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Are GLP-1s right for you? · SAY GRACE | Weight Loss + Health for Overwhelmed Women- Stress, Busy, Consistency, Realistic, Motivation, Starting Over, No Restrictions

• 0:00
  Music.
• 0:39
  All right, y'all, here we are. Part two of the GLP One podcast. Okay.
• 0:45
  And so on this one, we are really going to talk about like, are GLP Ones right for you?
• 0:50
  You know, and again, spoiler alert, you know, you're the only one that can make that decision.
• 0:57
  But by the end of this episode, I hope you like have the full understanding
• 1:01
  of what that would look like.
• 1:04
  And again, there's one question that you have to ask yourself that I'll share
• 1:09
  towards the end, like that will give you the answer, right?
• 1:12
  Like there's one question that will give you the answer. And so we'll get to that.
• 1:15
  So I'm going to try to tell you exactly how my thoughts tend to go on this topic.
• 1:19
  So when talking about the facts, again, I can waver back and forth.
• 1:22
  If you haven't listened to the first episode, go back to the first episode of
• 1:25
  the series because I am not one way or the other.
• 1:30
  Because gosh, again, like you can't be, you can't be, right?
• 1:34
  And so, you know, I waver back and forth and you'll understand why a little
• 1:38
  bit more, why, like when I give you what I'm gonna give you today.
• 1:42
  And I hope that by the end of it, you'll understand, again, the most important
• 1:46
  piece of info that you have to have on deciding whether or not you should take it, okay?
• 1:51
  So I'm gonna start this episode, as we mentioned in the last episode,
• 1:54
  I told you I would cover this on the second episode, which is the risks and the rewards.
• 1:59
  Like we're going to go a little deeper here because again, I think being informed,
• 2:03
  like knowing what to expect or what could happen, right, is important.
• 2:07
  And so here we go. Again, I'm going to talk about the risks first and just so
• 2:11
  some common side effects, right, that I've heard that science has told us,
• 2:15
  like all the things, some common side effects, which like I have had people,
• 2:19
  literally several people, it's crazy.
• 2:21
  It's absolutely crazy how this drug works differently for different people because
• 2:26
  some people will say, I have literally had no side effects, right?
• 2:30
  Like this has been the best thing for me.
• 2:32
  And then some people are like, I could only go, you know, one round on it because it, I felt awful.
• 2:37
  I felt terrible, you know? And so when I'm sharing these risks with you,
• 2:42
  again, it's important to remember like they may happen or they may not.
• 2:45
  And we all know, you know, I'm not saying it's going to happen.
• 2:48
  Any of this is going to happen to you, right? Right. But here are some possibilities. Right.
• 2:54
  Nausea, which I think is one of the most common ones that we hear about from
• 2:58
  from clients or, you know, just people in general.
• 3:01
  Vomiting, headaches, reflux, constipation, fatigue, stomach pain,
• 3:07
  social removal, which this is something, y'all, it's kind of crazy.
• 3:10
  I'm a very intuitive person. And I know when I know when friends or like people
• 3:16
  in my circle have gotten on it because I'm like, hmm, they've socially removed themselves.
• 3:20
  And then also they're avoiding me, you know, which is just so funny because
• 3:25
  like, you know, again, I talked about this in the first episode.
• 3:28
  Like I hate that.
• 3:30
  Like I hate to feel like I'm part of, you know, any type of,
• 3:35
  shame because I am the person that's out here like create healthy
• 3:38
  habits and you know do do the best work or whatever
• 3:41
  and so I literally hate that but it is it's also
• 3:44
  like a actual side effect that people remove themselves socially
• 3:48
  you know other side effects are sleep issues and then of course loss of muscle
• 3:52
  mass which we heard a lot about but other risks pancreatitis gastroparesis stomach
• 3:57
  paralysis where the stomach takes too long to empty and causes pain and you
• 4:02
  know GI problems This is one that really scares me, honestly,
• 4:06
  as a health professional.
• 4:07
  And again, it doesn't happen to everybody, right? But if it does happen,
• 4:12
  it's something that can't be reversed, right?
• 4:14
  And that's just like, tough, right? Like you think you had metabolism and,
• 4:19
  you know, stomach problems maybe before.
• 4:22
  And so then this happens if you get on it and it just stinks.
• 4:26
  Bowel obstruction, gallbladder issues, eye issues, impossible vision loss,
• 4:30
  depression, suicidal thoughts. These are these are this is coming on the line
• 4:34
  more and more that I'm seeing, which tracks with like the the social removal.
• 4:39
  But again, not everybody's that way. You know, and I know people with,
• 4:42
  you know, anxiety or depression or like mental health issues that that do just fine.
• 4:47
  But I also have known of people who have serious mental health issues that should
• 4:51
  have never been on it in the first place. And there were serious consequences
• 4:55
  like like like life consequences.
• 4:59
  And so, again, it's just like being aware. Right. Oh, I just bumped my mic.
• 5:03
  I hope y'all didn't hear that.
• 5:04
  Arthritis, acute kidney injury or worsened chronic kidney disease. Okay.
• 5:09
  And so some of these, right, are just like temporary. And you're thinking like,
• 5:13
  okay, I can deal with some nausea.
• 5:14
  I can deal with some reflux to get this weight off.
• 5:19
  But then some of them are like life-altering side effects. And again, you just don't know.
• 5:24
  And so those are just, you know, some of the risks.
• 5:28
  And I will say that one of my biggest concerns about this, right,
• 5:32
  about the risks is that doctors are prescribing it often, but they're not truly
• 5:38
  being in tuned with the patient as the whole patient.
• 5:41
  You know, like part of me is like, man, the internist needs to be the one that
• 5:44
  can prescribe this just because they have the whole picture,
• 5:48
  you know, but some people are going to their OB and they're talking about their
• 5:51
  weight loss or their weight problems.
