To be honest I’m not Amy Schumer’s biggest fan. I’ve never loved her comedy. But one thing I respect her for? She’s up-front about things other celebrities would try to keep secret. She’s talked openly for years about her cosmetic treatments, including getting liposuction, and about getting fillers, then having them dissolved. It’s not that I think female celebrities should have to give us a complete breakdown of everything they had done–I just wish they’d be honest and say, yes, I’ve had cosmetic enhancements, I’ve had professional help. Because public curiosity about celebrities’ bodies can be pretty invasive. But when stars say they owe their taut, chiseled, un-wrinkled faces to olive oil or sweet potatoes, it’s just insulting our intelligence. People are too savvy for that nowadays. Amy is breaking the latest treatment taboo, and sharing about taking Ozempic, including the side effects. She was on Watch What Happens Live and she told Andy about her experience. She says she’s not on it anymore because of how it made her feel.
During an appearance on Thursday’s episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, the comedian and actress, 42, said that she previously tried Ozempic, an FDA-approved prescription medication for people with type 2 diabetes.
It’s one of the brand names for semaglutide and tirzepatide — also known as Wegovy and Mounjaro — which works in the brain to impact satiety, and is the latest Hollywood weight loss trend.
“Like a year ago, I tried it,” she told Cohen, 55. “I was one of those people that felt so sick and couldn’t play with my son. I was so skinny and he’s throwing a ball at me and [I couldn’t].”
The most common side effects with medications like Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro are nausea and diarrhea, and sometimes it can cause vomiting or constipation, Ania Jastreboff, M.D., PhD., an obesity medicine physician scientist at Yale University, previously told PEOPLE.
Because of the side effects, Schumer decided the medication wasn’t for her. “And you’re like, ‘OK, this isn’t livable for me.’ But I immediately invested [in it] because I knew everyone was going to try it,” she added.
The Life & Beth star then shared her opinion on fellow celebrities “lying” about taking Ozempic for weight loss, noting her own transparency when it comes to her health journey and cosmetic procedures.
“Everyone has been lying saying, ‘Oh smaller portions.’ Like shut the f— up. You are on Ozempic or one of those things or you got work done. Just stop,” she said. “Be real with the people. When I got lipo, I said I got lipo.”
Major props to Amy for talking about this. I’m sure she’s always faced pressure to lose weight in her industry, and Ozempic seemed like something worth trying. The fact that it made her feel too weak and sick to play with her son casts it in a new light for me. If there weren’t a shortage of Ozempic that is making it hard for people who truly need it, and if it weren’t a thousand dollars a dose, I’d be tempted to take it, too. But between the side effects, the cost, and the ethical considerations, I think the negatives outweigh the positives. Amy’s story only makes me more sure of that. I also have pretty bad body dysmorphia and a decade-long history of problematic eating so I have no business thinking about weight loss drugs. All I’m saying is, I empathize with people who try to get their hands on this stuff when they don’t have a medical need for it. It’s ultimately about acceptance and belonging. That’s how it is for me, and how it sounds like it was for Amy. She knew everyone else would be taking it and didn’t want to be left out. If there were something that would make my body more “acceptable” in our society, and all it took was a weekly injection? Yeah, it’s tempting. I know that probably makes me seem mercenary and cynical. But when looking good is part of your job, as it is for celebrities, the pull must be even stronger.
What I worry about is how Ozmepic use in Hollywood is going to make the beauty standard even more restrictive and impossible for regular people to achieve. These are people whose job is to be beautiful. They already have every advantage and resource available, from personal trainers, chefs, plastic surgeons, aesthetic injectors, dermatologists, facialists. Hollywood men have access to steroids and human growth hormone, probably, as well as the other drugs bodybuilders have used for decades to lean out. They have the money, and the time, to make looking good a priority. Now they have one more arrow in their quiver that the rest of us can’t get. I like that Amy is calling other celebs out for lying, to be honest. It’s getting super old.
