What midlife women need to know about weight loss injections
The rise of the weight loss injection trend
They’re everywhere—on social media, in celebrity interviews, even advertised in local pharmacies. Weight loss injections like Ozempic, Monjaro and Wegovy have become the latest go-to for women desperate to shed pounds. And with headlines, influencers, and even government websites acknowledging the surge in demand, it’s easy to see why women in midlife are curious.
But what’s behind the hype?
And more importantly—what’s the cost?
In this week’s episode of Women’s Health Unwrapped, I explored what’s really going on behind the rise of these weight loss drugs, and why the promise of quick weight loss is so appealing to women, especially in midlife. The truth? It’s less about health and more about what we’ve been conditioned to believe about our worth.
The weight = Worth myth
So many women have spent years—decades, even—believing that being thinner will make them more confident, more attractive, more successful, more accepted. That thinness is the goal. That happiness is on the other side of a smaller dress size.
It’s not. I spent most of my adult life trying to find health and happiness through my size, only to realise I’d wasted years obsessing over the wrong route to achieve them.
From a young age, we’re taught—by culture, media, marketing, even our own families—that how we look is who we are. That slim means healthy and being normal, and that gaining weight means you’ve let yourself go, and often with it, the belief you aren’t good enough. This messaging is deeply ingrained, and it fuels a cycle of diet after diet, self-judgement, and shame. What we’re not told is that weight is not the best indicator of health. And that chasing it without looking at the bigger picture can do more harm than good—in lots of ways.
It’s said that a woman spends an average of 18 years of her life dieting.
Losing weight might be a health goal for you, and that’s okay. The key is to lose weight by embedding sustainable healthy habits into your life, so that you’re building short and long-term health, as opposed to losing weight in a way that isn’t serving your overall health and wellbeing.
What these drugs actually do—and why it matters
GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic were originally developed to manage type 2 diabetes. They work by mimicking a hormone that regulates blood sugar, digestion and appetite—making you feel fuller, faster, and less hungry overall.
But many women now accessing these drugs aren’t doing it to manage a medical condition. They’re doing it to lose weight. Quickly. And often, without medical supervision. They don’t meet the criteria that these drugs are licensed to be prescribed for—a BMI over 30 (35 for Mounjaro), or a BMI over 27 with weight-related conditions such as high blood pressure, heart disease or sleep apnoea to be eligible. (1)
This is where it becomes risky—not just physically, but psychologically.
Because when you associate your value with your weight, losing it can feel euphoric. But the side effects, the loss of muscle mass, the hormonal disruption, the likelihood of regaining it all when the injections stop, none of that builds confidence or lasting health.
Thin doesn’t equal healthy
You can be slim and inflamed. Slim and exhausted. Slim and malnourished. You can lose weight and still have poor sleep, unmanaged stress, a raging critical mind, nutrient deficiencies, and a hormone system that’s out of balance, especially in perimenopause and menopause.
But diet culture doesn’t tell you that.
It tells you that if you just work harder, restrict more, shrink further, you’ll finally be happy. And we’re seeing that messaging echoed in how these injections are being used. Social media is fuelling the desperation many midlife women have to shed their menopause weight gain, and injecting themselves with something to curb their appetite and remove the need to make change—which we all know isn’t easy—appears as the perfect answer.
Women deserve better. And I believe it starts with education.
Midlife, menopause and the shift we need
Midlife brings real biological changes. Hormones shift, metabolism slows, and our bodies naturally change shape, depositing fat across our abdomen and hips. But instead of embracing this as a transition, we’re sold fear—and a jab. And in doing so, we ignore the deeper work. We skip over the habits that actually support our health long term. We chase thinness instead of building strength, energy, and resilience.
Midlife isn’t the time to punish your body. It’s the time to understand it, support it, and learn to work with it—not against it.
Weight loss injectables such as Ozempic, Mounjaro, and Wegovy are being sourced outside of the licensed usage to quickly lose weight by many women, including celebrities.
What we need more of
We need less focus on BMI and more on BMS—Better Movement, Sleep, and Stress management.
We need conversations about how to eat for energy, strength and hormones—not just for weight loss.
We need women to stop judging themselves by a number and start asking: How do I feel? What do I want for my future? What would actually make me well?
Because when health is rooted in self-worth—not self-loathing—we create change that lasts.
A better vision for your second half
Close your eyes and picture the future you want—five, ten years from now. Where are you? Who are you with? How do you feel? Why is it important to feel this way?
That future isn’t built on injections.
It’s built on the way you nourish your mind and body. The way you speak to yourself. The way you move, rest, eat, and connect.
You don’t need to shrink to be worthy. You need to believe you’re already enough, and treat yourself like you are.
Midlife isn’t the end. It’s the beginning of your healthiest, most empowered chapter yet. You just need to turn the page and write the chapter in a way that takes you to the kind of ending you dream and desire having.
What if you choose to use weight loss injections?
These drugs are licensed for use for Type-2 Diabetes and Obesity. If you meet the licensed criteria and are contemplating whether these drugs might help you to lose weight and improve your health, a few call-outs to help you make the right decision for you, and to protect your health and wellbeing are:
Always seek advice and any prescription for these weight loss drugs from a qualified doctor or consultant. There are lots of ‘medically qualified’ people in the UK prescribing these drugs who are not adhering to the licensed usage. Do your homework.
Make sure you receive thorough and clear advice on using them, the side effects, and the risks, along with guidance on how to improve your habits and lifestyle so that your goals are achieved in a way that is sustainable beyond the use of the weight loss injections.
Building a diet that is nutritionally dense and balanced should be a top priority alongside using the injections—focus on quality protein sources and the right amount each day for your weight; healthy fats and plenty of fibre from a diverse range of sources—nuts, seeds, fruits, vegetables, beans, whole grains.
Strength training. You must protect your muscle mass as one consequence of using these injections to lose weight is a significant reduction in muscle mass, which is almost impossible to build back after stopping use of the injections.
Seek external coaching support to do the inner work on your habits, mindset, and behaviours so you can address underlying limiting beliefs and thoughts for long-term sustainable habit change.
Your key takeaways:
Weight loss doesn’t automatically equal health or happiness.
Diet culture has convinced women that shrinking is the goal—but real health goes deeper.
Midlife weight changes are normal. You cannot effectively resolve this without a holistic strategic approach.
Quick fixes like injections can come with long-term risks.
When you focus on how you want to feel—not just how you want to look—you’ll build real, lasting wellbeing.
Our goal as women must be to build long-term health to live a long, strong and full life.
Has this changed how you feel about weight loss injections?
I’d love to hear your thoughts—connect with me on Instagram or LinkedIn and drop me a message to share your thoughts.
If you found this helpful, pass it on to a friend. Let’s help more women ditch the quick fixes and embrace a healthier second half.
Sources:
Listen to the podcast episode where I dive deeper into using weight loss injections with Helen Perks:
Like this topic? Find out more with these additional FREE resources:
Find out more about the prescribing guidelines for weight loss injections on the UK Government website.
Take a look at the latest UK findings on rising levels of obesity across adults and children.
Listen to Ozempic expert and bestselling author of the book “Magic Pill’ Johann Hari on Jay Shetty’s On Purpose podcast
Check out an episode of the Women’s Health Unwrapped podcast where I share Why you should never go on a diet again
Ready to ditch dieting?
If you’re ready to stop obsessing over your weight and bouncing from one diet to the next, get started with my FREE guide which will help you build healthy habits such as eating a balanced and satisfying diet—for life. It’s packed with 10 powerful tips to feel energised as you navigate menopause and midlife.
