Can You Skip Ozempic While on Vacation?

One of the side effects of type 2 diabetes drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro is increased satiety, or a feeling of fullness after meals—something that can make indulging in vacation treats challenging. It's also part of the reason why these drugs are prescribed off-label for weight loss.

Some social media users say that they’re skipping doses of these drugs while vacationing to enjoy more food, not have to worry about the injections, and drink more alcohol (some people report that Ozempic kills their appetite for booze).

But there are ramifications to missing a dose or two of Ozempic, Mounjaro, or Wegovy.

John Buse, MD, PhD, director of the Diabetes Center at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, told Verywell that in general, taking a pause from such medications when you’re on vacation is “a particularly bad idea.”

Buse explains that for people who are prescribed these drugs for medical reasons, like for type 2 diabetes management or weight loss, following the medication guidelines is very important. Not only do you increase your chance of side effects when you restart the medications after a pause, but the drugs should be taken on the correct dosing schedule so they work as effectively as possible. 

“Taking medication on an on-and-off basis—because you think that’s better than taking it as prescribed—is just not a good idea,” he said.

What Happens When You Skip a Dose of Ozempic? 

Novo Nordisk, the drugmaker of Ozempic, says that the medication should be taken once a week, on the same day every week, exactly as prescribed by your healthcare provider. If a dose is missed, the drugmaker says to take the missed shot as soon as possible within five days. Past the five-day mark, patients are advised to take the next dose on the regularly scheduled day. 

Buse explained that when patients start taking injectable GLP-1 agonist drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, they can experience side effects such as nausea, vomiting, constipation, and diarrhea. These side effects often go away with time, once the patient gets used to the medication. 

But if someone stops for a period of time and then starts up their medication again, they're at risk of those initial side effects coming back, Buse said. This is particularly true for people who had severe side effects when they first started on the medication.

“If a patient of mine asked specifically about going on vacation, and is thinking about stopping the drug while on vacation, I would strongly recommend that they not do that,” Buse said. “And frankly, I would ask the question, ‘Why has this idea occurred to you?’”

For patients who rely on semaglutide (Ozempic and Wegovy) or tirzepatide (Mounjaro) for lowering blood sugar levels and increasing insulin sensitivity, stopping the medication isn’t wise for health purposes—even if the patient wants to get their appetite back. In fact, Buse said not taking the medication on holiday might make patients feel out of control with their eating.

“Blood sugar may not be as well-controlled if you skip doses, and that could be concerning for someone who has diabetes,” Vijaya Surampudi, MD, an assistant professor of medicine in the division of human nutrition at UCLA, told Verywell.

What’s more, taking a break from these medications without consulting a healthcare provider can warrant necessary dosing changes when the patient starts up again. 

It’s important to note that only those who are prescribed these drugs should be taking them. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has only approved Ozempic and Mounjaro for type 2 diabetes, whereas Wegovy has been approved for weight loss. Ozempic and Mounjaro are being prescribed off-label for weight loss.

“There’s a lot of people who are taking these drugs almost recreationally,” Buse said. “If you feel like you don’t need the medication [on vacation], because you don’t have the problem, then you probably shouldn’t be on the medication.”

How Long Can You Stay off Ozempic and Maintain Your Weight? 

Buse said the half life of these drugs is about a week. As these medications help control appetite by promoting feelings of satiety, skipping doses will lessen that effect. Seven or eight days after their last dose, patients can expect to feel a bit hungrier than they did two or three days after taking the medication, he said.

Patients can still have a bit of the drug left in their system for about three to four weeks after stopping it, Buse added, but it’s not enough to control appetite. If appetite increases, patients might eat more than they’re used to, which could lead to weight gain.

Surampudi said that patients might start to notice they’ve put on weight shortly after stopping the medication.

“Weight regain can happen pretty quickly with these medications,” she said. “It can be different for everyone, but we’ve seen it as soon as a few weeks; people feel like a couple pounds are creeping back on because their appetite is coming back.”

How to Resume Taking Ozempic After a Break

Depending on how long a patient takes a pause from their medication, they might need to start again on a lower dose, Buse said. This is because drugs like Ozempic or Mounjaro are started at lower doses before a patient is gradually increased to a full dose.

Patients on Wegovy, for example, typically start a dose of 0.25 milligrams once weekly for four weeks before upping the dose in intervals to reach 2.4 mg.

If someone only misses one weekly injection, it might be alright for them to take their next dose as usual, Buse said. But for people who have missed three or more weeks, they’ll likely need to start up again on a lower dose to avoid the side effects and readjust to the medication being in their system.

“Just be prepared that you may have more nausea, vomiting or diarrhea, depending on how bad that [side effect] experience was for you in the beginning [of starting the medication],” he said. “If it was really bad in the beginning, maybe we want to restart with a lower dose—which means a new prescription.”

Drugs like Ozempic or Wegovy are often intended to treat chronic health conditions and are meant to be taken long-term—not started and stopped. If someone needs to manage their weight or diabetes, that need won’t change just because they go on a holiday.

Surampudi compares these medications to other drugs that help patients live longer, healthier lives.

“Once your blood pressure is controlled, it’s not like we stop that medication,” she said. “That’s the way I like to think about this when I explain it to people: Just because your weight is controlled doesn’t mean we stop the medicine.”