Docs see patients reporting irritability and loss of drive. The answer may lie in dopamine, the brain’s reward system
“I don’t feel like doing anything now — I just sit quietly.”
This 60-year-old retired govt teacher from Delhi has been on GLP-1 drugs for more than a year to manage diabetes. The marked appetite loss was expected, but as the months went by, irritability set in along with lethargy and subsequent lack of motivation to do even routine activities. To those who knew her, it seemed like a personality change. A six-month gap in medication while she was in the US briefly lifted her spirits. But as her blood sugar, and weight, rose, she went back to her semaglutide medication. That shed the kilos, but the symptoms returned.
A 58-year-old Chennai resident who started weight loss drugs seemed to “always feel low on battery” as the weeks went by. Brisk walks he once enjoyed began to feel like a burden. His weight dropped a good 8kg, but higher doses brought nausea and weakness. Only after upping protein intake and adjusting GLP-1 dose did he begin to feel “normal” again. A 68-year-old CA from Delhi continues to work long hours while on GLP-1 drugs, but admits to feeling “lethargic”, with a tendency to delay tasks.
This 60-year-old retired govt teacher from Delhi has been on GLP-1 drugs for more than a year to manage diabetes. The marked appetite loss was expected, but as the months went by, irritability set in along with lethargy and subsequent lack of motivation to do even routine activities. To those who knew her, it seemed like a personality change. A six-month gap in medication while she was in the US briefly lifted her spirits. But as her blood sugar, and weight, rose, she went back to her semaglutide medication. That shed the kilos, but the symptoms returned.
A 58-year-old Chennai resident who started weight loss drugs seemed to “always feel low on battery” as the weeks went by. Brisk walks he once enjoyed began to feel like a burden. His weight dropped a good 8kg, but higher doses brought nausea and weakness. Only after upping protein intake and adjusting GLP-1 dose did he begin to feel “normal” again. A 68-year-old CA from Delhi continues to work long hours while on GLP-1 drugs, but admits to feeling “lethargic”, with a tendency to delay tasks.