EN
Home/Australia/Answers/For life?
AUAustralia Medicines

Do you have to take Mounjaro or Wegovy for life?

GLP Guidebook teamUpdated 19 Oct 202610 sourcesWritten from published sources
What we checked10 sources, each one opened and linked to the sentence it supportsLast checked 19 Oct 2026 · Next review due 19 Oct 2027 · How we write
The short answer

Usually, yes, if you want to keep the results. Australia’s obesity management algorithm says weight-loss medicines “will usually be required long-term”. In trials on the Australian labels, people moved from Mounjaro (tirzepatide) or Wegovy (semaglutide) to a dummy injection regained about half their lost weight. Neither label sets an end date.

Before you go further
  • Mounjaro and Wegovy are prescription-only medicines in Australia. Your prescriber decides how long you take one.
  • The facts come from each Australian Product Information (PI) for prescribers and each Consumer Medicine Information (CMI) leaflet.
  • We don’t publish medicine prices for Australia.

What do the Australian labels and guidelines say?

The Australian labels for Mounjaro and Wegovy list them for “chronic weight management”, including weight maintenance, and neither label gives an end date.1,2

Australia’s obesity management algorithm is published by the Australian Diabetes Society for GPs.5 It calls obesity “a chronic disease that requires lifelong management”.5 It says weight-loss medicines “will usually be required long-term”, while data on long-term safety and effectiveness “are limited”.5

The only rule in either label about stopping when weight loss is too small is for teenagers on Wegovy. It says to re-evaluate and stop if BMI hasn’t fallen by 5% after 12 weeks on the full or top tolerated dose.2

What happens to your weight if you stop?

In the trials on the Australian labels, people switched to a dummy injection regained about half the weight they had lost within a year.1,2

  • SURMOUNT-4 (Mounjaro): after 36 weeks on tirzepatide, the group later switched to a dummy injection had lost about 22 kg on average. Over the next 52 weeks they put 11.9 kg back. Only 13.5 in 100 kept at least 80% of their loss, against 93.4 in 100 who stayed on it.1
  • STEP 4 (Wegovy): after 20 weeks, people had lost about 11 kg. Those switched to a dummy injection regained 6.1 kg over 48 weeks. Those who stayed on Wegovy lost another 7.1 kg.2

In both trials, the dummy-injection groups still weighed less than when they started.1,2 A year after a main semaglutide trial ended (the STEP 1 extension), people had regained two-thirds of their loss. Most heart and sugar measures drifted back towards where they started.6

Can you take a lower dose instead of stopping?

For Mounjaro, one trial found a 5 mg dose kept most of the loss, though less than the full dose. Neither Australian label describes tapering off.1,2,7

The lowest long-term doses on the labels are 5 mg for Mounjaro, and 1.7 mg for Wegovy if 2.4 mg isn’t tolerated.1,2 Every dose is in What is the maintenance dose of Mounjaro or Wegovy?

The trial, SURMOUNT-MAINTAIN, took 378 US adults who had lost weight on tirzepatide 10 or 15 mg. A year after the switch (week 112), weight was 21.9% below where people began before their first dose on the full dose, 16.6% on 5 mg and 9.9% on a dummy injection.7 Eli Lilly, which makes Mounjaro, paid for it.7

Plan the long-term talk with your doctor

Build a list of questions to take along. Free, no sign-up.

Make my list

How do you stop safely?

Both Australian leaflets say not to stop without talking to your doctor. The Mounjaro leaflet adds that your blood sugar may rise once you stop.3,4

The Wegovy leaflet says to use it “until your doctor tells you to stop.”4 If you’ve missed several doses, the Wegovy label says a lower restarting dose should be considered.2 Our guide to stopping a GLP‑1 sets out a plan, from blood sugar to the checks in the months after.

What do people on Mounjaro and Wegovy report about staying on it for life?

From public patient forums: 17 Reddit threads in r/Zepbound, r/Mounjaro, r/MounjaroUK, r/Ozempic, r/OzempicForWeightLoss, r/Semaglutide, r/Wegovy and r/glp1, read in October 2026. Personal reports, not medical evidence.

What people describe

  • Matches Australian guidance Most say they see it as long-term treatment, like blood pressure or thyroid medicine. Australia’s algorithm calls obesity a chronic disease needing lifelong management.5
  • Matches the trials Several say they regained weight within months of stopping, with hunger and “food noise” back. In SURMOUNT-4, people switched to a dummy injection put back 11.9 kg in a year.1
  • Matches the trial A few say they stopped and kept most of the weight off. In SURMOUNT-4, 13.5 in 100 people switched to a dummy injection kept at least 80% of their loss.1
  • Not studied A few say a second course worked less well than the first. We found no trial testing this.

