When Caley Svensson, a 41-year-old content creator, first started taking the weight-loss drug Mounjaro in July 2022, she kept mum about it.
If friends asked her explicitly if she was using a GLP-1 medication to shed pounds, she would be honest — but she often felt judged. Some pals made comments about how they could never give themselves a shot or asked if it was just another dangerous diet fad.
“It was like speed, no one thought this was a good solution,” said Svensson, who lives in Park Ridge, New Jersey.
Now, Svensson said, it seems like nearly everyone has gotten off their high horse — often to get on the medications themselves.
Like being in therapy, taking antidepressants or getting Botox, using weight-loss medications such as Ozempic and Mounjaro has gone from being a secretive and sometimes shameful practice to being considered chic. In certain circles everyone seems to be on them — so much so that it’s almost a badge of honor.
“All the friends who judged me for it, half of them are on it now,” said Svensson, who has lost over 90 pounds. “The dirty little secrets people used to have to stay thin, rich, and healthy, they are now out in the open.”
Morgan Stanley Research estimates that 24 million people in the US — roughly 7% of the population — will be taking these drugs by 2035.
Tyler McLoughlin, 32, who lives in Brooklyn and works as an associate director for student life at CUNY, likes the famous and fabulous connotations around the medications.
“All the Real Housewives are taking it, all the celebrities are taking it,” said McLoughlin, who has been on a semaglutide — the class of GLP-1s that include Ozempic and Wegovy — since October. “It kind of makes me feel more established because I’m doing the same thing as celebrities are doing.”
He is also ecstatic about his new body. His 5-foot-7 frame has gone from 185 to 150 pounds.
“I was just in Miami this past weekend, and this is the first time in my whole life I felt comfortable wearing a Speedo,” he said. “I just feel so excited and so proud.”
Archana Pinnapureddy, a 43-year-old tech entrepreneur, isn’t just open about the fact that she’s been taking tirzepatide, a drug whose brand names include Mounjaro and Zepbound, for the past year, she openly promotes the fact.
She posts about it on her social media channels and tells everyone she meets how great the medication has been for her.
“I am very happy with it. It has given me this new power, that I can be my best self. I can even fit into my college clothes again,” she said. “You also save money on food and alcohol because you aren’t eating and drinking as much when you go out.”
Pinnapureddy, who is 5-foot-1, has gone from 142 pound to 106 pounds. Her twin sister has had similar results.
“[We] joke that we are walking ads for this medication,” she enthused. “I’ve encouraged so many people to get on it. Some people I referred it to dropped 15 pounds in a month.”
Nicholas Salza, 31 and a 911 dispatcher in Fairfield, CT, has been on tirzepatide since August 2024 and lost 125 pounds. He doesn’t understand why anyone would hide or feel shame about something that can be such a boost to health.
“Why wouldn’t you do something to help yourself, especially after failing in so many diets and workouts or committing to the gym for a couple of weeks and not sticking to it?” he said. “When something works, why wouldn’t you spread awareness to people who may be going through the same thing?”
Pinnapureddy notes that even if she wanted to keep mum about being on a GLP-1, it would be a challenge.
“I feel like it’s kind of obvious that you’re on them if you were never skinny and all of a sudden boom, you’re thin,” she said. “It’s rare that you can do that especially if you’re in your late ‘30s and ‘40s.”