• 5:53
  But then maybe the OB doesn't have all the information on, you know,
• 5:57
  their psychologist and what they may think, or they're a heart doctor and what
• 6:00
  they may think, you know?
• 6:01
  And so it can just be, and two, doctors are so busy, right?
• 6:06
  And they're not able to spend the time that they need to with us if we are going
• 6:11
  to get on a medication like this, right?
• 6:13
  And so I've just heard so many stories of people getting prescribed this medication
• 6:19
  without the doctor having that full picture. And the results have been kind of scary, you know?
• 6:23
  Well, not kind of, Some of them have been really scary, you know,
• 6:25
  and so I just think it's really important to.
• 6:30
  No, you know, like if you if, you know, if you have severe like mental health
• 6:35
  struggles, like maybe this isn't for you.
• 6:39
  You know, like we are ultimately the ones that are, you know,
• 6:42
  other than God himself, right? Like we have got to make the best decision for us.
• 6:47
  We cannot put all of our hope and our dreams into our doctors because they will fail us.
• 6:51
  You know what I mean? They do not know us the way we know ourselves.
• 6:54
  And so, or if you have chronic stomach issues, as it is, you know,
• 6:58
  someone really close in my life said this to me, like, maybe I need to get on Ozempic the other day.
• 7:02
  And I'm like, you literally have constipation every day or your stomach hurts
• 7:08
  or like, no, you know what I mean?
• 7:10
  And so anyway, just that side note of it's important to kind of be aware of,
• 7:16
  you know, and I think I mentioned in the last episode, hospital visits can result,
• 7:21
  obviously, with some of these things that I just mentioned, right?
• 7:23
  Like we may have to go to the hospital.
• 7:25
  We may have to, you know, get an ultrasound. We may have to see doctors that
• 7:28
  we've never seen before, you know, as a result.
• 7:31
  And so, again, I mentioned in the last episode, this just isn't my jam.
• 7:34
  Like I have high anxiety and I just don't think that, you know,
• 7:38
  that that's something that I'm willing to risk simply for my anxiety sake. Right.
• 7:44
  And so another risk, right, is just cost. We hear about the cost.
• 7:48
  Right. And I will say, y'all, there are so many people out there trying to get
• 7:52
  it like these back Woods ways and like, oh my gosh, these Facebook threads where
• 7:56
  people are like, message me.
• 7:58
  I'll let you know how to get it. And I'm like, Lord, please don't message them. You know what I mean?
• 8:03
  Go to your doctor and get a real prescription, you know?
• 8:07
  But it is, it's very expensive. And even if insurance covers it,
• 8:11
  right, which again, we like, maybe that's your sign that you're not somebody that needs to be on it.
• 8:17
  If your, you know, health doesn't reflect the health of a person that should
• 8:23
  be covered by insurance for this medication. Okay, maybe that's just a sign,
• 8:27
  you know, back to episode one.
• 8:29
  But, you know, it's very expensive. And so it's like, okay, can I afford this long-term?
• 8:34
  Can I afford this, you know, for however long I need to be able to afford this?
• 8:40
  Because, you know, it's an investment, y'all. And so when you make an investment
• 8:45
  on anything, right, Right.
• 8:47
  You need to be like you need to be mentally able to want to walk it out completely.
• 8:54
  Right. But you also need to be financially able for the investment. Right.
• 8:58
  And or otherwise, it's a waste of money. It's a waste of money. It's a waste of time.
• 9:01
  And so, you know, not just thinking about, yeah, I've got a couple hundred dollars
• 9:05
  that I can spend on it this month.
• 9:08
  You know, but like, how are we going to be able to adjust our budget so that
• 9:11
  I can take this to my goal weight or, you know, or do this for as long as my
• 9:15
  doctor is telling me I need to do it? Right.
• 9:17
  And so just being aware of the cost and then also the risks,
• 9:22
  like I mentioned on the last episode.
• 9:24
  Two-thirds of people regain it within a year of quitting, right?
• 9:27
  And so keeping that in mind of like, again, I think I drove it home on the last
• 9:33
  episode, but just in case, you know, if you are going to take on this medication
• 9:38
  and the risk that I just mentioned and all the things, it is,
• 9:42
  it should be with a mindset of, I am also going to put my all into my health and my habits,
• 9:49
  right like I am not going to take this medication and then
• 9:52
  just try to continue life as usual spinning out
• 9:55
  of control all the time never stopping to you know
• 9:58
  eat anything decent never move in my body never drinking my water like that
• 10:02
  is not the perspective that we should be taking this medicine and spending all
• 10:05
  this money right from it it should be like I am going to use this as an aid
• 10:11
  to help me literally change my life for good right or else you know you will regain the weight.
• 10:18
  You will have wasted the money, you have risked the side effects,
• 10:21
  and you will have gained the weight back, okay?
• 10:23
  And so just keeping those risks in mind. Now, I want to get into the rewards, right?
• 10:28
  Obviously, weight loss, okay? Weight loss in general is the reward and is a reward.
• 10:33
  And then when you come, what comes with the weight loss, right,
• 10:36
  is improved physical health, okay?
• 10:41
  And so like, like your body feels better, first of all, like you feel better in your own skin.
• 10:49
  Amen. You know what I mean? Like, and so, so that is such a reward that some
• 10:53
  women have never experienced in their whole lives. Right.
• 10:56
  And then separate from that, even GLP ones have been shown to decrease ton of
• 11:02
  health risks, which we talked about a little bit on the last episode,
• 11:04
  to decrease risk of heart disease, decreased risk of lung issues,
• 11:08
  of kidney problems, of dementia.
• 11:10
  That's a new one on the line, like it may help with, you know,
• 11:13
  dementia, decreased risk of possible cancers, decreased risk of,
• 11:17
  you know, blood pressure and blood sugar issues, right?
