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Posted 8/16/2007 2:50 PM (GMT 0)
Hi I am new to this forum and have just started byetta, I would like to know the average weight loss expeceted from use. I currently weigh 315lbs and Im 6'1 I exersise daily. I use to weigh 400lbs when i was diagnosed 2 years ago. Any help would be great and I look foward to chatting with new friends with the same condition.
Posted 8/16/2007 2:51 PM (GMT 0)
I am also type 2.
Posted 8/16/2007 3:20 PM (GMT 0)

Welcome to Healing Well and the Diabetes Forum. I am just here to welcome you but I am sure members with experience with your medication will be along soon.

You have joined a wonderful group of supportive and caring members.

Stay with us and keep posting. :)

Posted 8/16/2007 4:06 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Lugie and welcome to the Diabetes Forum.  There are several byetta users here and hopefully they'll be around soon so you can connect with them and share experience about your medication.  I don't use any meds for diabetes but have to follow my blood sugar readings because they will rise according to the carbs in food.  What kind of an eating plan do you have?  Stay with us!


Posted 8/16/2007 5:41 PM (GMT 0)

Hi Lugie,

Well, if you have just started Byetta, then you are probably on a 5mg dose.  At that level, historically, we haven't seen many people lose weight at all!  Its usually only when you step up to the 10mg dose that you get violently nauseous and lose weight.  Do you lose weight from the constant nausea during the initial adjustment period or do you lose weight do the the delayed stomach emptying that the drug causes?  This is a good question and one that no one has a real handle on right now.  We suspect that the real sustained weight loss is due to the delayed stomach emptying.  NOW, to predict how much weight you lose due to this effect or any of the other effects that the drug has on you is going to be nearly impossible.

HOWEVER, the last 3 years of intense research by Lilly have shown that there is somewhere between a 5%-10% bodyweight loss during the first 6months to a year. I've been on 10mg of byetta for over a year and I haven't dropped any weight, but I also didn't ever go through the nausea that most people experience.

So now that I've told you that there really isn't a definitive answer to your question, I hope this helps!

scool Warren
Posted 8/16/2007 8:32 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Lugie,
I have been on Byetta since April 2...I have lost 42 pounds. I am very pleased with this result but have notice the last month my appetite is creeping back up. I actually had no hunger feeling at all at the beginning and it wasn't from the nausea, I just always felt full. Oh well I'm still sticking with it because this is actually alot of fun for me and so different than since I was diagnosed about 8 years ago. Watching my weight and A1C go down is rewarding.
Good Luck to you.
Patti
Posted 8/17/2007 12:34 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks for all the help, I am on 5mcg. I did feel real nervous the 1st and 2nd day after injections for about 2 hours. My appetite is totally gone and I have to almost force myself to eat, since this is my first week I hope this subsides. My sugar levels have been 95 to 115 consitenly. Again thanks for the help!

(Lugie, your post was duplicated, so I deleted the second one.  It was identical, so nothing was lost.)

Post Edited By Moderator (lanieg) : 8/16/2007 6:48:48 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 8/18/2007 12:09 AM (GMT 0)
REAL BAD DAY today I was very tired the whole day my sugar levels where fine. Has this happened to anyone else?
Posted 8/18/2007 3:15 AM (GMT 0)
Hi, Lugie, and welcome. I , too am new to the forum. Everyone here is pretty great. I started byetta the first part of June. My readings weren't going down the way my doc wanted so she moved me to the 10mcg pen in July. Until that point I hadn't lost any weight. Well, I lost 10 lbs. the one week I was on the 10 pen. I had a horrible time with vomiting and diarrhea. I do private in home tutoring, working with kids all day and there was no way I could function with that. So the doc let me go back to the 5 pen. But the readings still didn't move and no more weight loss. Then after reading so much on the forum about eating a really true low carb diet (some of them like to refer to it as the "caveman diet" :) ) and I decided to try that. And , boy oh boy, have my numbers come down...in just a few days! And I'm starting to lose some weight. I'm hoping to keep this up so I don't have to graduate to the 10 pen. And I am working on adding the 30 minutes a day of exercise. I'm also on another blog that is totally devoted to byetta users and they can give you lots of support and answers to your questions there, too. I think if you google byetta you will be able to find the blog. Good luck and keep us posted.
Posted 8/24/2007 2:21 PM (GMT 0)
yeah  Lost 16lbs so far!! Go Byetta
Posted 8/24/2007 2:38 PM (GMT 0)
Congratulations!  How have your blood sugar levels been?  With the weight loss and positive feelings I'll bet you have more energy to keep on the right track.   yeah      Are you getting any exercise?

Posted 8/25/2007 4:32 PM (GMT 0)
Just to clarify...I wasn't losing anything on the 5mcg. pen...it wasn't until I started the low carb thing that the numbers came down and the weight has been coming off. I just don't want to go through what I did on the 10 mcg. pen being so sick...and that's when I lost 10 of the pounds...vomiting has a way of doing that. I really credit change in lifestyle and diet! I hope that eventually the doc will say, drop the pen.
Posted 9/5/2007 7:49 PM (GMT 0)
17lbs and dropping I also walk 3 miles a day and weight train 4 days a week. I have had a spike in energy since byetta. The only side effect so far has been bruising from injection site, all in all Im very pleased yeah
Posted 9/5/2007 8:11 PM (GMT 0)
WTG Lugie...congratulations!
Posted 9/7/2007 12:41 AM (GMT 0)

Hi Lugie, I am not a diabetic, my husband is a T1 for 24 yrs. I just wanted to make a couple of suggestions to you if you don't mind.  You were talking about bruising at injection site.  First, my DH was told to vary the site for his injections both legs, arms, belly so no one area took the constant hit.  Second, I was in hospital yrs. ago for gallbladder surgery, the dr. keep me in for a week and  half because he couldn't understand a reaction I had.  I walked each day but still kept on IV so rather limited mobility he ordered Heperin shots for me each day to avoid clots. The nurses would rub the spots on my stomach w/ alcohol swabs before and after the shots.  For 6 wks after surgery my stomach was purple, green, yellow, ugly!!. I mentioned this a while later to a nurse who said, you should lightly clean area before shot, and do not rub after shot. I have been back for other surgery since then and I have told nurses gently before, nothing after and I have not had that bruising on my body.