Photos credit: Jeffrey Mayer / Avalon and via Instagram
I’m glad she is openly talking about this!
Honestly, HW is going overboard with all this, someone is going to become seriously ill or worse taking a med meant to treat a medical need they do not have.
Amy looks fine to me, who is telling her she needs to lose weight?
She is a comedian, she needs to be funny not weigh less.
Talent over looks every day.
Stop messing with your health.
Didn’t Kayne lose his Mom to a botched plastic surgery?
Joan Rivers too?
And about a week ago, a 32 year old comedienne.
Glad Amy opened the conversation on the side effects. I find it baffling that so far the only criticism I’ve seen is about the shortage but nobody seems to worry if Ozempic might hurt your health (for example internal organs or hormonal balance) in the long term?? Just seems so risky to take a strong, new(ish?) medication just because you want to lose 10 pounds.
Why this drug is talked about so much, apart with weight loss, that people with diabetes taking this drug, for some their blood sugar is normal.
I’m sorry for her that her body reacted that way. But I didn’t notice a big amount of weight loss for her. I hope she loves herself the way she is.
Plenty of doctors are talking about it, my husband included, but no one is listening because “aesthetics” *shrugs*
So all her body positivity is BS, when given the chance to easily make her body smaller she took it. Good to know that smaller is still better.
My mom developed type 2 diabetes following a series of strokes in her early 60s. Her physician prescribed ozempic about a year ago. After 6 months she was still vomiting for days after every injection – once so badly that she became dehydrated and was hospitalized with dangerously low potassium levels. It blows my mind that people are messing around with this drug for vanity.
My dad is early 70s, type 2 and has been on it a year. He’s lost 30 pounds (has 60 to go), and it makes him slightly nauseous around meat. It is one of the free things that has helped him control his weight at any point.
I’m glad she’s talking about it openly.
I’ve been on it since February. My sugars are under control for the first time since 2017. I no longer have créatine in my urine. This medication is doing amazing things for me. (And yes, that does include significant weight loss, but that’s not why I was put on it by my doctor)
And *knock on wood* I have relatively few side effects, but I am very aware if I eat too much!
I was just prescribed it a few weeks ago, unfortunately despite my efforts my pre-diabetic numbers got worse and I got diagnosed with type 2, and also got a continuous glucose monitor. I’ve seen increasingly good results after each Ozempic injection. For the past few days my numbers have been in the non-diabetic range.
It’s also supposed to help with cholesterol, inflammation, and many people are saying it’s killing their addictions to alcohol and cigarettes. I think, or I hope at least, there’s a lot more research and availability, especially in the addiction realm.
I haven’t had any weight loss yet, maybe a pound or two, but I’m only on 0.25, I go to 0.5 soon, but I’ve also not had any side effects really (other than yeah if you eat too much, you will know!). I wonder if someone started Amy at 1.0 or something, from what I’ve read it’s too much too fast, and you can feel awful.
It’s absolutely killed my pop addiction. I was a bottle a day for most of the last 20 years and I’ve had it twice since my first shot. Once I had ginger ale to see if that would help with the nausea (nope! Thankfully that side effect didn’t last) and once at an event where they only had alcohol or Diet Pepsi. I didn’t finish either can.
Does she have something to promote? Is that why she was on with Andy? I don’t give credit for calling out anyone. She has always and and will always say the most trash things about folks. It’s good that she wants to be healthy for kid and stopped taking a drug she had no business taking in the first place though.
If not for the fact that Ozempic was making her feel sick, she would still be taking it so…
Totally agree! She doesn’t get brownie points for complaining about something when she jumped on the same band wagon. If it worked for her she would be parading around saying it was a miracle. Same thing w her fillers. She tries everything and when something doesn’t work for her then she condemns it. She needs to shut up.