• 11:20
  Less inflammation. Okay. And all this goes back to what I mentioned on the last
• 11:26
  episode, where we are getting rid of the excess fat that our body was never
• 11:30
  intended to carry in the first place, right?
• 11:34
  Which is, it's freeing our body up. You know, our body's like,
• 11:37
  oh, yes, baby, we can function better.
• 11:39
  You know, we are getting that much closer to homeostasis, which I talked about
• 11:43
  on the metabolism podcast.
• 11:46
  And so, of course, you're going to have decreased risk of all these other things
• 11:51
  because we have lightened the burden.
• 11:54
  We have lightened the load. Our machine is not having to work as hard.
• 11:58
  You know, the gears aren't on full blast anymore. We can drop them down to five
• 12:03
  or four, you know what I mean, of effort instead of constantly grinding all
• 12:08
  the time just to keep us, you know, functioning healthy and alive, right?
• 12:12
  So obviously, we are going to see these improved health issues.
• 12:16
  And so I want to say, though, because, you know, science be science,
• 12:19
  and in some of these studies out here, they love to like to, to, to, to.
• 12:24
  Mess with their words to make it sound, you know, more enticing.
• 12:27
  I do want to say, like, yes, all these physical health things are,
• 12:31
  you know, proven with the use of GLP-1, but majority of them are because of
• 12:36
  the weight loss in general.
• 12:38
  You know, so, like, if you lose weight, you know, like, if you lose five pounds,
• 12:41
  y'all, your health improves, you know.
• 12:44
  And so, if you lose weight, you know, it decreases the occurrence of all the
• 12:50
  health risks that I just mentioned in general. You know, it doesn't just have
• 12:53
  to be weight loss by GLP-1.
• 12:55
  And then another reward is better mental health. Okay, and this is one that
• 12:59
  I have just seen. Oh, and it's so lovely.
• 13:03
  Improved confidence, obviously, right? Y'all, when we feel better in our own
• 13:06
  skin and when we feel more in control of our food choices, right,
• 13:10
  our confidence is going to improve.
• 13:14
  And so this is why I just feel like, gosh, if we use it the right way,
• 13:20
  you know, if you used it to just kind of to kind of get you to a point where
• 13:25
  you're feeling a little more confident.
• 13:28
  About like, hey, I can do this. Hey, I can go to the gym.
• 13:32
  Hey, I can, you know, eat a little healthier.
• 13:35
  Like, and so then when you when you have the confidence, then you're able to
• 13:39
  continue to walk with the confidence, if that makes sense.
• 13:42
  And so the people that do use this drug right, and then they come off of it,
• 13:47
  baby, they are eat up with the confidence so much that they are able to then
• 13:52
  continue on this lifestyle, right?
• 13:54
  Because they have married the health practices with the medication,
• 13:59
  which has been proven to themselves while they're on the medication, right?
• 14:03
  Like their medication is helping them say no to that third Twix bar or the medication
• 14:08
  is helping them, you know, not sit and obsess or not, you know,
• 14:13
  dwell in shame or all these things.
• 14:15
  And in turn, it's helped them to say like, oh, I think I'll take a walk.
• 14:20
  You know, I think I'll order the salad today because that food isn't screaming at me or,
• 14:24
  you know, and so then when they get off of it, they're like,
• 14:27
  oh, no, no, I loved the way that that felt, you know, and so I'm going to continue
• 14:32
  these health practices that had while I was on it.
• 14:36
  And so again, that comes with just all the, not just taking it like it's a Band-Aid,
• 14:42
  like it's a magic pill, but really doing the work alongside it, right? To...
• 14:48
  Create these new pathways in your brain also, you know, so that when you get
• 14:52
  off of it, it's like, no, now I've created all these new positive pathways in my brain.
• 14:56
  And so I'm going to continue to walk this out and keep this confidence that I have.
• 15:00
  And then obviously, along with that, you know, less food thoughts, which again,
• 15:04
  like I mentioned on the last episode, if you have got this food addiction,
• 15:07
  if it is a real struggle for you, and you are, you know, obese as a result of it,
• 15:12
  like this is life-changing to just not have the food consuming your brain 24-7, right?
• 15:20
  And then these studies have shown that it helps with addiction in general,
• 15:23
  right? And that makes sense.
• 15:24
  You know, if you're having less food thoughts, then you're probably going to
• 15:27
  have less alcohol thoughts or less drug thoughts or whatever it may be.
• 15:31
  And then as I mentioned with the dementia, there's less cognitive decline that
• 15:35
  this has been shown on, you know, recently in studies that like Just less cognitive decline.
• 15:40
  So GLP-1s can be helpful in the mental health space.
• 15:45
  Okay, so moving into should you take it, right?
• 15:49
  I'm going to take a sip of water and a big deep breath before we get started here.
• 15:53
  Okay, I want to obviously lead with like this is an answer that only you can answer, right?
• 16:02
  Like if you feel the ick about it, there's a reason, okay?
• 16:08
  But if you feel a peace about it, there's a reason.
• 16:12
  And again, that is not a decision that you should make instantly.
• 16:16
  Like it's again, you shouldn't be able to like get off this podcast and be like,
• 16:19
  well, I don't know if it's been plaguing you for a while, maybe.
• 16:21
  But like, it's not it's not an impulse decision.
• 16:24
  Right. It's not a I walk into my doctor's office, not really thinking about
• 16:28
  it. And then she mentions it. And immediately I decide to get on it decision. Right.
• 16:34
  It is it takes time. Like we need to feel comfortable because our brain can
• 16:39
  lie to us, y'all. Our emotions can cloud it.
• 16:41
  Like the brain and the emotions, they are wild, you know, and so it can't be an impulse decision.
• 16:47
  It has to be a long-term, I'm saying yes, day in and day out.
• 16:52
  So, and I'm comfortable with the possible consequences.
