Bringing your log to a GLP-1 appointment

What to bring from your log

Before the appointment, pull a short summary from your log. If the details are already recorded, you only need to review them; if not, starting regular notes now is more realistic than rebuilding weeks from memory. The summary can cover:

• The date range covered, and how many planned doses were logged on time.
• Any missed, late or moved doses, with the exact dates.
• Side effects with the date they started, how long they lasted and how strong they felt, on one scale used throughout.
• Your weight trend over the period, not just the latest number.
• Which form you use (pen, vial or tablets), any change of product or strength, and the lot number of a pen or vial that caused a problem.

Your full medicine list

Your healthcare provider needs to know everything you take, the Ozempic® and Wegovy® Medication Guides say: prescribed medicines, products bought without a prescription, vitamins and herbal supplements alike, because these and a GLP-1 can change each other’s effects. The guides also suggest keeping a list to show at the pharmacy or the clinic each time something new is started ^[1][2]. MedlinePlus goes further and suggests carrying a written list to every visit and keeping it with you in case of an emergency ^[8].

The guides single out other diabetes medicines, such as insulin or a sulfonylurea, because the combination can raise the risk of low blood sugar. The Wegovy® guide notes that semaglutide slows stomach emptying, which can affect medicines that must pass through the stomach quickly ^[1][2]. The Foundayo™ label adds interactions in both directions: some medicines that act on the liver enzyme CYP3A4 change orforglipron levels, and orforglipron raises the level of simvastatin ^[5].

What the Medication Guides ask you to mention

Before and during treatment, the Ozempic® and Wegovy® Medication Guides ask you to tell your healthcare provider if you ^[1][2]:

• have or have had problems with your pancreas, and, in the Wegovy® guide, your kidneys;
• have a history of diabetic retinopathy, an eye condition linked to diabetes;
• have severe stomach problems such as slowed stomach emptying (gastroparesis) or trouble digesting food, which the Ozempic® guide lists;
• are scheduled for surgery or a procedure with anesthesia or deep sedation, because the medicine may raise the chance of food getting into the lungs;
• are pregnant, plan to become pregnant, are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. The Wegovy® guide also mentions a pregnancy exposure registry.

Tirzepatide, Foundayo™ and the pill

According to the Mounjaro® and Zepbound® labels, tirzepatide can make birth control pills less reliable, because it slows stomach emptying most after the first dose. The labels name two windows, the first 4 weeks of treatment and the 4 weeks after every dose step, and describe using a contraceptive that is not taken by mouth, or adding a barrier such as a condom, during those weeks ^[3][4]. The Foundayo™ label sets the same windows at 30 days and advises effective contraception throughout treatment for women who could become pregnant ^[5]. If you take the pill, raise it at the appointment.

Before surgery or a procedure

The Medication Guides ask you to tell every healthcare provider involved that you use the medicine before a scheduled surgery or procedure, because a slower-emptying stomach can make anesthesia or deep sedation riskier ^[1][2]. The Zepbound® and Foundayo™ labels give prescribers the same counselling point ^[4][5]. A dentist or an endoscopy clinic counts as well; if a date is booked, bring it to the appointment.

Questions worth writing down

• What is my schedule, and when might the dose change?
• What does my label say to do if I miss a dose, and when should I call you?
• Which side effects should I report right away, and which can wait for the next visit?
• Do any of my other medicines need to be adjusted?
• With type 2 diabetes: should I check my blood sugar at home, and how do I treat a low?
• If my pen or product changes, who will show me how to use the new one?
• How will we judge whether this is working, and when will we review it?
• What should I do before a planned surgery, procedure or pregnancy?

How progress is discussed

NIDDK describes choosing a weight-management medicine as a decision between you and your health care professional, weighing the likely benefits, possible side effects, your current health and other medicines, your family history and cost ^[6].

It also suggests asking whether to carry on when 12 weeks at the full dose have produced no weight loss, and says a professional will probably advise stopping if you have not lost at least 5% of your starting weight by then ^[6]. Whether and when that point applies to you is for your prescriber to judge; a clear log turns that conversation from memory into dates and numbers.

Making the visit count

• Describe each symptom with when it began, what makes it better and what makes it worse ^[7].
• Bring a trusted friend or family member if that helps, and take notes or ask them to ^[7].
• If your doctor does not speak your language, ask the office for an interpreter in advance ^[7].
• Be honest about what is really happening, ask until you understand, and ask for written instructions if you need them ^[7].
• Before you leave, find out how to reach the clinic later and how to see your test results ^[7].

Keeping the summary short

A clinician can read one page quickly. Lead with the period covered, then doses logged and missed, then side effects with dates, then weight at the start and now. Details can follow if they are asked for.

Ozempic® and Wegovy® are registered trademarks of Novo Nordisk A/S. Mounjaro® and Zepbound® are registered trademarks and Foundayo™ is a trademark of Eli Lilly and Company. PepLabo is not affiliated with or endorsed by Novo Nordisk or Eli Lilly and Company.

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