Medical Weight Loss at Aetheria Aesthetics & Wellness™

Average weight loss in clinical trials varies by medication and individual. Semaglutide trials (Wegovy STEP studies) showed an average of approximately 15 percent body weight reduction at 68 weeks for patients who completed the protocol. Tirzepatide trials (Zepbound SURMOUNT studies) showed approximately 20 percent at 72 weeks. Your actual result depends on adherence, dosing, baseline metabolic health, and lifestyle factors. We track body composition during treatment, not just scale weight, so the picture reflects what is actually shifting.

Both are FDA-approved for chronic weight management and work by signaling satiety and slowing gastric emptying. Tirzepatide adds a second receptor activation (GIP) that has shown greater average weight loss in clinical trials. Semaglutide has been in clinical use longer and is well-characterized. The right choice depends on your medical history, prior medication response, insurance considerations, and goals. Melissa makes this recommendation at consultation after reviewing your labs and history.

The most common side effects are gastrointestinal: nausea, occasional vomiting, diarrhea or constipation, and reduced appetite (which is part of the mechanism, not a complication). Side effects are typically most pronounced in the first one to two weeks after each dose increase and generally diminish with continued use at a steady dose. Conservative starting doses and slow titration significantly reduce side-effect severity. Rare but serious risks include pancreatitis and gallbladder considerations; we screen for these in your baseline labs and monitor throughout.

Most patients stay on a GLP-1 medication for at least twelve to eighteen months to reach and stabilize at their goal. Some patients continue indefinitely at a maintenance dose to keep their results; some taper off after eighteen to twenty-four months with continued lifestyle and peptide support. The decision is collaborative and based on your individual response, side effects, and long-term goals. We do not push you to continue or to stop on an arbitrary timeline.

Significant weight loss reduces facial fat pads in the midface, temples, and lower face, and can lead to skin laxity considerations wherever the underlying volume has shifted faster than the skin can remodel. This is anatomy, not a side effect of the medication. Continuity care at Aetheria includes Sculptra for facial volume considerations, InMode Luxora Morpheus8 Burst for skin tone considerations, and InMode Luxora Quantum RF for body contour considerations. Many patients begin these treatments in the later phases of active weight loss or shortly after stabilizing. The conversation typically begins around month four to six of active loss.

Yes. Many patients begin in-person clinical care after starting GLP-1 therapy. The first visit covers baseline labs, body composition, current dose and tolerance, side-effect history, and what you are looking for from ongoing care. From there the protocol is yours: continue your current dose with in-person follow-up, taper into maintenance, or adjust based on what the labs show. The medication is one tool in a broader Metabolic Health plan, and the plan is built around your situation.