• 16:55
  You know, I'm comfortable with the financial strain. And like all the things
• 16:58
  that you have to feel that consistently, not just in the moment that you also
• 17:02
  have a heightened emotion about how depressed you are over your weight.
• 17:05
  Do you know? And so with that being said, you know, it is your question to answer.
• 17:14
  Okay. And it's literally the most important thing about the whole,
• 17:19
  like all the things I just mentioned and everything I said on the last episode,
• 17:22
  like all of it, you know, but it's the most important thing is do you feel a piece about it or not?
• 17:30
  Because if you do not feel 100% certain that you should be taking this medication,
• 17:34
  like if you feel like maybe you could be putting a little more effort in and
• 17:38
  you've never had weight loss problems before and, you know,
• 17:41
  food doesn't really just consume my brain all the time, the way Constance is
• 17:44
  describing, it's more like I'm so busy and I just don't want to think about
• 17:47
  it or, you know, like that kind of thing.
• 17:49
  If you don't feel a hundred percent certain, then you will immediately begin
• 17:54
  that mental spiral of shame and failure.
• 17:58
  You know, like you will immediately begin this thing where you're like,
• 18:02
  I'm taking it. It's like a band-aid.
• 18:05
  Like, should I have done this? You know, like you will immediately go there in your brain.
• 18:09
  It's how we're wired, you know, to like combat, come against our thoughts,
• 18:14
  you know, like to come at it with a negative thought.
• 18:18
  If you already were wavering before, it's like, you know, like standing in the shoe store, right?
• 18:25
  Saying like, I really want these shoes. I really want these shoes,
• 18:28
  but I don't have much money in my bank account.
• 18:30
  And so you buy the shoes. And then as soon as you walk out, you're like,
• 18:33
  I should not have bought these shoes. You know, like you're immediately regretting it. Right.
• 18:38
  And so so that's where it where it's at. It makes all the difference.
• 18:42
  But if you feel 100% certain and you feel like, OK, I I relate to and I'm going
• 18:49
  to I'm about to read an email from someone that I really I really I would just
• 18:53
  feel like you guys need to hear.
• 18:55
  I relate to this. I relate to the the food obsession.
• 18:59
  I relate to being overweight or obese my whole life, I relate to,
• 19:03
  you know, just this, this really deep struggle, right?
• 19:09
  Then you should feel, and, and I'm, and I, I really want to fix it, right?
• 19:14
  Then you should feel like 100% certain, you know, and, and you should have a
• 19:19
  piece in, in that direction, right?
• 19:20
  And then if that's the case, then you will immediately start feeling like motivated, okay?
• 19:26
  To the, okay, I know this is what I should be doing. And so I'm going to just
• 19:30
  walk this out and see how it goes. Okay.
• 19:33
  And so this makes all the difference in weight loss. And I see it, right?
• 19:36
  Not just in GLP-1 use, right? Like in any weight loss use. Y'all,
• 19:39
  we have people all the time that one yesterday, we literally got an email yesterday that's like.
• 19:45
  I need, I need to end my membership. I don't know what I was thinking.
• 19:48
  Like I have, you know, I work full time.
• 19:53
  I'm taking care of my aging mother, you know, have just some financial burden,
• 19:59
  like all this stuff, you know?
• 20:00
  And she's like, I don't know what I was thinking, thinking I could,
• 20:03
  you know, start a weight loss program right now.
• 20:05
  Like financially, time-wise, energy-wise, like emotionally, like if y'all,
• 20:09
  if you were in a really emotionally stressful, overwhelming time of your life.
• 20:14
  GLP-1 may not be the thing for you right now.
• 20:17
  You know what I mean? Because again, you need to be able to pair it with the healthy habits.
• 20:21
  You need to be able to put your all in if you're going to take this route.
• 20:26
  And so if you're barely hanging on by a thread, baby, it ain't it. You know what I mean?
• 20:30
  And so, you know, again, it's just that it is your decision.
• 20:33
  And I will say, so many people have come to me and said, like,
• 20:37
  I need to lose weight. Maybe I should just get on the shot.
• 20:39
  And like my question for you and that person every single time is like,
• 20:43
  is this more of a lazy, overwhelm, or stress problem?
• 20:49
  Like, or is this a, back to episode one, like a lifelong like illness that needs to be fixed, right?
• 20:56
  Because if it's more of you've got too much on your plate,
• 21:00
  or you're just actively choosing to continue to scroll your phone instead of
• 21:05
  getting up for a walk every day, or you're really just like extremely overwhelmed
• 21:09
  with life in general, if it's one of those,
• 21:13
  then the shot's not going to fix that. Okay?
• 21:15
  Like we have to take ownership of our habits. We have to take ownership of our
• 21:19
  actions. We have to fix the lazy overwhelm or stress problems in our lives. Right?
• 21:26
  And so if you are resorting to, you know, the shot out of out of that,
• 21:31
  then it's not going to fix it.
• 21:34
  Okay. We have to like grab the bull by the horns and, and, and say,
• 21:39
  why am I allowing myself to spiral out of control daily? Like what's the root of it?
• 21:45
  And again, you may need some, some help with that, you know,
• 21:49
  but, but what, and that's what my PFM plus clients, that's what it turns into all the time.
• 21:52
  It's like, what's the root of all this? You know, like, yeah, sure.
• 21:55
  Send me your, my fitness pal every day, but like, it's more than that like it's
• 21:58
  it's like it's I have one girl right now it's like.
• 22:01
  She is extremely overwhelmed. There's a lot going on in her life.
• 22:04
  And so it's more than just, are you meeting your calories every single day?
• 22:08
  It's like your cortisol is spiked 24 seven.
• 22:12
  You know, how are we going to fix that so that then your body will shed the
• 22:15
  fat? And we've talked about that on here a hundred times, right?
• 22:18
  And so asking yourself, like, is that the reason? Am I just lazy?
