What Bottoms Really Need To Know About Ozempic
The jab quietened the food noise, the jeans fit again, and then Saturday night arrived with a catch. If you’re on Ozempic or Wegovy and your body has stopped following its usual script before sex, it’s not in your head.
GLP-1 drugs slow your entire digestive system, which changes how you prep, how comfortable you are and how confident you feel once clothes come off. The good news is that it is manageable, and the doctors gay men actually ask have specific advice.
Why your gut went rogue
These medications mimic a hormone that keeps food in your stomach longer. That is the whole trick. It is why half a plate now fills you up, and it is why your insides have developed new opinions.
In the STEP trials of semaglutide, 44% of participants reported nausea, 30% diarrhoea and 24% constipation. Most of it was mild and faded with time, and the roughest stretches usually land right after you start or bump your dose. If a big weekend falls in a dose-change week, maybe lower the stakes.
The prep problem nobody posts about
You have probably had a routine since your twenties. It worked. Now it doesn’t, and Dr Austin Shuxiao, a New York physician, told PRIDE why.
“It may be harder to ensure the rectum is empty and comfortable during sex due to the unpredictable nature of bowel movements during this time,” he said.
Stool can run firmer one week and softer the next, so the douche that used to do the job in one pass might not.
Some users, he said, “may need to use an enema more frequently than before to maintain a similar level of cleanliness”. One more unsexy truth: constipation and extra bathroom trips make anal fissures more likely, so PrEP, DoxyPEP and condoms matter even more while your body adjusts.
What actually helps
Fibre, before anything else. Nurse practitioner Chris Bustamante told PRIDE that people on these drugs “will need to account for even more fiber as digestion is naturally slower”. In practice that means oats, legumes, vegetables and plenty of water, with a probiotic worth considering for steadier results.
If your protein shake leaves you bloated, both experts suggest skipping whey, since dairy can make it worse. A bidet or gentle wiping protects skin that is more tender than it used to be. And tell your partner. Everyone knows someone on the jab, and asking for a little extra time will surprise exactly no one.
Your pelvic floor and glutes are muscles too, and GLP-1s can take muscle along with the fat, which affects how your body works during sex. At DNA, we covered that in our piece on what Ozempic is doing to gay men’s muscle.
If a few weeks pass and nothing settles, talk to your prescriber rather than toughing it out. A dose tweak often fixes it. And if body image is part of why you started, the Butterfly Foundation (1800 33 4673) and QLife (1800 184 527) are free to call.