So many celebs have had sudden weight loss, even after years, or decades even, of diet /exercise. Oprah for example. I follow the plus size model Ashley Graham and she’s lost a lot of weight fast. I don’t think she’s ever looked this slim. It sets up even more unreasonable expectations when it’s not talked about. At least in the body image world we’ve moved past 00 models claiming they live on burgers and fries 🙄🙄
I have a good friend who gained a lot of weight during menopause. She’s a woman of means and for $200/mo she’s on the Ozempic compound and is down 16lbs. On her frame it’s a lot. From what I can gather it’s a MAJOR appetite suppressant. I remain skeptical and, frankly, principally opposed to something that is reserved for sick people. That said there are many people I know through this person who loves it.
Obesity is a disease. It’s as much a disease as type 2 diabetes which is highly influenced by diet. There’s plenty of research on that.
Actually…no, you’re not correct. Being fat does not equal unhealthy. You literally can’t tell someone’s health by their size. Nice try tho.
Hi @nerdista – yes obesity IS a disease. I have it, my mother has it, it’s all too real. Is every person who is overweight unhealthy? Of course not. But I am so sick of being dismissed as just another sloppy lazy fat person that I cried with relief when I found all the new research being done on obesity and that these new drugs can help support us. Please don’t dismiss our lived experience. Thanks.
The company that makes Ozempic, is working on a formula strictly for weight loss.
The only problem is, you have to keep on taking the drug, because the weight comes back if you stop.
Honestly this sounds like the premise for a dystopian short story.
The company that makes Ozempic, Novo Nordisk, also makes Wegovy. They’re both semaglutide, but Ozempic is prescribed for diabetes, and Wegovy is prescribed for obesity.
Are they working on a different drug for weight loss altogether?
Did it make her weak bc she couldn’t manage to eat enough while on it? Or is that side effect for a different reason?
I reckon Kim and khloe are on it for sure.
At different exercise studios these days from pilates to boutique strength and conditioning as well as cycling, rowing, anything personal or group training class wise my coworkers and I are having to carry barf bags and puppy training pads to contain the mess from bodily fluids (puke and poop) from clients. The only reason I carry a larger than normal clipboard isn’t so that I can take notes but shield myself from projectile vomit. The downside of people who can afford my services is they have no problem and no shame in subjecting me to their side effects. I just cancel their session because they’re in no shape to carry on and tbh I can’t look em in the eye afterwards. I should add that none of them are diabetic and only take these drugs to get thin fast.
YIKES
OMG that is INSANE. Absolutely INSANE. Seriously sounds like an SNL skit.
WUT 😳
I watched a YouTube video last night about how Weight Watchers has partnered with a health company that can prescribe Ozempic. Information is submitted online so hypothetically people who do not need the drug or struggle with disordered eating could fill out the medical forms dishonestly and get their hands on it.
I have been taking Ozempic for 3 months.
I am a middle aged female who has struggled with weight her whole life.
I am not morbidly obese (5 7” and 200 lbs) but thats mainly because I try SO hard to work out and eat right.
Despite this I can’t keep weight off. Clothing doesn’t fit right and the way I carry the weight is not flattering. I find it incredibly difficult to stop eating when I start.
My whole life I have despaired with the constant food cravings I have, always there in the back of my brain.
I asked my family doctor about Ozempic. She said it would be ok to try.
I am in a country we have health insurance so one month dose is about $25.
The second I took it it (inject into thigh, painless, easy) it was like the craving voices in my head shut off.
That was three months ago. Since then I have steadily lost weight at a healthy rate. I am around 175 now goal weight is 140.
I only take 0.25 every week, for me that is enough to create “satiety” cues that work with normal potion sizes.
So I now eat a normal adult portion size, I eat healthy, I exercise. It doesn’t make me starve it just makes me able to feel full with a normal sized plate.
with the cravings gone and feeling full once I eat for a bit, it’s changed my life.
It makes you realize “oh this is what normal people feel like” finishing a plate and not immediately feeling like you want more. There is some nausea from time to time.
I say all this because with Ozempic, there is such a tendency to shame the people taking the drug.