• 22:23
  Not lazy. I hate the word lazy, but yeah, a lot of my girls will say I've been lazy this week?
• 22:28
  You know, am I just lazy with my habits or I'm full of overwhelm or I have a
• 22:32
  lot of stress and that's why I'm trying to like resort out?
• 22:35
  Or deep down, you know, like you could be putting forth more effort to see the
• 22:40
  results you desire, but you just keep disregarding it.
• 22:43
  You just keep choosing otherwise. Like you might feel some shame if you get
• 22:47
  on this shot, you know, because you like, like, again, it's not coming from
• 22:53
  a place of truly feeling like you need it. It's coming from a place of like, I just need a fix.
• 22:57
  I just need, I need, you know, a Band-Aid or whatever.
• 23:01
  And so, I mean, I don't want to like, I don't know,
• 23:06
  like jinx it, I guess would be the word, but like you might end up being one
• 23:09
  of those two thirds of the people that regain it because it didn't come from
• 23:12
  a place of like, obviously if you're overwhelmed and stressed out with life
• 23:16
  to the point of not even being able to like walk or drink your water,
• 23:21
  okay, then you're not going to be able to take this medication and then come
• 23:24
  alongside with all these healthy habits we've been talking about,
• 23:26
  you know, needing to accompany it.
• 23:29
  And so will it be a wash? You know, I don't know. Okay.
• 23:34
  After the fact, after you get off of it or whatever. But if you feel like,
• 23:39
  you know, you have a true disease, you really need help.
• 23:42
  Like you're okay with the healthy habit actions. It's just something is like taking control.
• 23:50
  Something is coming in and taking over, right?
• 23:53
  Like think of it as you're constantly, you're consciously like.
• 23:58
  Saying every day, like, I know I need to track. I know I need to not overeat or whatever.
• 24:02
  And then it's almost like you black out, you know, like if you're having like
• 24:06
  that, that's like some severe issues with food, right?
• 24:09
  Or if you've always had severe issues with food. So some symptoms of this would
• 24:12
  be like binging in private.
• 24:16
  Okay. Using food to cope. And I'm not just talking about like a random bad day
• 24:20
  and you have some cookies and you know, you feel bad about that later.
• 24:23
  Like, that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about you look at food
• 24:27
  as a lifeline for emotional survival.
• 24:31
  Like anytime you have an emotion, you turn to the food anytime, right?
• 24:36
  Or like some other symptoms would be like often unable to recall how much or
• 24:40
  what you ate in a binge or even not in a binge, right?
• 24:44
  Hiding food, okay? Not eating much food and then eating a large amount of food at once,
• 24:50
  okay intense shame like
• 24:53
  debilitating shame often about food
• 24:57
  or just simply feeling out of control around
• 25:00
  food okay and i'm not talking about you know around a certain food like cake
• 25:04
  or whatever something y'all sugar be making us lose control i'm talking about
• 25:07
  any food you know it's just food in general leaves you helpless and out of control
• 25:12
  okay not not just occasional overeats or occasional shame right because we've
• 25:16
  all got that we've all got the mind stuff that that will mess
• 25:19
  us up sometimes, but this is an ongoing and life-consuming occurrence, okay?
• 25:25
  And so I really, I wanted to just take, and I got her permission, right?
• 25:28
  So I've told you, I have friends, I have family, I have lots of people that
• 25:31
  have taken this drug, and I've seen some great results.
• 25:35
  I've seen some not so great results, but I mentioned to you,
• 25:39
  you know, I think it was last episode, I said, you know, you could put any of
• 25:44
  my clients that we've gotten to know decently, right, in front of mine or Stacey's
• 25:48
  face, and we could say, like, I think she would be a good candidate or not.
• 25:51
  And so this specific person, I believe, is a good candidate, okay?
• 25:58
  She never asked me, but I did
• 26:02
  write a post, like, back in August on Facebook, and she said to me,
• 26:09
  later on after she told me, you know, that she had gotten on it or whatever,
• 26:12
  she said to me, that post is what made me make my decision to actually to take it, to get on it.
• 26:17
  And I'm like, okay, I wish you had come to me with the question because I would
• 26:23
  have said, do it for her specifically.
• 26:26
  And I think I'm going to read that. I think I'm going to read that post on the next episode.
• 26:30
  But she kind of gave me her journey because I just feel like,
• 26:34
  again, I know her, you know, but I felt like this was a really good picture
• 26:38
  of someone who might need to be on it, you know.
• 26:41
  And so she wrote out her testimony and it's not over, right?
• 26:44
  But I'm just going to read it to you guys. And so here we go.
• 26:48
  I was nine the first time I remember going to a dietician.
• 26:52
  My weight has been a struggle as long as I can remember. I don't recall ever feeling normal.
• 26:58
  In fourth grade, we had to weigh for the presidential challenge, and I was 120 pounds.
• 27:03
  I don't remember a specific weight again until I was an adult,
• 27:07
  but I fully believe that I was over 300 pounds in high school.
• 27:12
  Other moms would tell mine that she really should be concerned about how much
• 27:16
  bigger I was than the other kids, as if she didn't notice.
• 27:21
  At 28, I had gastric banding surgery, which I was weighing in at 300.3 pounds.
• 27:27
  I lost 50 pounds before the band eroded into my stomach and caused permanent
• 27:31
  damage, having to be surgically removed.
• 27:33
  As a result of the damage, I developed gastroparesis.
• 27:37
  After what I considered a failed attempt at bariatric surgery,
• 27:40
  I decided to try the, quote, right way.
• 27:43
  I wrote down every bite of food I put in my mouth, counted every single calorie,
• 27:47
  and decided to train for a marathon.
• 27:49
  In 18 months, I lost another 80 pounds, ran three half marathons and two full
• 27:54
  26.2 marathons, including the Boston Marathon.
