THINK STRONG NOT THIN (PART 3)

​GLP-1 Drugs
Ozempic is an injectable GLP-1 drug. Many people today are using injectable drugs
like Semaglutide, Ozempic, or Monjouro for weight loss.
These drugs do “work”, through the process of calorie restriction. But there are serious
side effects associated with these drugs, as opposed to GLP-1 alternatives offered by
clinics like ours.
*They can cause a sensation of fullness/loss of appetite by nausea, vomiting or
slowing down the “motility” (movement) of the digestive tract.
* Slowing down the digestive tract may allow bad bacteria to set up shop in your
small intestine and overgrow.
* They cause many digestive issues like bloating, iron deficiency and restless leg.
* For every 25 pounds of weight loss, 15 of those pounds will be muscle.
* When the drug is stopped and weight returns, and none of that weight gain will
be muscle.
You will be more metabolically unhealthy than before the drug, because you will have
lost the muscle mass you had. The weight that returns will be fat.
Most of us have lived long enough to know that there is no easy way to lose weight
without consequences.
At Faith, Hope and Wellness we do offer a GLP-1 probiotic to help you get some of the
benefits of these medications without the side effects. It can take up to 3 months to
work, but this is a viable, effective and safer option for those of you who want a more
natural weight loss solution.
Things to Consider:
* Be honest and aware of your habits and eating patterns, as well as your thought
patterns (negative thoughts depress the mind, soul and immune system). When
you are stressed or bored do you eat? Fasting for a period of time can help you
pay attention to feelings and thoughts that come up or thinking about why you
are eating again when you just ate. Sometimes we are not eating to be satiated,
or we are eating a processed food and our body says “hey I still need nutrition”
and does not recognize that meal. I find that if I have a smoothie I still feel
hungry. I benefit from chewing my food.
*Don’t let numbers run your life. In our practice we use continuous glucose
monitors for information so you can see how stress, lack of sleep, illness and
food choices affect your body. This monitoring provides information so we can
better support our bodies. This goes for the scale too. Instead of looking at that
number, how do your clothes fit? Can you pick up something heavy you could not
pick up before? Take the gains that may come from other areas.
*Men have a regular supply of testo but can feel off and not themselves when it
gets too low which can occur from toxins, poor sleep, poor food choices and lack
of movement and aging.
*Good hormone balance can help us feel better mentally, sleep better and have a
better sense of well-being, which means we can make the changes for ourselves
that will help us meet our goals. Taking bioidentical hormones is not a guarantee
of weight loss but can support our plan to that end. And can help us with
strengthening our bodies which we need as we age.
* Stress – what makes you unhappy, or what do you dread? This does not mean
do not do things you have to do. You cannot quit your job, but is it the right job for
you? What can you do that you enjoy?
*Gratitude – What do you look forward to? How can you be content with what you
have now? Sometimes I prescribe the “gratitude journal.” It is easy for our brains
to go to negative thought patterns especially if we have been doing it for a long
time. Our brain is wired to problem solve. So when it learns that we think
negative thoughts, catastrophize situations and/or beat ourselves up when we
make a mistake, it goes right to that solution for that problem. This is a well
traveled road in the brain and gratitude and positive thoughts will help. It will take
energy to take negative thoughts and evaluate them for the truth and changing it
into a positive thought.
*Start by reframing the thoughts you currently have. For example I have to
exercise. I am grateful that my body can do these movements.