Ozempic and Gas: What Users Say

• Con...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 1, 2021

For Type 2 Diabetes "I started Ozempic in late December at 0.25 injection. I also take 500mg metformin per day. Soon after I started Ozempic, I had decreased appetite and my sugars improved, but I had reflux, gas, bloating, nausea, and diarrhea. After 4 weeks, I started 0.50. 2 weeks in, I have bouts of painful constipation then diarrhea, nausea, bloating, gas, reflux, and cramping. I've almost vomited a few times. When I eat, it feels like the food just sits and sits, barely moving through my gut. My doctor wants me to stick with it, saying that these side effects usually improve, but it's been pretty miserable. I'm thinking I'm going to stop taking it. While Ozempic has been effective in regulating my sugars and losing weight, I don't think it's worth the suffering that I've been enduring on this medication. I understand that studies showed it causing thyroid cancer in mice, but no one knows if it causes thyroid cancer in humans. I don't want to be the guinea pig the drug makers use to find out it does."

• val...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 29, 2020

For Cardiovascular Risk Reduction "I have been using this medication Ozempic for several months. My dose is 1mg per week. This medication has made me feel sick from my first dose. I've lost 15 lbs but have bloating, gas, burping, and most recently hiccups for over a week. I will not be using this medication anymore."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 27, 2023

For Weight Loss (Obesity/Overweight) "I just completed my first 2 weeks. I want to lose 35-40 pounds. In the past year, I have gained a pound a month and have been steadily gaining weight every year for the past 7 years. I have previously tried Weight Watchers, increased activity, and calorie watching, and the only time I lost any weight was on less than 1300 calories a day. The first week, I lost 3.5 pounds, more weight than I had lost in the past 5 years even with calorie restriction. I inject in alternating thighs on Friday nights, just in case I have symptoms I can recover without work demands. I have always been gassy, so I cannot comment if there is a difference in the amount. I am noticing increased chest tenderness and muscle spasms. Restless legs are a thing! Taking magnesium once or twice a week also helps with moderate constipation. Reduced appetite, reduced sugar craving, but no impact on munchies. Makes it easier to choose healthier choices. Overall, happy with almost a 5-pound weight loss in 2 weeks. Minimal side effects and well worth it."

• Job...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 2, 2020

For Type 2 Diabetes "I have taken Ozempic for a month now, dosage being 0.25 once a week. At first, I didn’t really see any side effects or anything, but then one day I made the mistake and overate, resulting in constant gas, repeated burping, and an hour later, non-stop diarrhea. After that experience, I have learned never to do that again. I now usually eat a big breakfast and a snack later on throughout the day, which has helped me completely cut out soda. I originally started taking this because I was experiencing rapid weight gain. They checked my thyroid and said it was within normal limits, so they put me on Ozempic, and I am so glad. In the morning, I haven’t had a blood sugar reading over 130 in a month. I am looking forward to going back to my doctor to figure out my A1C. In total, I’ve lost 8 pounds in one month :)"

• Dim...
• April 7, 2020

For Type 2 Diabetes "Been using Ozempic for 7 weeks, lost 12 pounds. I also take Xigduo and Lantus at night. Gas, nausea, headache, and a few low A1c. But my number is down from 8.1 to 5.4. For the gas, I find that Gas-X helps. And for the nausea, I sip on cold water and keep my meals small. I haven't thrown up yet and no constipation or diarrhea."

• Bon...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 13, 2021

For Type 2 Diabetes "Started Ozempic about 7 weeks ago. Dosage .25. First week noticed some nausea, a lot of gas, some reflux, and diarrhea. Each week, side effects were getting worse. Nausea very bad, pains in left side, waves of heat, no energy at all. In all, just feeling BAD! Diarrhea is bad and a bit uncontrollable. Have not raised dosage due to being afraid of worse side effects. Have lost 5 pounds. Appetite is definitely less. My sugar numbers have not improved that much, which leads me to believe it is what I am eating. I still crave sweets. I have some jittery feelings at times! I am very discouraged."