• 27:59
  Every thought of every single waking minute was devoted to what I was eating,
• 28:03
  what I had eaten, what I was going to eat next, and how many miles I needed
• 28:07
  to run that day or if I was going to condition in the gym.
• 28:10
  I wanna pause right here, y'all. She reversed her food obsession, right?
• 28:14
  She reversed from obsessing over eating to obsessing over not eating, right?
• 28:18
  And that can be just as big of an illness, okay?
• 28:22
  I was the smallest I'd ever been, and I was probably in the best physical shape of my life.
• 28:26
  When I got home from Boston in April of 2012, I was physically,
• 28:30
  mentally, emotionally, and spiritually drained. I had absolutely nothing left.
• 28:34
  Over the next 10 years, life happened and the weight slowly crept back on.
• 28:38
  Despite constant on-again, off-again attempts to keep it off or get it back
• 28:42
  off once it was back on, my total regain was around 50 pounds.
• 28:47
  This is when I knew her. This is when I met her, okay? And so I was very much
• 28:51
  present. I've been very much aware of this life for her, those 10 years.
• 28:56
  In April of 2022, I was carefully counting calories and regularly exercising
• 29:01
  and weighing weekly with very little success of getting any weight off.
• 29:05
  One afternoon during a heart-wrenching conversation with the Lord,
• 29:08
  he told me to stay off the scale.
• 29:10
  That was only the beginning. I had my husband hide the scales and I closed my
• 29:13
  eyes when I had to weigh at the doctor's office. but I continued to obsess over
• 29:17
  every bite of food I ate and I continued to exercise regularly.
• 29:21
  At some point in the next several months to a year, I felt adamantly led to
• 29:24
  just stop, stop it all, to lay the burden and obsession of my weight and weight
• 29:29
  loss at the feet of Jesus and walk away from it.
• 29:31
  I was truly obsessed and I had been for the majority of my life going all the
• 29:37
  way back to that dietician's office at nine years old.
• 29:40
  Over the next year, I struggled to understand God's plan. I was very clearly
• 29:43
  gaining weight, ultimately about 30 more pounds, and continually felt more and
• 29:47
  more miserable in my own body.
• 29:49
  I sobbed and begged God to show me my role in obtaining a healthy body that I was comfortable in.
• 29:54
  The only response I ever got was to simply trust him.
• 29:58
  At my annual checkup in May of 2023, my doctor mentioned testing my A1c and
• 30:02
  lightly breached the subject of considering a GLP-1.
• 30:05
  I very quickly shut her down as I was adamantly against that route.
• 30:09
  I truly didn't think that that was what God had intended when he told me to stop.
• 30:13
  In early 2024, information started presenting itself almost out of the blue
• 30:18
  about GLP-1s and what they actually did.
• 30:20
  I began to understand that they weren't just an appetite suppressant,
• 30:23
  but they were truly so much more.
• 30:24
  They treated the actual disease of obesity, but there was and still is so much
• 30:29
  shame surrounding them.
• 30:30
  And I believe a lot of that comes from people who use them to lose a quick 10
• 30:33
  to 20 pounds who don't truly suffer from obesity.
• 30:37
  I was extremely apprehensive. In March, during some routine blood work,
• 30:41
  I was asked to come back for an A1C check because my glucose was high.
• 30:45
  My A1C was 6.57 is type 2 diabetes.
• 30:48
  But at the time, my regular doctor didn't seem too concerned.
• 30:52
  I knew my annual wellness check was in May, so I began to pray.
• 30:55
  I prayed and sought guides and my therapist guidance for two months leading up to my appointment.
• 31:00
  There were so many tears and sometimes straight up begging for answers.
• 31:04
  I was at such a low point and just absolutely miserable.
• 31:08
  My OBGYN was immediately on board and felt like I was the perfect candidate for GLP-1.
• 31:13
  The problem would be insurance. Over the next three months, we tried different options, etc., etc.
• 31:19
  I continued to pray for God to open doors He wanted open and to show me what
• 31:25
  was the right thing to do.
• 31:26
  This alone was why I had to be absolutely certain this was the path God was leading me down.
• 31:33
  In August of 2024, the doors lined up and opened for me to begin taking Zetbound.
• 31:38
  There were hurdles that I had to go through at first, but I feel like they were
• 31:41
  God's way of asking me to be obedient and trust His process.
• 31:45
  I did research after research.
• 31:48
  On how to do this the right way, how to avoid side effects and how to truly
• 31:52
  use the time on the medications to heal my relationship with food and how to
• 31:55
  break the obsessive addictive chains that had held me my entire life.
• 32:00
  Okay, I wanna make note, August of 2024 was when I posted this post,
• 32:04
  okay? It's wild. You know, I did not know God was using me in this, but he sure did.
• 32:08
  As of April, 2025, I have lost 49 pounds and I am able and I am doing my best
• 32:13
  not to consider how fast it is coming off or how much I want off him by when.
• 32:17
  I am praying for guidance every step of the way, and I am seeing a therapist
• 32:20
  regularly to get to the root of my relationship with food and the shame and
• 32:24
  guilt and embarrassment that eating and food has caused in my life.
• 32:27
  Being on a GLP-1 truly has quieted all the extra food noise so I can focus on
• 32:33
  why I turn to food for comfort and why I feel so much shame and guilt when I do.
• 32:38
  It has taken away my constant interest in food and what I'm going to eat next
• 32:42
  and whether or not it will hurt or help my weight loss. Because I'm not interested
• 32:46
  in food for pleasure, but just as fuel, I stop when my body tells me it's full
• 32:50
  instead of eating it all just because it's good.
• 32:53
  I'm focusing on listening to my body and my body cues. I'm working on disassociating
• 32:58
  eating nutritious food to fuel my body and exercise from weight loss so that years from now,
• 33:02
  I can consciously choose nutritious foods and consciously move my body because
• 33:07
  I want to do good things for my aging body and be able to enjoy life with my family,
• 33:12
  not because if I don't, I'll gain weight.
