Mounjaro might be a miracle drug for some – but I could have died after taking it

I’m the kind of person who never has a day off sick, so I knew something was terribly wrong as I picked up the phone to call my GP earlier this year. Within hours, I’d been admitted to hospital, where doctors warned my partner I could end up in the ICU. In acute pain, I couldn’t believe that my desire to lose weight had made me so dangerously ill.

I’ve always struggled with my weight. I was “big boned” at school, and while I tried every diet, from SlimFast shakes to the F Plan, as I grew older, I couldn’t lose any significant amount of weight. By the time I turned 50, I was 20 stone – but accepted that this was just how I was built. And, as a publican, I knew I didn’t help myself by eating the wrong food, often takeaways, at the wrong time.

Covid changed things, however, because with my pub shut down during the lockdowns, I was on my feet much less. After finally reopening, my knees and feet were in immense pain. I thought my body had just got out of the habit of standing for so long each day, and knew the GP would only tell me to lose weight if I went. Diets had never worked for me in the past, and when you have a lot to lose, shedding a pound or two each week can feel really dispiriting.

By March this year, however, the chat in the pub was more and more about GLP-1 weight-loss drugs. One of my customers, for instance, was on them because of diabetes and had lost a lot of weight. And as I sat with a group of friends one night, I realised that all of them were on Mounjaro too, which made me think. Might this be the solution?

After looking at the NHS prescription guidelines, I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be prescribed Mounjaro by my GP because I didn’t have any weight-related health conditions like hypertension or sleep apnoea. A friend, however, told me she’d got it prescribed by an online regulated pharmacy, so I filled out a questionnaire, sent in a couple of photos, and a few days later, my first dose arrived.

She’d given me a discount code, so the medication cost £120 a month, which felt like a good investment in my health. And at first, I was really pleased with just how rapidly my appetite disappeared. I’d spent years thinking constantly about the next meal or snack, but suddenly lost all interest in food, alcohol and even caffeine. I knew some people who’d suffered side effects like headaches or nausea, but I felt really good. Within two weeks, I’d lost 18lbs and was delighted. It felt like a magic cure.

I knew it was important to keep hydrated, so I drank a lot of water and also made sure I ate a couple of small, light meals each day. But by the third week, even something like an egg on toast left me feeling uncomfortable, and the night before my fourth injection, I went out and drank a bit of alcohol for the first time. I also ate some meat and woke up with horrendous stomach pain during the night. Still feeling dreadful the next day, I told myself it was either just a hangover, or maybe a flare-up of the IBS I’d been diagnosed with years before, and took my fourth dose as usual.

For the next couple of days, I carried on working, but still felt very unwell. Then, in the early hours of the second night, I started being sick and was throwing up food I’d eaten days before. I felt so ill when I woke up the next morning that I called the GP and was given an urgent appointment.

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This was in late April. By then, there was growing awareness that Mounjaro could cause pancreatitis in rare cases. When my GP told me it could be fatal and that I needed to get to hospital immediately, I could hardly believe what I was hearing.

The next few hours are a bit of a blur. A friend drove me to the hospital where my partner met me, and by then I was feeling scared. Soon admitted to a ward, I was put on a drip, as well as having blood tests. By now, my urine was neon yellow, and the whites of my eyes were yellow too. Later in the day, I was diagnosed with acute pancreatitis, and doctors told my partner that I may end up in the ICU.

Thankfully, that didn’t happen, but it took nine days to stabilise me – and all the doctors seemed to assume that Mounjaro had most likely caused the pancreatitis. I was visited by a lot of student doctors because my case was so unusual, and a consultant told me to stop taking the drug immediately.

After having an MRI, I was also told that I would need to have surgery because the scan showed gallstones. The medics didn’t seem to think they had caused the pancreatitis because the stones weren’t loose or trapped, but decided to remove my gallbladder as a precaution.

I was terrified by the prospect of major surgery. I’d never had much more than a cold my whole life... The surgeon told me that while he hoped to do keyhole surgery, my abdomen would need to be opened up if that was not possible, which would mean a long recuperation. I was just disbelieving that it was even happening, to be honest. All this to lose some weight?

Waking up from the surgery, I was relieved to be told they’d been able to do a keyhole procedure and was released from hospital the next day. After a few quiet days at home, I was back on my feet and back to work – eternally grateful that the doctors had looked after me so well. Just six weeks later, the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA) announced they were launching a study after hundreds of people reported developing acute and chronic pancreatitis after taking GLP-1s, including Mounjaro, Wegovy and Ozempic.

Weight-loss jabs have been linked to 10 deaths, and the MHRA is now hoping to identify whether there are any genetic factors which put some people at higher risk of adverse reactions. I’m pleased they are taking action because although pancreatitis seems to be rare, with the number of people now taking these kinds of drugs – many via “unofficial” routes and not under medical supervision as is advised – more and more could be affected, and it’s important that everyone is vigilant.

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A few months on, some good has come out of what happened to me. I’m at peace with my weight and won’t ever try any kind of GLP1 again – however good people say they are. But for those who decide to, I’d urge people to go via their GP to get a prescription so that a full medical history can be taken and any underlying conditions checked, as well as getting symptoms checked out once they start. These drugs are licensed and might have great results for many people, but for others, they could also be fatal.

The pancreas is a small organ, located behind the stomach, that helps with producing digestive enzymes, as well as hormones like insulin. Pancreatitis occurs when the pancreas becomes inflamed and can be chronic – and long term – or acute – and short term. GLP-1 drugs have been linked to both types of pancreatitis and research is ongoing.

The most common cause of chronic pancreatitis is alcohol. Acute pancreatitis is usually caused by either gallstones or alcohol. Other less common causes of chronic pancreatitis include autoimmune disease, a faulty gene and injury, while acute pancreatitis can be caused by certain medications, infections, and high levels of fats or calcium in the blood.

Pancreatitis is a known – but rare – side effect of these drugs. Estimates range that anywhere from one in 100 to one in 10,000 patients develop pancreatitis or gall bladder complications. The MHRA wants to find out if there are genetic reasons why some people are more likely to develop acute pancreatitis. Mounjaro, and other drugs mentioned have been regulated and are advised to be taken under careful supervision and, where possible, prescribed by your doctor or a hospital.

The main symptom of chronic pancreatitis is repeated episodes of abdominal pain, which become more severe and frequent. Long term, there can be damage to the digestive system, weight loss, nausea and yellowing of the eyes and skin. Acute pancreatitis is characterised by sudden and severe abdominal pain. Other symptoms include: nausea and vomiting, indigestion, fever, yellowing of the eyes and skin, tenderness or swelling of the stomach and a fast heartbeat.

Chronic pancreatitis causes permanent damage, but pain relief and lifestyle changes can help manage the condition. Some patients also develop type 3c diabetes. People with acute pancreatitis are admitted to hospital for monitoring and IV fluids to prevent dehydration, as well as painkillers. They may sometimes need oxygen or a nasogastric tube for nutrition, and in some cases, patients also have gallstones or their gallbladder removed.

As told to Megan Lloyd-Davies