Former SAS Australia contestant recalls terrifying Ozempic overdose
Former SAS Australia contestant Roxy Jacenko has opened up on the terrifying experience she had after overdosing on Ozempic.
Jacenko was desperate to lose 15kg of extra weight, which she gained as a result of taking Tamoxifen - a hormone therapy drug she took for her breast cancer for seven years.
“The Tamoxifen made me put on 15kg,” she said during a special 7NEWS Spotlight TV investigation into the drug.
“And whilst to other people, they didn’t look at me and go, 'Oh well, she’s put on a lot of weight,' I didn’t feel comfortable.
“And I tried everything. I tried the fad diets. I tried starting at a gym, doing workouts. I tried not eating much and I couldn’t shake the weight. I just wanted to fix it, and this seemed like the way. Ozempic seemed like the easy answer.”
Weight loss is one of the side effects of the medication, which is usually used to help adults with Type 2 diabetes control their blood sugar. It is this side effect that has millions wanting to use it for weight loss.
Despite Novo Nordisk - the pharmaceutical company supplying Ozempic - advising the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration that supplies throughout 2023 and 2024 will be limited and it should only be prescribed by doctors to diabetics, people have found other ways to obtain it.
Jacenko revealed that despite her local GP telling her she didn't meet the criteria for the injection, she bought it on the black market in Nowra, NSW and ordered an Uber to collect it for her.
“It was about $2,500 for the drive there and back, and then it was another $700 for the two pens,” she said. “I was actually like a junkie. I look at it now and I was like a junkie.”
She recalled how she took more than the recommended amount in a desperate attempt to lose weight.
“I took four times the amount in one hit,” she revealed.
“I felt OK at that point in time. The aftermath of it was I think I’m going to die.
She added, “in the morning, I was driving to work. I was sweating. I was so hot and then I just kept vomiting nonstop. What not to do? One milligram of Ozempic.”
“That night, I ended up in hospital. They had never seen this before. This was the first they had seen of an Ozempic overdose. Like the shaking, my whole body was shaking, I couldn’t control my legs. It’s like I had no control of my body.
“My arms and legs were like this. And then in addition to that, they just start pumping you full of fluid. You can rest assure I came out skinny, but it didn’t last for long. Literally, I truly thought this is it. I’ve been sick in my time. Cancer was a walk in the park compared to how bad I felt for those three days.
As a result, Jacenko no longer takes the the medication and has since stopped drinking and started following a healthy diet.
"And if anyone asks me, “Would you do it again, Ozempic?” No freaking way. I literally thought, “This is it. I’m going to die.”
Image: Getty