How Ozempic caused a disgusting side effect that left this YouTuber in 'absolute agony'

An influencer revealed that she suffered a diarrhea 'storm' and 'absolute agony' while taking the blockbuster weight loss drug Ozempic. 

And the worst part about it? She didn't lose any weight. 

Jaime French, a 33-year-old internet personality in St Louis, Missouri, started taking a generic form of semaglutide - the active ingredient in Ozempic - in November 2022 to lose weight and prevent diabetes.

'Like most overweight people, I have always struggled to lose body fat, and calorie deficits literally don't work for me, at least not long term,' she said in a video last year. 

Ms French noted that though she works out often, 'nothing makes a measurable difference.' '[Ozempic] seemed like a very promising solution,' she said. 

However, immediately after getting her first injection, she said experienced 'a literal poop storm' of diarrhea and 'agonizing' pain. 'I was pretty confident it was the drug causing it,' she said. 

Ms French's story comes as people across the country on Ozempic and other weight-loss shots like Wegovy and Mounjaro report a slew of side effects, from stomach paralysis to depression and shrinking breasts. 

Ms French noted that she has struggled with her weight, as well as disordered eating, for her entire life. 

She has also been diagnosed with the hormonal condition PCOS, lymphocytic colitis - a form of inflammation in the large intestine - and previously battled thyroid cancer. 

All of these factors led to difficulty losing weight, so her doctor eventually recommended she start on the lowest dose of a generic form of Ozempic. 

However, just one dose led to intense bouts of diarrhea and difficulty controlling her bowels, as well as excruciating pain.

'If any of you have colitis or Crohn's or anything like that, you know the absolute agony, meaning pain, that it physically causes in your intestines,' Ms French said. 'Well, buyer beware because that pain has nothing on Ozempic.' 

'I did not ever imagine it could get worse than that, and on Ozempic, it was worse.' 

Recent reports have suggested that Ozempic has been linked to a slew of digestive issues. 

This is because the drug mimics the hormone GLP-1, which causes food to stay in the stomach longer and signal to the body that it's full. 

In many cases, this has been linked to gastroparesis, or stomach paralysis.

Additionally, Ozempic can change the way the body absorbs certain nutrients, which leads to diarrhea. 

Ms French also had bouts of dizziness and pain near her gallbladder. 'This was the reaction I had at the smallest dose possible,' she said. 'It was no joke.' 

Still, Ms French assumed her body would eventually adjust, so she agreed to increase the dose after five weeks. She had not yet lost any weight, though there were some positive effects,

'Ozempic gave me this quiet mind where I never thought about my calorie intake,' she said. 'It was incredible.' 

And though she long suffered from insomnia, the drug caused her to sleep more soundly, which was a silver lining.

Some evidence from drugmaker Eli Lilly, which manufactures Mounjaro, suggests that these weight-loss shots could alleviate issues like sleep apnea by trimming excess fat along the neck, improving potentially blocked airways. 

'The good parts were good enough for me to deal with the "dysentery,"' Ms French said. 

However, after increasing the dose from 0.5 milligrams to 0.75, her restful nights turned into anxiety-fueled insomnia, leading her to average just three hours of sleep every night. 

Still not having lost 'one single ounce,' the stomach and gallbladder pain 'became unbearable,' even from just getting out of bed and drinking water. 

At the time, Ms French continued refusing to admit that Ozempic could be causing her debilitating side effects. 'I was just distracted and blinded by the desire for weight loss,' she said. 

Even at the full 1-miligram dose, she only lost four pounds, and she could not control her bowels enough to go out with friends or attend events. 'I was afraid of pooping my pants,' she said.  

After 17 weeks, Ms French finally went off the medication, and her symptoms resolved within two weeks. 

She likened her experience on Ozempic to being trapped in a toxic relationship and not realizing the toll until escaping. 

'It really seems like this is a miracle drug for certain people,' she said.

'My goal here is to empathize with anyone else that it didn't work for and to let you know that you're not alone because the disappointment level that this drug did not work is next-level bad.'

'My ultimate advice I guess if you are someone who ends up trying this drug is trust your gut and know you know deep down if you didn't have a symptom before and it arose after you started the drug, don't be blinded emotions.'