• 33:15
  The goal is to live a life where I no longer constantly worry about what I weigh
• 33:19
  or how the food I eat is going to affect that weight.
• 33:23
  And so I just wanted to share that with you guys because I have such pride in
• 33:27
  this individual because again, right, weight loss is wonderful.
• 33:31
  We're so pumped about it, all the things. But like her journey is so different
• 33:35
  than like going out of desperation for like to lose a couple pounds, right? Right.
• 33:40
  It's like she what God was telling her to chill out with the weight loss obsession.
• 33:44
  And then this is like what has kind of what he put in her path.
• 33:49
  And then it's it's here to change her life. She's seeing her therapist.
• 33:53
  She's making good decisions. Like she's working on the movement,
• 33:56
  like all these things that are setting her up for healing from her food trauma.
• 34:02
  Right. And then also for a healthy lifestyle in the future.
• 34:07
  And so this, like, she is the perfect candidate for this drug, okay?
• 34:13
  Because she truly has this food addiction, this obesity, like, issue, you know?
• 34:19
  And so I just thought, you know, I would share that because I know it might
• 34:22
  resonate with some, you know?
• 34:24
  And then it might put into perspective for others, you know,
• 34:26
  like, this is who this is meant for, right? But I think more than anything,
• 34:32
  I just want to point out that like she...
• 34:37
  She knew she had to be in a positive mental space. Like she knew she had to
• 34:43
  like obviously like pair the habits, right?
• 34:49
  And like really focus in on health as a whole while she's on this medication.
• 34:55
  And with that, though, for her specifically came, you know, counseling.
• 35:01
  And I think, I don't know, guys. And I mean, I'm not an expert on this specific
• 35:07
  topic, but from my experience,
• 35:09
  I mean, I can pretty much guarantee that people that have this level of struggle
• 35:15
  with food that has gotten them to this point of obesity, right.
• 35:21
  It is a mental health issue.
• 35:24
  Okay. Or partly at least a mental health issue.
• 35:27
  Right. And so it's like you have to seek that.
• 35:33
  Like you have to make sure that part comes alongside, right?
• 35:37
  Or else you will be like these people that I've already talked about,
• 35:39
  you know, that come off of it and it's just like, they feel so defeated because
• 35:43
  they've regained all the weight and they don't understand why.
• 35:45
  And, you know, like, and, or I've even heard of cases where like people come
• 35:49
  off of it and they're just so obsessed with like kind of how she was in,
• 35:54
  you know, with, with the running and, and the, you know, tracking everything
• 35:58
  she put in her mouth and everything.
• 35:59
  Like that was a different way of obsession, but it was still obsession.
• 36:03
  Over food and body. It was still an unhealthy mental place to be in, right?
• 36:08
  And so it's just like, it's crazy because I had made up my mind to do this podcast.
• 36:14
  And then that day, one of our actual, like our very new client reached out to
• 36:19
  me and just kind of, she was, you know, praising the program and it was,
• 36:25
  you know, great and everything.
• 36:27
  But she had mentioned that she had previously been on GLP-1 and had lost a lot of weight.
• 36:31
  And like her main, so I'm like, oh, So this is a God thing. Like,
• 36:34
  I need to hear your opinion.
• 36:36
  I need to hear what you have to say about it. Because like, I'm gathering opinions
• 36:38
  at the moment for this podcast, right?
• 36:43
  And like her anthem back to me was like, you have to be in the right mental space.
• 36:48
  Like, obviously, to lose it and keep it off if you're just like a person going
• 36:53
  out to get on it, you know, in general.
• 36:55
  But if you were a person who has had this level of like food addiction,
• 36:59
  this level of, you know, food, food issue, food trauma.
• 37:03
  You like you can easily go the other way right
• 37:06
  like you can go the disordered eating way or you can
• 37:09
  go the obsession obsession way or the like major fear
• 37:12
  and anxiety way you know and so it's like if you are going to choose to get
• 37:18
  on GLP-1 if you do feel like you are one of these people that I have described
• 37:23
  you know again like it again and again and again and again I feel like I just
• 37:28
  keep saying it but you have got to also bring the like,
• 37:31
  plug in on the tools that you need to make it worth your while,
• 37:37
  like to make it be an actual lifestyle change for you.
• 37:40
  And for a lot of people, that does include therapy.
• 37:44
  Like that does include, like this person mentioned, like I want to know,
• 37:49
  like I want to get to the root of why I turn to food and comfort and like undo some of that.
• 37:57
  You know what I mean? And so I know this person personally, and I know,
• 38:00
  I know, I know the reasons and she knows the reasons too, right?
• 38:03
  Like she, there are just some things from her childhood.
• 38:05
  There are some things from her past that have caused her to,
• 38:08
  to, to resort to food in a way that, you know, quote, isn't normal or whatever.
• 38:14
  And so like, she's doing that work to face it and, and then hopefully like reroute
• 38:21
  her responses, right? Because we're all going to have stress.
• 38:24
  We're all going to have everyone.
• 38:25
  We're all going to have triggers, right? And so it's just about rerouting how
• 38:29
  we handle, you know, and you cannot do that without a mental health provider.
• 38:33
  Like you just like literally cannot.
• 38:35
  I mean, we can pray real hard about it, but I think Jesus eventually would put
• 38:38
  on our hearts like, hey, baby, go get a counselor to, you know,
• 38:40
  like make this easier on yourself to navigate.
• 38:43
  So anyway, I guess so that, you know, that's that's that's that's the thing is like she.