• Bad...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 9, 2022

For Cardiovascular Risk Reduction "I am on day 4 after taking this and now bedridden. I have never been so sick in my life: nausea, vomiting, gas, headache, terrible smelly burping, dizzy, blurred vision, the list goes on. I hope this wears off soon, I have to go back to work. I am so disappointed in this product, very scary how it's destroying my body. I can't eat, sleep, barely move, just sipping water. Terrible stuff."

• Bal...
• March 4, 2020

For Type 2 Diabetes "I currently take 1000 mg of Metformin twice a day, Lantus at night, and Humalog before I eat a meal and snacks. I started taking 0.25 mg of Ozempic on 01/03/2020. By the first evening, I was cramped up so bad, I didn’t want to eat or move. This really didn’t change for 3 weeks. At that time I called my doctor and told her what I had experienced, and then we moved to 0.5 mg. All I can tell you is that I have been miserable since starting to take this drug. Excessive gas in my stomach that leads to bloating, abdominal discomfort, and waking up every 1 or 2 hours to belch away the gas. OMG, the smell of the gas from my stomach could wake the dead, and that terrible taste I have in my mouth most of the time. I will find out about A1C in the coming weeks. I have been able to reduce my Lantus from 70 units to 40 units, and Humalog from 1 unit/5 carbs to 1 unit/10 carbs."

• Dis...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 5, 2021

For Type 2 Diabetes "I only did 2 lowest dose injections and stopped. The side effects were awful and still linger. The worst thing about the medication has been the gas, bloating, diarrhea, and awful taste/smell when I burp. I’m 6 days in after my last injection, and I still have all symptoms and continued diarrhea."

• Big...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 16, 2022

For Type 2 Diabetes "Ended up in the emergency room on the day of the second dose. Triggered a gallbladder issue and ended up elevating my liver enzymes. Symptoms mimicked a heart attack or pancreatitis. Hard to tell the difference. Severe abdominal pain radiating to the back, elevated heart rate, nausea, gas, bloating. For some people, this type of medication is very, very bad medicine and totally not worth it. I lost 10 pounds in two weeks because it made me so sick I could not eat or drink. One day this will also have an FDA black box label on it like Byetta. A class action lawsuit will be on your TV commercials. I would be seriously careful if you plan on taking this medication for anything, weight loss or glucose control. Not worth it. Once you get sick, you will be longing to get the stuff out of your system and will be physiologically impacted by the experience. No antidote. Have to wait it out. Never again. The Russian roulette of diabetes medication. Taker beware."

• Ste...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 12, 2019

For Type 2 Diabetes "Run away. Just run away from Ozempic. Yeah, this will help with your blood sugar, sure. It will also give you terrible side effects. I have been nauseous for 2 weeks, dizzy, headache, lethargy, have gas constantly. My guts hurt so much I've cried. I ended up at the emergency room in the middle of the night, it got so severe. They gave me 2 different types of IV medicine to help and a bag of saline. They told me to quit the medicine immediately but also warned me these side effects could last WEEKS after my last dose. Can't even function. If I take the meds to keep from puking, I'm basically comatose, if I don't, my stomach, neck, and head hurt so much I cry."

• Cau...
• March 3, 2022

For Type 2 Diabetes "I took .25 for about 6 months and thought this was a miracle drug. Caused slight constipation, but I dealt with it. When they increased me to .5 mg, I started violently vomiting the next day. No one could figure out what was wrong with me. Pancreatic enzymes were high, but not high enough to diagnose pancreatitis. I could barely eat for two months. Gas, bloating, side pain, back pain, stomatitis pain, non-stop burping, constipation, nausea, vomiting off and on. My food perpetually felt like it was backed up into my mouth. They had to take me off of the drug, and now my sugars are higher than ever, and no one can help me. They were okay before, but now doctors consider me as failing two types of drug classes because of this, won't give me my old meds back, and I may have to go on insulin. I am gaining weight like never before and am so tired that I can barely function. They now believe it gave me gastroparesis, and I can't get better. I would recommend this medicine to no one."

