 50, and my whole life has been one long "project" with weight (wish I could cancel that subscription, but the membership never expires, apparently). I'm overweight and also athletic and active — the stigma doesn't care. Thinner folks definitely get treated differently than I do, and years of that has left a mark: assumptions, judgment, being brushed off, plus a low-grade shame that lingers no matter how hard I try.

2024 was when I began GLP-1s via a wellness provider. Semaglutide did work — roughly 15 pounds came off — but the rising dose and rising bill wore me down.

Next came tirzepatide: solid results, painful cost.

At the end of last year, retatrutide was suggested, and for me it's been truly effective — beyond just what the scale says. I feel better. The weight is coming off gradually and safely. My health markers and everyday sense of wellbeing seem better.

Yet… I recently realized I'm being wildly overcharged. For 4 mg/0.5 mL, 2 mL costs me $800, and after seeing what so many of you have posted, that number is obviously inflated. A U.S. compounding 503A supplier is where it comes from, but the math is not mathing.

I'm not rich, and I want to keep going with reta since it works and my health finally feels like it's heading the right way. So I'm researching heavily and entering a world I don't know, which is honestly scary. It's overwhelming, it's frightening, but I'm committed — because age makes this tougher, and being female doesn't make it any easier.

Big thanks to everyone here who posts about their path. It's already given me a clearer view and made me feel less isolated. I'm not asking for information, but seeking corroboration that I'm on the right way. Thank you!

If someone in the US is offering you reta, they're operating outside the law already. The FDA hasn't given it the green light. You're being taken for a huge ride. Which compounding pharmacy is it?

Anyway, that much reta ought to run you roughly $5.

I get what you're saying...

 

[WittyKitty]

chavez636 said:

Hey Witty Kitty,

I'm based in Dublin, Ireland. My first pen was Monjaro 5mg, and it set me back 350e; that one pen covered a full month. The results were massive — at last the scale started moving. I began at 237lbs and in month 1 I was down 8lbs. Then UK pricing roughly doubled, and that increase reached Ireland too, so at the chemist my pen went up to 650e. That is no exaggeration. To chase a better deal we crossed the border into Northern Ireland, which belongs to the UK, and got our pens for about 390e — a substantial saving.

Strange, isn't it, that the moment a drug proves effective, the government and big pharma push the price up twofold. People were getting health improvements that were extraordinary, since obesity ranks among the biggest killers, and yet the price goes up twofold. A very sad state of affairs.

As time went on I switched to buying Monjaro pens at higher doses because the value was far better. By then I had shed more than 23lbs — unbelievable!

Later I came across retatruide via a few reddit posts, and I got lucky: my mom brought a pen back for me from Dubai. After doing some research online I discovered this forum, which took things to another level. While hunting for the vendor connection I came across some amazing companies. All at once the cost problem disappeared for me, because now I can go around big pharma. For a working class family that cannot spend thousands of euros every year to fight obesity, this matters enormously. Anyway, I wanted to tell you my story and I hope it helps. GLP1Chat Rocks — such a great community. Take care.

I appreciate you opening up about this. What you're going through is genuinely difficult. It's shameful the way pharmaceutical corporations put their bottom line first (making a profit is fine by me, but still...), and line the pockets of politicians (including the one in office right now) so that medications capable of helping so many never make it to ordinary people.

Digging around on my own is what brought me to this site too, and the more I look through it, the more I pick up. Thank you!