Image courtesy of NHLBI.
Ozempic can bring a lot to your life, a leaner body, lower blood sugar levels, and sometimes, unfortunate side effects. Side effects come with just about every medication, and so are often unavoidable when getting treatment, but knowing about them ahead of time can make you feel prepared for what’s to come. That way, there won’t likely be any major surprises, which will help you stay comfortable. Some of Ozempic’s potential side effects, like insomnia, are still under investigation.
Getting enough sleep is really important, and some medications can mess with that process, Ozempic potentially being one of them. Losing some sleep can already lead to bad outcomes, but when lack of sleep becomes chronic, it can be difficult to deal with, and bring a host of other issues with it. When you’re working on losing weight or tending to your diabetes, one of the last things you want is to then lose sleep, causing a new set of problems. But can Ozempic actually cause insomnia? We have that answer for you, and more, below.
What Is Ozempic?
Ozempic is a diabetes and weight loss drug that can givelead people to the results they want pretty quickly. For people with type II diabetes, Ozempic regulates their blood sugar, a function their bodies can no longer perform by themselves. And for people with high BMIs, Ozempic helps them lose weight. This medication comes as a once weekly injection that you take at home. It comes in a small pen that you can hold in your palm, and the doctor that prescribes it to you will give you a demonstration before you go.
The active ingredient in Ozempic is called semaglutide. Semaglutide is a substance that makes the pancreas produce insulin. So when the pancreas isn’t producing insulin the way it should, taking Ozempic can make it function the way it should again. And through its functions, this active ingredient also suppresses the appetite, which causes weight loss. With a highly suppressed appetite, people who take Ozempic can’t eat as much as they normally would, and it causes them to lose a bunch of weight.
Ozempic is a drug that has been approved by the FDA since 2017 and has been featured in ads and editorials across TV and magazines ever since its effects became known. It is quite popular among celebrities, and is now used consistently by the average person with diabetes or weight loss needs. Ozempic is seen by many as a more effective than average weight loss drug than the average weight loss drug, and there is no denying the results it can earn you. It can also come with different side effects, some that there isn’t yet much information on.
How Does Ozempic Work?
Ozempic works as a glucagon-like peptide that replaces a function that the GLP-1 in the body no longer performs. It is a GLP-1 agonist, and it replaces the body’s natural GLP-1 to prompt insulin production. It specifically makes the pancreas secrete more insulin to control blood sugar levels. It overall reduces the chances of having a weight related illness. And with the reduced chances of heart attack, stroke, high blood sugar, it also lowers the appetite. This is what leads to the significant weight loss that people experience when they take Ozempic.
The way that GLP-1 agonists lower the appetite is by inducing a feeling of fullness. And when a person feels full more often, they are tempted to eat a whole lot less. Ozempic eliminates the portion control issues that people who struggle to lose weight often experience. This function is performed when Ozempic raises the hormone levels in the body and gives the brain fullness signals. Another thing that GLP-1 agonists do is slow the digestion process. That is another thing that causes that full feeling in the stomach. The higher the dose of Ozempic you take, the stronger its effects will be.
Ozempic must be administered weekly in order to properly work. It also needs to be injected underneath the skin. It is best injected in the thighs, in the arms, and in the abdomen. The abdomen is said to be the best injection spot, but you should ideally change the injection spot every time you use it. Not changing the injection site can cause skin irritation in the area.
Ozempic’s Side Effects
Ozempic can come with one or several side effects that can range from mild to severe. Some potential side effects happen to be rare, and some are quite common and can affect a large number of people on Ozempic. The most common side effects users experience tend to involve digestive issues. Those issues include nausea most commonly, and then comes vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and constipation. These symptoms most commonly happen at the start of treatment, and end as your body adjusts to the medication. You are also likely to experience these symptoms each time you up your dosage as well, and also when you eat more than you can handle.
Ozempic can also cause dizziness, fatigue, and low blood sugar. Low blood sugar on Ozempic isn’t likely, but if you don’t get enough food in your system, Ozempic’s ability to lower the blood sugar can cause that. A rare but potentially serious side effect from Ozempic can be thyroid cancer. You will be most at risk for this side effect if your family has a history of thyroid cancer, but if they don’t, the risk is unlikely but still good to watch out for.
Ozempic can also cause skin related side effects due to the rapid weight loss it causes. Rapid weight loss can come with some effects, and one of the most noticeable ones is sagging skin. How much your skin sags after losing weight on Ozempic will depend on how much weight you have to lose, and how quickly you lose it. The places where you hold the most weight are also the most likely to sag. And that’s where monikers like “Ozempic face” or “Ozempic butt” come from. Those are the body parts people tend to hold the most fat in, and so those parts tend to be affected most by this side effect.
Ozempic can potentially cause malnutrition, although it isn’t likely. Since it makes you lose your appetite, it could cause you to eat a lot less than you should. This can be avoided by making sure to get the nutrients you need in small, spaced out quantities. Malnutrition can lead to fatigue, as well, and so fatigue can indirectly be caused by Ozempic. Without enough nutrition your body can’t make energy which can make you feel fatigued. This can also be avoided by making sure to eat adequate meals.
What Is Insomnia?
Insomnia is a sleep disorder that causes people to struggle with falling asleep. This condition can be one that comes and goes or one that sticks around, and each version can be really difficult to live with. Insomnia can be caused by many different things, and some of those things are anxiety, depression, asthma, cancer, pain, or medication. There is also insomnia that isn’t caused by any particular medical condition. It can also be caused by external factors like bright lights, noise, temperature, and bad sleeping habits.
Insomnia can manifest in different ways. There is sleep onset insomnia, sleep maintenance insomnia, mixed insomnia, and paradoxical insomnia. Sleep onset insomnia causes you to have trouble falling asleep, sleep maintenance insomnia is when you have trouble staying asleep through the night, mixed insomnia is when you have trouble falling and staying asleep, and paradoxical insomnia is when you believe that you sleep a lot less than you actually do.
Can Ozempic Cause Insomnia?
There are conflicting reports about Ozempic and its connection to insomnia. There are people who report having issues sleeping on Ozempic, and also people who report having an easier time sleeping on it. And that can depend on the reasons why someone is suffering from insomnia in the first place. Someone who has insomnia because of their weight issues can see their ability to sleep improve, while someone who is struggling with a particular side effect of Ozempic can see their ability to sleep suffer for a while. It all depends on the factor that is causing the insomnia, and Ozempic can improve some of those factors, and worsen others.
Ozempic may or may not be the cause of your insomnia, but you can work to treat some of the health issues you suffer from that can lead to it. Some of the things that lead to insomnia can be manageable through certain methods, like taking supplements. And some of those methods can include natural substances that bring benefits that can potentially counteract insomnia causing side effects.
Dr Emil’s easy dose supplement is a natural sleep aid that can help adults suffering from insomnia. It offers an extra strength dose of 5HTP, valerian root, melatonin, St. John’s Wort, passion flower extract, and other natural substances that can help with sleep. It can help you fall asleep fast using premium ingredients.
On top of the symptoms dealing with insomnia, 5HTP can help with binge eating and headaches, valerian root eases anxiety and restlessness, melatonin can treat anxiety, and St.John’s Wort can treat mild to moderate depression. Each of these functions combine to form a powerful sleep aid supplement that could provide people suffering from insomnia while using Ozempic some relief.
Ozempic and insomnia won’t necessarily come together, unless you suffer side effects from Ozempic that can lead to insomnia. And even if you have certain side effects, it doesn’t automatically mean insomnia. Whether you suffer from insomnia when using Ozempic can depend on a few different factors working together.