• Nei...
• April 16, 2021

For Type 2 Diabetes "Month 1, I was started on Ozempic at 0.25 mg and had very mild symptoms of bloating and reduced appetite. Month 2 & 3, uncomfortable. Stomach cramps, gas, and diarrhea probably for 4 days after injection. This can be really embarrassing in a small office. By the end of Month 3, I was feeling quite a bit better. At this point, my HbA1c was down to 5.2 from 9.4, I had virtually no diabetic symptoms. No blurred vision, no numbness in fingers and toes, and I was sleeping through the night without visits to the bathroom. And I lost 16 kilo in weight. Month 4 to 7. OMG. Increasing to 1 mg, the side effects are horrendous. Weight loss has stalled, though this is probably due to lockdown. The sickness and eggy burps are constant, and now my doctor says it will be at least 6 months before the side effects could be gone. But I have no diabetic symptoms, my HbA1c is pretty much normal, and I think the effort has been worth it. Not an easy journey, but worthwhile."

• Ale...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 27, 2019

For Type 2 Diabetes "I'm on week 5 of the medicine, and since week 1, I have had constant daily watery poops. I have found that throughout my workday (I have not missed a single day of work because I'm stubborn), if I'm up and about, it gets the gas out (I usually go hide or go outside to do this), and I feel okay, but as soon as I'm settled at home, the worst always kicks in, and I'm constantly in the bathroom. It wakes me up in the AM hours to rush to the bathroom, and I have sulfur burps all night. It's really killing my day-to-day lifestyle, and I pride myself on being reliable at work and can't afford to feel terrible all the time. I was told the side effects would wear off, but I'm at .05 right now, not even the full dose, and it's relentless. It's like my butt is Captain America screaming, 'I can do this all day' when there's nothing left."

• Mis...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 28, 2019

For Type 2 Diabetes "I noticed a difference in my fasting numbers, etc., but after taking the fifth dose, I felt like I had the stomach flu for 8 days. I was very nauseated, gas, burping, stomach pain, and achy. I didn't move off the couch all weekend. From what everyone says, you have to get through this, but I honestly can't take any more. I think it's time to come off of this. I can't imagine ever increasing it."

• Lau...
• January 21, 2021

For Type 2 Diabetes "I started Ozempic mid-November, with my first injection at 25 mg. Within two days, I had the worst bloating, my stomach bulged. I felt horrible. I had nasty sulfur burps and gas. This lasted for 24 hours. I noticed a decrease in my sweet tooth, and I cut back on my food intake. I lost 10 lbs within the first 4 weeks of taking Ozempic. After 4 weeks, my doctor told me to increase my dosage to .50 mg. I delayed increasing it by 4 weeks. On Monday, I increased my dosage to .50 mg. Day 3, I got really sick, bloating, sulfur burps, and gas were horrible. I vomited at least 2 times. I was super hungry but couldn’t hold food down. All I wanted to do was sleep. By morning, I felt 80% better. Still burping and gassy, but not nauseous or vomiting anymore. I do not plan to continue to take the .50 mg. I will just stick with 25 mg. The misery I felt was excruciating, and I can’t handle it. My next appointment is next month, and I am curious to know if my A1C had decreased or not."

• Eur...
• January 25, 2021

For Type 2 Diabetes "Started the Ozempic injections about 4 months ago. I did okay on the .25 dose. After 3 weeks, the doc had me do the .50 dose. I had chronic stress for 3 months (dog had cancer), so I lost myself in caring for her. After her death, I felt the effects of the RX. I had the worst sulfur burps and gas, stomach pain, bloating, and nausea I'd ever had in my life. I stopped the RX, changed to a low sulfur diet, and that didn't work, so I did a slow stomach emptying diet. After 1.5 weeks, my sulfur and gas/bloating cleared up, and I felt normal. I had a doc appointment and told him about the sulfur issues and what I did to stop it. He said I had lost 20 pounds, A1C went down to 6, and he wanted me back on it. I took another injection, and 2 days later, here I am with bad sulfur burps, gas/bloating, nausea, and stomach pain. I guess I'm going to have to eat very little to keep my stomach empty to make my doc happy-while I suffer. Not thrilled but willing to try a while longer to see if weight loss and A1C continues."

