After prescribing Saxenda for 6 months,

this is my honest take

These days, diet inquiries

are in a sharp seasonal rise.

Today, I’ll give you a complete overview of Saxenda.

Including yo-yo effects... and more.

What I felt while prescribing it myself,

cases where it worked well, and

even cases that were disappointing,

I’ll walk you through calmly.

First, let’s go over

the three questions people ask most.

Q. Saxenda,

does it really help you lose weight?

A. Yes, it does. But not everyone

loses at the same speed.

Q. Is Saxenda

different from appetite suppressants?

A. Yes, it is. Its mechanism of action

is from a completely different class.

Q. If you stop Saxenda,

do you gain weight again?

A. It depends on how you manage afterward.

This is actually the most important point.

Starting with what Saxenda is,

briefly

Saxenda is a GLP-1 receptor agonist.

Put simply, it’s a medication that mimics

a hormone our body secretes after meals.

This hormone sends satiety signals to the brain

and helps regulate insulin secretion.

In other words, it artificially increases satiety

to help you eat less.

Many people misunderstand this, but

Saxenda is not a drug that

directly melts fat.

This difference plays a very important role

later when deciding the treatment direction.

Unlike conventional psychotropic appetite suppressants,

it has no dependency risk, and

can be prescribed long-term—

one of its biggest advantages.

Cases with good results,

in my experience

To be honest, Saxenda

doesn’t work equally well for everyone.

Looking back at my prescribed cases,

people who responded well

shared some common traits.

1 People who find appetite control especially difficult

2 People with recurring late-night eating or binge patterns

3 People with frequent blood sugar spikes

4 People with BMI 27+ and weight-related conditions

But there’s one key point here.

It’s the speed of dose escalation.

You should start at 0.6 mg and increase slowly,

but if you rush and increase too quickly,

nausea can worsen and lead to quitting.

I usually monitor side effects

and raise the dose very gradually.

If you rush, you actually lose out.

Director Kim Gaeul’s practical note:

In my experience, for people with no response

by week 4 after starting,

continuing long-term prescriptions often

does not make a major difference in outcomes.

Also, Saxenda is not a drug that

loses weight for you;

it is a supportive tool to aid dietary control.

If you only take the medication and keep

the same eating habits, effectiveness drops greatly.

The downside is cost.

Since it is not inexpensive,

you should decide with

your own commitment in mind.

As for side effects, this part is somewhat unfortunate:

the most common side effects of Saxenda are

gastrointestinal discomfort.

1 Nausea (queasiness)

2 Vomiting and heartburn

3 Constipation or diarrhea

4 Lethargy

In most cases, as the body adapts,

these improve within 2–4 weeks.

However, if you have a history of pancreatitis

or a family history of medullary thyroid cancer,

it cannot be prescribed.

During consultation,

you must tell us about this.

Is it true that you gain weight again

when you stop?

This is the question I get most often.

To be honest,

when you stop Saxenda, your appetite returns.

Since the drug no longer provides

satiety signaling, that’s a natural phenomenon.

So those who use the Saxenda period

as “a time to build my own healthy eating pattern”

are the ones who ultimately succeed.

When I prescribe,

I don’t just give medication.

We set a taper plan together—

when to reduce the dose

and how to stop step by step.

If you stop suddenly,

there can be rebound.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. During the day,

when is the best time to inject?

A. Regardless of mealtime, inject yourself daily

at about the same time each day.

Inject into areas with subcutaneous fat, like the abdomen or thigh,

and refrigerate it as a rule.

Q2. Compared with Wegovy,

how is it different?

A. They are in the same class, but

Wegovy is a once-weekly injection, making it more convenient, and

greater weight reduction has also been reported.

As for whether prescribing is currently possible in Korea,

I’ll confirm again when you visit.

Q3. Even without diabetes,

can I still use it?

A. Yes, it is officially approved

for obesity treatment purposes as well.

Through a simple medical questionnaire,

we can check whether it is suitable.

Saxenda is an excellent tool, but

ultimately, the key is your own eating habits.

If you have questions, feel free to

contact us via KakaoTalk or phone.

You can also ask before visiting.

This was Kim Gaeul.

✦ Read together

• Botox in Seoul Hongdae/Hapjeong: Why is a clinic where the director injects directly different?

• Ulthera results: How many shots do you need to see effects?

• Hongdae Water Glow injection: 5 things you must know before the procedure

• 5 criteria for choosing a Hongdae dermatology clinic, explained directly by a specialist

• Facial aging after rapid dieting: Can lifting solve it?