Wegovy
- Active ingredient
- semaglutide
- Class
- GLP-1 receptor agonist
- Route
- Once-weekly subcutaneous injection
- Maker
- Novo Nordisk
Educational only. This is educational, not medical advice. Everyone's body responds differently. Talk to your clinician before starting, stopping, changing, or tapering any medication, and work with your physician and a registered dietitian to personalize your approach.
Overview
Wegovy is the weight-management brand of semaglutide, the same GLP-1 receptor agonist as Ozempic but dosed for obesity treatment. It reduces appetite and food noise, slows gastric emptying, and increases fullness.
It is approved as part of a chronic-disease model of obesity care: a long-term treatment paired with lifestyle change, not a short course. That framing matters for what happens when people stop.
Approval and use
| Approved for | Chronic weight management in adults and adolescents with obesity or overweight with a weight-related condition |
| Weight use | On-label: Wegovy is approved specifically for weight management. |
Typical titration (informational)
Wegovy uses a multi-month escalation, typically starting at 0.25 mg weekly and stepping up roughly monthly toward a 2.4 mg maintenance dose.
The pace and target dose are individualized by the prescriber to balance benefit and side effects.
Shown for background only; dosing decisions belong to you and your clinician.
Expected timeline
In the STEP trials, semaglutide 2.4 mg produced average weight loss around 15 percent of body weight over 68 weeks, with most loss in the first several months and a plateau after.
Common side effects
- Nausea, especially during dose escalation
- Constipation and diarrhea
- Vomiting
- Headache and fatigue
- Gallbladder-related events (less common)
What happens when you stop Wegovy
A landmark trial extension showed the stakes of stopping clearly: after 68 weeks of semaglutide producing 17.3 percent weight loss, people switched to placebo regained about 11.6 percent, even while maintaining a 500 kcal/day deficit and exercise.
Stopping lifts the brake on appetite hormones while metabolic rate stays suppressed. The result is protracted regain that plateaus near 60 to 75 percent of lost weight by a year. The first 3 to 6 months are the highest-risk window to defend with habits.
Cost
Cash price has historically been around or above a thousand dollars a month; insurance coverage for weight management is uneven. Manufacturer savings programs may apply. Verify current pricing.
Frequently asked questions
How much weight comes back after stopping Wegovy?
In the STEP extension, people regained roughly two-thirds of their lost weight within about a year of stopping. Regain is physiology (appetite-hormone rebound plus a lowered metabolic rate), not a personal failure. Educational only, not medical advice.
Is Wegovy meant to be taken forever?
Obesity is treated as a chronic condition, so many people stay on therapy long-term, while others taper or stop with their clinician. What you do at the off-ramp, and the habits you build first, shapes whether the loss lasts.
Sources & further reading
Every claim on this page is drawn from peer-reviewed research, clinical trials, or recognized health authorities. Read the source before making any decision about your health.
- [1]Weight Reduction with GLP-1 Agonists and Paths for Discontinuation While Maintaining Weight LossNIH/PMC
- [2]Trajectory of weight regain after cessation of GLP-1 receptor agonists: a systematic review and nonlinear meta-regressionNIH/PMC
- [3]Rebound or Retention: A Meta-Analysis of Weight Regain After Discontinuation of GLP-1 Receptor AgonistsNIH/PMC