Advice people share

  • Not studied Several advise tapering down slowly instead of stopping at once. Neither Australian label describes a taper. The Mounjaro leaflet says not to stop suddenly without your doctor.1,2,3
  • Matches the trial Several say a lower dose holds the weight. In SURMOUNT-MAINTAIN, 5 mg of tirzepatide kept most of the loss, though less than the full dose.7
  • Label says otherwise Several describe “microdosing”, spacing doses out or drawing extra doses from pens. Both labels give once-weekly doses. The Mounjaro leaflet says “Do not inject the leftover medicine.”1,2,3
  • Label says otherwise Several suggest grey-market “research” tirzepatide or retatrutide. The Australian leaflet says Mounjaro is only available on a doctor’s prescription.3 See compounded GLP‑1s and retatrutide.
RisksThe risks, in brief
  • Nausea is very common. In the Mounjaro weight trials it affected 24.6 to 29.0 in 100 people on 5 mg to 15 mg, against 8.5 in 100 on a dummy injection.1
  • On Wegovy, nausea affected 43.9 in 100 over 68 weeks, against 16.1 in 100 on a dummy injection, mostly while the dose was going up.2
  • Gallbladder disease is listed as uncommon (1 in 1,000 to 1 in 100) on the Australian Mounjaro label, and inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis) has been reported.1
  • Years of use: Australia’s algorithm says data on the long-term safety of weight-loss medicines are limited.5
Full detail in Guide 5: Side effects and risks →
Get help now: call triple zero (000) and ask for an ambulance if you have signs of a severe allergic reaction:
  • difficult or noisy breathing8
  • a swollen tongue, or swelling or tightness in the throat8
  • persistent dizziness or collapse8
Call 000 for any illness that feels critical or life-threatening.10 Go to the nearest emergency department for sudden, severe pain in the upper belly that may spread to your back.9

Call your doctor straight away, or go to the emergency department, for stomach and back pain that won’t go away, sudden upper-stomach pain with fever or yellow skin or eyes, or changes to your vision, the Mounjaro leaflet says.3 For advice any time, call healthdirect on 1800 022 222.10

Read the full picture

Related questions

What is the maintenance dose of Mounjaro or Wegovy? Is Wegovy on the PBS? Is Mounjaro on the PBS? What BMI do I need for Wegovy or Mounjaro in Australia? When should I call 000 on a GLP‑1?
Did this answer your question?

Sources

  1. Eli Lilly. Mounjaro and Mounjaro KwikPen (tirzepatide) Australian Product Information, vA14.0, October 2026, sections 4.1, 4.2, 4.4, 4.8 and 5.1 (SURMOUNT-4). Australian label. medsinfo.com.au (PDF)
  2. Novo Nordisk. Wegovy (semaglutide) Australian Product Information, date of revision 22 June 2026, sections 4.1, 4.2, 4.8 and 5.1 (STEP 4). Australian label. medsinfo.com.au
  3. Eli Lilly. Mounjaro KwikPen (tirzepatide) Consumer Medicine Information, prepared September 2026, sections 4, 5, 6 and 7. Australian leaflet. medsinfo.com.au (PDF)
  4. Novo Nordisk. Wegovy FlexTouch (semaglutide) Consumer Medicine Information, prepared July 2026, sections 4 and 5. Australian leaflet. medsinfo.com.au (PDF)
  5. Markovic TP et al., Australian Diabetes Society. The Australian Obesity Management Algorithm, July 2024. diabetessociety.com.au (PDF)
  6. Wilding JPH et al. Weight regain and cardiometabolic effects after withdrawal of semaglutide: the STEP 1 trial extension. Diabetes Obes Metab 2022;24(8):1553-64. DOI 10.1111/dom.14725. PMID 35441470. PubMed
  7. Horn DB et al. Tirzepatide for maintenance of bodyweight reduction in people with obesity in the USA (SURMOUNT-MAINTAIN): a multicentre, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet 2026;407(10545):2305-18. DOI 10.1016/S0140-6736(26)00656-2. PMID 42119587. Funded by Eli Lilly. PubMed
  8. healthdirect. Anaphylaxis (last reviewed November 2024). healthdirect.gov.au
  9. healthdirect. Pancreatitis (last reviewed December 2024). healthdirect.gov.au
  10. Healthdirect Australia. How healthdirect can help you (“call triple zero (000) for an ambulance immediately”; nurse helpline 1800 022 222). healthdirect.gov.au

Last checked 19 Oct 2026 · Next review due 19 Oct 2027 · Report an error

How this answer was made. Written by the GLP Guidebook team from the sources above, all checked on 19 Oct 2026. The ‘What people report’ section summarises public patient forum posts we read; it is not medical evidence, and we never pass on advice that goes against the label. We don’t publish medicine prices, and we don’t name, rank or link to sellers or telehealth services. It’s general information, not medical advice, and nothing here is an offer to supply any medicine. Talk to a GP, pharmacist or other qualified prescriber before starting, stopping or changing any medicine. How we write