Preparing for Wegovy: the decisions that matter before your first pen

Are you clinically eligible, and do you know what that actually means?

The licensed eligibility criteria for Wegovy are specific. Adults with a BMI of 30 or above qualify on BMI alone. Those with a BMI between 27 and 29.9 qualify if they also have at least one weight-related health condition, hypertension, dyslipidaemia, obstructive sleep apnoea, prediabetes or type 2 diabetes are the most common examples. Under UK guidance, those thresholds are adjusted 2.5 kg/m² downward for people from South Asian, Chinese, Middle Eastern, Black African or African-Caribbean backgrounds, recognising that cardiometabolic risk runs higher at lower BMI in some populations.

There are also conditions that make Wegovy unsuitable: a personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma, MEN2, pancreatitis, and certain gastrointestinal conditions all require careful prescriber discussion. Wegovy is not recommended in pregnancy, while breastfeeding, if you are trying to conceive, or for anyone under 18. The prescriber who reviews your consultation will work through all of this, but knowing the basics in advance saves time and means you can gather any relevant medical history before you start. Our age eligibility guidance for Wegovy covers the under-18 position in more detail if that is relevant to your situation.

One practical point: if you're already on treatment elsewhere and considering switching, the process is slightly different. Switching to Wegovy from another medicine involves evidence of your current dose and treatment history, which your prescriber will ask to see.

What lifestyle adjustments are you actually prepared to make?

This is the question most people skip, and it is the one that most affects outcomes. Wegovy reduces appetite and slows gastric emptying, which naturally leads to eating less. But the clinical trial results (roughly 15% average body-weight reduction over 68 weeks in the STEP 1 trial, published in the New England Journal of Medicine) were achieved alongside structured dietary and activity support. That context matters. The medicine does not replace those habits; it makes them easier to sustain.

Before you start, it is worth thinking concretely about a few things. Protein intake often needs deliberate attention because appetite falls so sharply that total food consumption drops, including protein, which matters for maintaining muscle. Hydration is similarly easy to neglect. And if you exercise regularly, your energy levels around dose days may shift, particularly in the first few weeks of a new dose level.

The practical preparation guide for Wegovy goes into the nutritional side in more detail. If you are weighing Wegovy against other options, the Wegovy comparison section sets out how it sits alongside tirzepatide and older medicines on both evidence and side-effect profile.

Have you sorted the logistics, storage, timing and the supply question?

Wegovy pens need refrigerating at 2–8°C. That sounds straightforward until you have a work trip, a holiday, or a house move lined up. The patient information leaflet (which your pharmacy is required to supply) sets out the exact window for which the pen can be kept at room temperature without compromising the medicine, always use that as your reference rather than any general advice online.

Timing matters more than people expect. Weekly injections work best on a consistent day. Many patients pick a day that sits clear of social eating, a Tuesday, say, rather than a Friday, so any nausea in the first 24 hours after a new dose is less likely to land over dinner plans. If you tend to order supplies around payday or after a particularly busy stretch, building that rhythm into a recurring calendar note early is worth doing.

On the cost side, treatment is priced per month and includes your prescription and clinical review, the Wegovy cost and what it covers page gives a factual breakdown of what to expect. There is also a plain guide to Wegovy pricing in the UK if you are trying to understand what legitimate market pricing looks like before you commit.

At nume (sorry, at our pharmacy) every order by 12pm Monday to Friday is reviewed the same day by a real prescriber. Once approved it is dispatched for free next-working-day delivery via DPD, in plain packaging, with 7-day aftercare included. If you are ready to work through the eligibility questions properly, you can speak to our prescribers through a free consultation.