• 38:49
  It's crazy this story because like she did not
• 38:52
  seek this drug out of
• 38:55
  I mean obviously she wanted the weight loss right but she did not seek it
• 38:58
  out of like instant gratification she really like tried to put it down to try
• 39:05
  to put her food and weight loss obsession down and then that's when the Lord
• 39:09
  revealed like hey no actually I think this is what you need to be doing you
• 39:13
  know and so it's it was from that posture I believe I believe.
• 39:18
  Had it been six months, a year earlier, that, you know, the reality of possibly
• 39:23
  getting on a GLP-1 for her was what, like, she could.
• 39:27
  You know, like, if it had been six months to a year earlier that it had been
• 39:30
  presented to her as an option, I believe she would not have used it in the proper way.
• 39:36
  Like, I believe she would have misused it in the way that I have been speaking
• 39:39
  about, you know, on these two episodes so far.
• 39:42
  And so it's crazy that like the lord put her
• 39:45
  through through like certain certain trials
• 39:49
  right to to give her a different
• 39:51
  heart and a different perspective about her weight and weight loss not you know
• 39:56
  not the obsessive like physical how do i look kind of perspective of weight
• 40:02
  loss but really just like okay now here we are six months or whatever a year
• 40:06
  later when she starts the medicine and she's coming from a posture of like,
• 40:10
  I am doing this for my lifelong health.
• 40:13
  I'm doing this for like, I finally want to lay this burden down.
• 40:16
  I'm going to get the mental health I need.
• 40:18
  I'm going to put these practices into place that I know I should have been doing
• 40:21
  all along, but I'm going to do them more easily with this help from this medication.
• 40:25
  Right. And so, yeah, this, this, like she will be one if she continues this process, right.
• 40:31
  In the way that she started it and doesn't stray from, you know,
• 40:35
  what she knows to be true that God has put on her heart. She will be one that
• 40:38
  will keep this weight off for her life.
• 40:39
  She will be one. And like, write it down, baby. Mark it down, okay?
• 40:44
  The sad part about it is, is like, she's very rare. This is a rare,
• 40:47
  a rare occurrence of like really praying about it,
• 40:51
  really thinking about it, like really weighing the pros and cons and then able
• 40:54
  to like confidently walk into the process knowing that like,
• 41:00
  this is what the Lord has told her to do.
• 41:02
  And so I can do, you know, I can do it fully, you know, without the shame and
• 41:09
  without the worries and all the things.
• 41:11
  And so, yeah, I think, you know, that is the answer to your question,
• 41:16
  right? Or to the question that we started the episode with is,
• 41:19
  should you take it? Like, I don't know. How do you feel right now?
• 41:23
  Like, you know what I mean? Like, do you feel like your flesh has been wanting
• 41:28
  to take it, but the Lord has been saying, like, no, girl.
• 41:31
  You know what I mean? Or do you feel like the Lord has been like nudging you
• 41:35
  in a way, you know, towards it?
• 41:38
  Like, you know, that is like, do you have a piece for it?
• 41:42
  And that's it, you know, and at the end of the day, I feel like.
• 41:48
  For everything, right? Like, do we have a piece about our next decision?
• 41:51
  Like, do I have a piece about, you know, where are my kids going to go to school?
• 41:54
  Or, you know, if my husband should take a promotion or like all the things like a real, right?
• 41:59
  Like we, and so it's about getting still and it's about sitting in the decision
• 42:03
  long enough, right? For him to give it to you.
• 42:06
  Like, he's not going to just tell you right now immediately that like,
• 42:09
  you know, it needs to be something that we've prayed over and we're reflecting on for a while, right?
• 42:14
  And so then it's just, okay, if I have a piece about it, then I can disregard
• 42:18
  the negatives. I can disregard the worry about the risks, right?
• 42:22
  Like, but if I don't have a piece about it, then I know I need to figure out what my next steps are.
• 42:28
  Like, what do I need to walk out next?
• 42:31
  You know what I mean? Where do I need to go? Do I need to lay it all down the
• 42:34
  way that this person did?
• 42:36
  I mean, just kind of say, I need to just stop obsessing or do I need to maybe
• 42:41
  get serious about baby steps in health instead of constantly trying to like
• 42:47
  make these huge leaps that always fail?
• 42:49
  You know, do I need to get a therapist so that maybe like my life will feel
• 42:53
  like it's not spiraling so bad and then I can actually focus on my health?
• 42:57
  You know, all these different things, it's different for different people, right?
• 43:01
  And so, yeah, do you feel a peace? And that's it. Like, did y'all expect that
• 43:06
  one to end that way? Yeah.
• 43:08
  Okay. So anyway, we will pick up next week with, okay, so.
• 43:14
  Either you decided you're you're going to do it or you decided you're
• 43:17
  not going to do it and so now how do I how do I make sure I'm
• 43:20
  most successful if I am on it and then also it's
• 43:23
  you know newsflash like
• 43:26
  it's it's you know a lot of the same things that you can do without being on
• 43:30
  it right like they're the habits are the same right of how because because what
• 43:34
  we teach here is healthy habits for weight loss like life lifelong right and
• 43:38
  so it is very much healthy habits for weight loss lifelong while on a GLP-1.
• 43:44
  You know what I mean? And so we're going to talk about some of those next week
• 43:48
  and just really like making sure that you are, if you are choosing to be on
• 43:53
  it, right, that you're using it properly and that you're also using it with
• 43:56
  a plan. Like you've got an end game, right?
• 43:59
  And because the worst are the people that started it, lost some weight,
• 44:04
  and then just feel like they keep regaining some weight to have to get back on it.
• 44:09
  You know what I mean, like that is that is the prime example of misuse,
• 44:12
  you know, and so really helping outline some things so that that's not you,
• 44:17
  you know, if you decide to walk in that direction or if you decide to,
• 44:20
  you know, do it without any medical intervention.
• 44:23
  So anyway, as always, I hope you guys enjoy this episode and make sure to say grace.
• 44:28
  Music.