People shouldn’t be shamed for wanting better quality of life (different from being thin and wanting to be super thin) I know what it’s like to struggle with eating and it dominates your whole life.
The messed up distribution system should be shamed (where people who need it aren’t getting it and Hollywood is)
There should be a proper triage system.
Celebrities that lie about using it while trying to sell products for weight loss should be shamed.
Celebrities who take it and show off their thinness just to feel superior to others (kardashians) should be shamed.
The average person like me who struggles and just wants to be able to live without a constant battle with food cravings should not be shamed.
I also say this for people who are scared of taking it from those ridiculous stories above about women vomiting and worse in public. If that is even true it is extreme and most likely you will feel fine. If you have a side effect you stop taking, it goes away. No diarrhoea at spin class I promise.
If you struggle with eating and just want to be “normal” and healthy don’t feel shame about asking your family doctor.
Similar here – since puberty I have struggled with my weight, I have insulin resistance, likely PCOS though not diagnosed despite having pretty much every symptom – I was always told “Just eat less and exercise more”, and was never believed why it wasn’t working. Now a T2D diagnosis (common with IR/PCOS) and perimenopause. The weight will not budge. I did a fitness challenge a few months ago, and ate even more carefully and exercised a lot more than usual, and I lost like 2 pounds over 2 months. It’s incredibly frustrating. I’m really, really hoping it works for me, because nothing else has, and I haven’t had side effects yet.
I too don’t think people should be shamed for taking it. People take medication for all different types of health issues, for me this is no different. I don’t think I would do it if I were already thin and healthy, and I agree people shouldn’t do it and then try to sell other weight loss products, because that’s just flat out lying.
Hey Leanne, I apologize. It wasn’t my intent to shame anyone. I’m glad you have access to affordable healthcare and that these medications are being used sensibly to improve your quality of life. My clients are already in an acceptable and healthy range for their age, life situation and gender. They are convinced by media and society that they ought to weigh less as in sub 120 lbs. So to appease the mental image they have in their mind of their version of healthy, acceptable or attractive they are abusing these medications. My industry caters to a certain subset of the population who are willing to jeopardize their long term health and do so in a gross and unsustainable manner. I’m just here commenting and letting others know what I’ve been experiencing at work. To me it’s surprising that we went from covid era protections of don’t cough on me, wear a mask and maintain social distancing being the norm to entitled women expecting me to clean up after them like they’re a baby.
I’ve never been drawn Amy and sometimes have found her incredibly irritating and grating as hell. I also wonder about the persistent allegations of plagiaristic joke theft leveled at her and whether they’re accurate, or unfair.
But I have to give credit and considerable respect to her for her advocacy on gun control and voter ID laws, as well as her protest of Brett Kavanaugh’s SCOTUS nomination. And I admire her honesty around her Ozempic experience.
I wish more people were open about all these things. Every time I look into procedures for making yourself look according to a certain standard, it’s varying levels of nasty. This one sounds like it’s more suitable for people who have extra weight to a point where it interferes with the rest of their lives. People who just need to get in a better shape should be okay with just a gym/exercise regimen and, like, more walks, yes, probably sounds stupid, but honestly limiting amounts of food and trying to eat healthy plus walking and some exercise go a long-long way, especially in the long term. Can’t loose weight fast that way but you can’t keep the weight off if you drive everywhere and eat a lot/anything.
I was put on Ozempic when my Dr. found I had type 2 diabetes at age 74. I lost 30 pounds that I couldn’t afford to loose. Several months later I developed Pancreatitis which turned into Pancreatic Cancer followed by surgery to remove my spleen, gallbladder, and most of my pancreas. I am on my seventh infusion of chemo out of twelve. Different Doctors have varied opinions as to whether or not ozempic played a role in the development of pancreatitis but that is one of the possible side effects as advertised. This all developed in eight months. Educate yourself before you take Ozempic! Pancreatic Cancer is terminal. Chemo may help extend your life a year.
I CANT take risk of another bout of pancreatitis so WONT agree to Ozempic…