• No ...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• November 5, 2021

For Cardiovascular Risk Reduction "Started low dose .25, experienced discomfort in the stomach. Increased 4 weeks later to .5, symptoms got worse, blood sugar improved. Another 4 weeks after, moved to 1 mg dosage, and life is awful. I've lost all control of my bowels from the severe long-lasting diarrhea, sometimes pooping the bed. I'm wearing adult diapers at 35, and my self-esteem has taken a nosedive. The sulfur burps are horrible and constant. The gas and bloating make me look and feel horrible. I'm following a diet and doing every single thing my doctor has asked me to do for 7 months. I've lost 32 pounds but sleep in a diaper. Was it worth it? No... Nope... My A1C improved a tiny bit, but otherwise, I'm just feeling tired, weak, and totally mortified. Can't go hardly anywhere unless I KNOW there is a restroom very close. Vomit every day."

• mbh...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 4, 2018

For Type 2 Diabetes "I started Ozempic 2 months ago, and it did nothing, so the doctor upped it to 1 mg a week. That's when the vomiting started and the sulfur belches started. My doctor took me off of it, and my sugar soared through the roof. I called back 2 weeks later, and she put me back on it. I started this past Saturday, and so far my numbers are still high, and I am nauseous, having bad gas and sulfur burps. I'm not sure this is gonna work. I am also worried because I have a history of diabetic retinopathy."

• Tan...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 11, 2019

For Type 2 Diabetes "I’m on Ozempic for weight loss. I started at a small dose for 4 weeks, 0.25, then 2 weeks, 0.5. Now I’m on maintenance, taking 1 mg. In the beginning, straight after the injection, I would suffer from nausea, migraines, and loss of appetite. My side effects have shifted. I don’t suffer from nausea for more than a day, however, I have sulfur gas. It’s horrible. I’m bloated and very gassy. I haven’t lost a ton of weight yet, however, I do think diet is key as I am taking this for weight loss, and so far, yes, my appetite is suppressed. A day or two before it’s time to take the injection, I gain more of an appetite. This stuff is killer expensive, and my insurance doesn’t cover it. I’ll give it a couple more months and see how it goes."

• Jca...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 25, 2019

For Type 2 Diabetes "Horrible, debilitating fatigue, needing naps that I’ve never needed daily! Painful intestinal pressure and gas that wakens me from sleep, that cannot be burped or passed out. No noticeable difference in my blood sugar levels (my A1C was already 5.6). A little vomiting. If this fatigue does not subside, I believe I will stop using and seek other alternatives. I hate this, I want my life back."

• Bri...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 23, 2020

For Type 2 Diabetes "Started taking Ozempic, and my blood sugars haven't been this good in 10 years, but the gastric problems were horrible, no sleep, waking up every night with reflux and the stinky gas. Medication just isn't for everyone, it's a shame because it works so good and fast."

• D J...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 29, 2019

For Type 2 Diabetes "I am on week 6. First 4 doses at .25, and now the second week of .5. I've had the constipation but have learned to just take a laxative once a day with my metformin. This drug brought my sugar down from the 600s to the 90s in 5 weeks. I had an A1C of 17.1, I'm now down to a 9 and can't wait for my next reading. Yes, the cramping and gas have been bad at times, but I'm hoping it mellows out. But for me, it has saved my life more than likely."

• kat...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 2, 2019

For Type 2 Diabetes "Week 4 injection of Ozempic will be today, and so far, feeling really good! (Prior med kept me sick, headachy, and depressed for months.) The slight nausea at the beginning stopped in less than a week. I have NO appetite. Good mostly but hard to get all the meals and nutrition I need. If I overeat, I get a sour stomach. Great incentive not to overeat! I have more gas, but take OTC meds for it. My blood sugars are much lower and right on target. I'll get another A1c in 2 weeks. No scales, but I'm losing weight. Clothes are looser, stomach is flatter. I'm supposed to double the dose today from .25 to .5, and I'm scared to! I feel so good, and I don't want that to change! This stuff is expensive, though! Yikes! Even with my insurance. Not sure how long I can afford it, and I don't qualify for their financial help."

• ACD...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 27, 2023

For Weight Loss (Obesity/Overweight) "I have experienced severe gas, belching, flatulence, moderate nausea all night, not heartburn but feels like seasickness, and moderate constipation. Have had about a 7-pound weight loss in a month. Simple to use with no problems injecting or at the injection site."