Your Weight Loss Doctors: Sculpting Healthier Lives

Medical Weight Management is the process of incorporating, under the guidance of licensed medical professionals (in our practice, we only have experienced MDs overseeing every patient), pharmacological agents, and long-term lifestyle changes to lose and then maintain a healthy body weight based on your age, height, and gender. We combine what we know about diet, exercise, and stress management with the use of FDA-regulated medications like semaglutide and tirzepatide, and this provides our patients with the greatest chance for success in weight loss and weight maintenance. These new medications have revolutionized the field, and results have never been better. As Dr. Seeley notes, "I can't think of any other class of drugs with the potential to save and improve more lives. I would rank these medications up there with the advances we have had in antibiotics, statins, and insulin itself, but would also note that the potential for this to impact virtually every human's life, either directly or indirectly, is real. I use them myself and am continuously amazed at how effective they are. We are so fortunate to be able to offer these to our patients."

Semaglutide is a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA). This means that it binds to receptors that the hormone GLP-1 would normally bind to, and this creates several effects. It decreases glucagon release while it increases insulin secretion and sensitivity, which lowers blood sugar and fat deposition. It also slows gastric (stomach) emptying and thus makes patients feel "full" faster and longer. This decreases the drive to eat, and in particular, the drive to consume fatty and obesogenic foods, resulting in reduced body weight. The brand name drugs Ozempic® and Wegovy® contain semaglutide, but they have been in shortage and are much more costly, so we are offering the same active ingredient, semaglutide, but in its generic form.

Tirzepatide is also a GLP-1RA, but it is also a Gastric Inhibitory Peptide (GIP), so it essentially binds even more receptors than semaglutide, and thus more potently suppresses appetite. Tirzepatide has gained fame under the brand names Mounjaro® and Zepbound®. Similar to semaglutide, we offer this in its generic form, which means that it is very effective, yet more obtainable and affordable.

This is potentially an unanswerable question, as individual patients may prefer either one. Semaglutide is less expensive and promotes significant weight loss (about 15% of body weight, on average) with minimal side effects. Tirzepatide costs a little bit more, but statistically may lead to even greater weight loss (almost 50% more than semaglutide on average) and have even fewer side effects. Individual patients have had great success using both of these medications, so when it comes to Semaglutide vs Tirzepatide it comes down to personal choice. Our doctors review this with each patient to help them make the right choice for them.

These medications are related to compounds that have been used safely for over 20 years. In their branded forms, they were patented in 2012 (Ozempic®) and 2016 (Mounjaro®). In various ways, GLP-1's have been used to treat diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease, and are now commonly used for weight loss. Other indications are being studied and will likely be numerous. The FDA has ruled that certain compounding pharmacies can make exact replicas of the branded weight loss meditations due to the shortages that have been incurred. With so many potential patients to benefit from the medications, there is no way of knowing if or when these shortages will go away. We have joined a national network started by another Cleveland Clinic-trained surgeon so that we can guarantee our patients access to these medications, and so that we can guarantee that they are pure and genuine.

Both semaglutide and tirzepatide have been referred to as "the skinny shot," as they are both administered as weekly shots, and both are effective parts of weight loss and weight maintenance regimens. We provide our patients with the information they need and demonstrate safe self-administration so they may use these medications in the comfort of their own homes, saving them weekly trips to the office.

Several studies have been done on each of these medications, and many more are underway. While individual results vary, patients on semaglutide average a weight loss of about 15%, while those on tirzepatide average nearly 21% of their body weight. Many factors contribute to these results, most notably where a patient starts, how long they stay on the medication, and how compliant they are with controlling external factors like activity/exercise and stress management/sleep. Patients being coached generally lose several percentage points more than those who are not. Importantly, both medications are extremely effective at curbing excessive food consumption, and this is a major factor in determining weight, so most patients do note meaningful improvement.

At Connecticut Medical Weight Management MD, we do not participate in any insurance programs. All subscription fees are paid by the patient directly, although, at the time of writing this, medical weight management does qualify for HSA usage as per IRS FAQ 9. Nationwide, insurance coverage has been a significant hurdle. These medications are very expensive in general, and insurances generally do not cover them for weight management, and when they do they only cover the brand name versions, which makes the situation even worse, given their scarcity and high cost. Given how many people would potentially use the medications, these companies have not provided universal coverage, or anything even close to it, at this point.

Once a patient has enrolled in one of our two programs, they can select their medication, which can be picked up in our office, or we will gladly ship it to your home (Connecticut addresses only). The actual price you pay will depend on which program you enter and which medication you select. The current fees are locked in when you subscribe for a renewable 6-month subscription, but may otherwise change at any time, based on the ongoing supply issues, so it is to your advantage to lock them in now. If you would like more information about current prices, please contact us through or call us at (860) 676-2473, and we will be happy to discuss your options and get you accurate costs. Our prices are available at a fraction of the cost of their brand-name counterparts, which are also not routinely available, and when they are, costs for those medications typically range between $1,000-$1,500 for a 28-day supply.

Fortunately, side effects are generally rare and mild, and it is unusual for a patient to need to stop their treatment due to adverse effects. When they do occur, the most common side effects are related to GI issues, which include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation and bloating.

In addition to promoting weight loss, GLP-1RAs have been found to have profound anti-inflammatory effects, they reduce cardiovascular and kidney disease, and they have shown promising effects on the neuroendocrine and central nervous systems, where they may help in the treatment of conditions like Parkinson's Disease, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, and addictive behaviors.

Once a patient signs up for a program, we will require them to submit simple online responses about their weight and any adverse effects on a weekly to monthly basis so we can adjust dosages as needed or provide additional advice to improve outcomes. As physicians, we will ensure easy access to the medication and professional guidance throughout the process.

Most patients who get to this point in their weight management journey have experienced numerous wins and losses along the way. "Yo-yo" dieting, with weight loss followed by weight gain, is the norm when you follow non-sustainable fad diets or exercise regimens. Our goal is to provide our patients with the knowledge and the tools (in the form of these life-altering medications) to assure sustainable long-term success.

On an individual basis, that may mean continuing injections indefinitely at full dose, or tapering down dosage after goals are reached, or even coming off the medications completely if the right behavioral patterns have been developed, and if the patient tolerates coming off the medication while not gaining back weight. Because this is essentially a type of hormonal replacement therapy for people whose bodies aren't producing enough naturally, which leads to overeating, many patients will have the best results if they maintain treatments, even if at a lower dose. In those cases, this is like thyroid replacement - you may be fine when you are on it, but once you come off it, your problems can resume. Like so many things in medicine, these hormonal deficiencies can now be maintained, but they may not necessarily be cured.