Yahoo News Reports of ‘Ozempic Personality’ Are Bubbling Up on Social Media—What to Know
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Some people taking drugs that lead to weight loss, like Ozempic, say the medication impacts their mood.
This led to the term, “Ozempic personality,” which notes that these drugs may cause some to feel depressed and anxious.
Doctors say they see this often in people who lose weight.
There’s been a lot of chatter over the past year about Ozempic and its impact on the body. While the semaglutide medication (the main active ingredient in Ozempic) is technically designed for blood sugar management in people with type 2 diabetes, it’s also used off-label for weight loss—and that’s only fueled its popularity.
With that, reports have swirled around online of people having unexpected side effects of taking Ozempic. The latest: Some say they’re experiencing mood changes in what’s now been dubbed “Ozempic personality.”
Several people online have opened up about going through personality changes. “I have minimal passion for anything, very monotone, and no enthusiasm,” one person wrote on Reddit. “I hear good news I respond with ‘okay.’ Things I enjoy seem to be a chore.” But another said that they feel more “calm” now that they’re on Ozempic. “I’m more optimistic about my future. More content with my present. But I know I both feel and appear calmer to others,” they said. “That might present as my being in a lower mood to some but I am not experiencing it like that.”
Meet the experts: Dina Peralta-Reich, M.D., the director of New York Weight Wellness Medicine; Mir Ali, M.D., a bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA; Steven Batash, M.D., a gastroenterologist and leading physician at Batash Endoscopic Weight Loss
Like all medications, Ozempic has known side effects, some anecdotal (like Ozempic face and Ozempic butt), and others documented on the drug’s website, like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) doesn’t list personality changes as one. Is Ozempic personality real? Doctors break it down.
What is Ozempic and how does it work?
Ozempic is in a class of medications known as GLP-1 agonists and is FDA-approved for blood sugar management in people with type 2 diabetes.
Ozempic mimics the GLP-1 hormone that is released in the gastrointestinal tract when you eat, the FDA explains. GLP-1 prompts the body to produce more insulin, which reduces blood glucose. In higher amounts, GLP-1 interacts with the parts of the brain that reduce appetite and signal a feeling of fullness.
What is Ozempic personality?
“Ozempic personality” isn’t a medical term and, with that, it can be tough to pin down a definition. And, again, this is not a documented side effect. Still, many people who say that their personality has changed since going on Ozempic, or weight loss drugs, report having more feelings of anxiety and depression, a calmer overall mood, are not as interested in activities they used to enjoy, and have a lower-than-usual sex drive.
Common Ozempic side effects
These are the most common side effects of taking Ozempic, according to the FDA:
Nausea
Vomiting
Diarrhea
Abdominal pain
Constipation
How Ozempic affects the brain
Ozempic does a few different things in the brain. “The medication works at the level of the brain in the amygdala, which is the reward system,” says Dina Peralta-Reich, M.D., the director of New York Weight Wellness Medicine. This helps to control cravings for food, she explains.
It may also impact other neurotransmitters like dopamine (which plays a role in pleasure, motivation, and learning) but that’s not clear right now, says Christoph Buettner, M.D., Ph.D., chief of the division of endocrinology at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. Eating and drinking signals to dopamine reward systems, but semaglutide may make people less responsive to those signals, Dr. Buettner points out—it’s just not entirely clear at the moment.
“The GLP-1 medications suppress the appetite but there could be some cross-reactivity to other receptors that affect pleasure,” says Mir Ali, M.D., a bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA.
Jamie Alan, Ph.D., an associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Michigan State University, agrees that more research is needed. “We don’t understand all the neurological effects this drug has,” she says.
Can Ozempic cause personality changes?
Alan says that Ozempic can “potentially” cause personality changes. “Personality changes, as defined by alterations in behavior, mood, or cognition, are not commonly reported side effects of GLP-1 agonists,” Dr. Buettner says. “However, weight loss per se can make people grumpy and less happy as it drains energy.”
If weight loss is extreme, it may raise the risk that someone develops anxiety and depression—temporarily, Dr. Buettner says. “That usually goes away once the weight loss is stable and a person is not losing weight further,” he says.
Dr. Ali agrees. “It’s very common with any kind of weight loss to experience mood and preference changes,” he says. “We see that in our surgical patients. As they lose weight, the hormones in the body change. That can make you feel different and have different highs and lows.”
But this impact can be positive, too. “As weight is shed, heightened self-esteem and confidence may alter how individuals engage with others and perceive themselves,” says Steven Batash, M.D., a gastroenterologist and leading physician at Batash Endoscopic Weight Loss.
Does semaglutide affect mood?
Semaglutide medications like Ozempic may influence someone’s mood, Dr. Peralta-Reich says, although it’s not entirely clear at this time if these changes are a side effect of weight loss or medication. She links this phenomenon to emotional eating. “When people emotionally eat, that’s their coping mechanism,” she says. “When you’re on a GLP-1 medication, that noise is shut down, but then people don’t have that coping mechanism anymore and they’re faced with their emotions.”
Dr. Peralta-Reich says she’s seen patients have different reactions to this. “In some people, it makes them calmer because that food noise is eliminated and they’re able to channel that energy into other things,” she says. But other people can struggle because they no longer have a coping mechanism that they’ve often relied on for years, she says.
“A lot of my patients will work hand-in-hand with a therapist, and they have better outcomes,” she says. “But for those who say they’re feeling down or depressed and it’s interfering with the quality of their life, I will change the medication.”
Ultimately, doctors say it’s important to listen to your body while you’re on a medication like this. “While personality changes are not a recognized class effect of GLP-1 agonists, individuals who experience unusual or concerning changes in mood or behavior while taking these medications should consult their healthcare provider,” he says. “If the weight loss is extreme, the healthcare provider may decide to decrease the dose of semaglutide.”
The bottom line
If you’re concerned about mood or personality changes, it’s best to speak to your healthcare provider and/or a licensed mental health counselor. They can help get to the bottom of these changes and adjust medications accordingly.
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