I really don't know about Byetta, my DH takes Humulin, but I hope this info helps you avoid the bruising.  Hope all good things come your way.  God bless.  Alice

Posted 9/9/2007 2:37 PM (GMT 0)
The bruising has become much less since I have been using multiple sites in the abdomen. This drug is so good at prevent lows and the horrible feeling that goes with them. I really cant say enough good things about byetta. Weight lose constant sugar readings and incresed energy. Thanks again to all for your comments and support.
Posted 12/11/2007 8:51 PM (GMT 0)
Hey Lugie,
Heres my story. In Aug of this year I weighed 385 and was literally miserable and in constant pain.
especially my legs. My doctors nurse mentioned that my pain could be caused from the ZORCOR , I had been taking for Chol levels. Doc removed me from Zocor, and gave me some samples of a new insulin called Levemir. I had been taking 70 units twice a day of Novalin 70/30 . He also prescribed
Byetta which is unusual for a person on insulin, I agreed to try it. On top of all that he ordered a sleep study for apnea, which it turned out that I had as well. The sleep doctor prescribed a CPAP Machine along with an oxygen generator for me to sleep under at night. WOW!! I can't tell you exactly which change made the difference .but here it is in early December and I have lost down to 365 lbs , I have
no pain in my legs my A1C levels are at 7.5 and comming down. I did yard work (raking and blowing leaves) for the last two weekends. Been over two years since I could that. So I'm a happy camper!!!!
Posted 3/22/2008 2:23 PM (GMT 0)
Update my weight has dropped to 272 since my last post. I have stayed on my exersise program anf continue byetta and glumetza. My Doc thinks we my try comung off meds in may to see how my body reacts since my A1C has been below 6 for over a year. My question is has anyone tryed to come off meds with success? I would like to know. Thanks
Posted 3/22/2008 2:25 PM (GMT 0)
Sorry for the spelling But if anyone has any input please share.
Posted 3/22/2008 3:38 PM (GMT 0)
Lugie,
Don't worry about your spelling. All spelling police are banned from HealingWell tongue !
I have been able to stop taking my Lantus insulin as well as my Avandia by modifying my food plan to nothing white but cauliflower. By taking the obvious starches out of my diet I've lost about 45 lbs and had better sugars, to the point that I had to stop the Lantus because of my numbers going too low. I still have diabetes and I still need metformin to help move the glucose into my cells but I'm doing much better than I was previously when I was eating carbs.

Since diabetes is a metabolic disease you should see better numbers with lower weight, less food and more exercise. The byetta and glumetza have been helping with this. It's possible that you may get to the point of no longer needing meds but you will still have diabetes. Right now you are using medications to help your body use carbohydrates properly. If you can get to a point where the exercise and food plan balance out your body's metabolic handling you might be able to do it. If so, hurray! If not, that's ok, too. Whatever it takes to defeat this disease's progress on your body's organs is what you must do.

And also, keep on checking your sugars even if you go off meds. You don't want this thing to come back and bite you on the bum when you arent' looking. Congratulations on your great weight loss. Hang in there buddy! You are an inspiration to us all!
Posted 3/23/2008 1:12 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks Jeannie
Posted 3/31/2008 10:46 PM (GMT 0)
Hello all. Type 2 diabetic for 24 yrs and recently started byetta. I am so sick in the a.m.'s always vommiting I can't seem to kick this. I have however lost 14 pounds yay!! I am interested in seeing what my next AIC will be. My sugars are ranging from the 130's-70's. My appetite is deff impressing me. I am not tempted to have seconds or dessert most of the time.
Posted 4/9/2008 11:57 AM (GMT 0)
Hi there,

I am new to the forum and newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. I started metformin right away followed with my new doc and Byetta a week later.
I have been on Byetta now for two weeks. The side effects have been unusual to say the very least.

In the beginning I have had mild nausea with the current dose of 5 mcg BID. But the first time I experienced a cold moment was way too unusual. I wasn't sure what was happening.
I was cold to my core. I couldn't seem to warm up at all and I felt so sick. I was sure I was having a severe reaction the the medication Byetta.

I went to the ER and my BP was 180/110 Pulse was 106. They covered me with blankets and talked with me for some time about the medication and the possible side effect profile.
There can be an adjustment period. Or there can be symptoms you never get over.

They believed that I had symptoms and freaked. They believed it started and a reaction and ended with a severe panic attack.

So two weeks later? I still have some nausea/ The blood sugars are not where I want them to be. They seem all over the place. But to the order of the conversation of the page?

I have lost 11 pounds since I started the Byetta.

Thanks for listening..or is it reading? hmmmmm... Anyway It's nice to be here.
Posted 4/20/2008 1:53 AM (GMT 0)
A.B when I started Byetta it was tough the first couple of weeks I was sick to mu stomach and felt nervous almost panicky at times but it all went away after two weeks, I hope it works out for you. Dont get discouraged you can get on top of your condition the other tip is dont skip meals even though byetta will decrease your hunger. Good luck and go for a walk everyday.
Posted 4/20/2008 10:36 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks lugie-

I appreciate you taking the time to give me the 411.

I am a couch potatoe and have lots of changes to make.

One step at a time right?

Thanks again
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