Zepbound helped me lose 18% of my body weight. I wish I didn't feel the need to apologize for it.

The author, shown after she started taking Zepbound, said she wishes she didn't feel guilty about losing weight in a way that works best for her body.

Courtesy of Caralynn Matassa.

Soon after I started taking Zepbound, friends started notice that I was losing weight.

I guiltily admitted that I had, thanks to starting a popular GLP-1 medication.

It's strange to apologize for getting healthier.

I'm trying to stop treating it like a confession.

"You look great! Did you lose weight?" a friend I hadn't seen in a few weeks asked, barely a beat after saying hello.

I grimace as I guiltily admit that I did.

"Zepbound," I say, the one-word explanation slipping out almost unbidden, like a naughty confession.

It feels strange to apologize for improving my health.

And yet that's exactly what I did.

Now, eight months after starting Zepbound, also known as tirzepatide , I'm still learning not to feel guilty about taking care of my body in the way that works best for me.

My body needed more than diet and exercise I first approached my primary care doctor about prescribing a GLP-1 in 2025 after debilitating foot pain hobbled me.

No specialist directly blamed my weight, but I felt certain that added strain on my joints had worsened my plantar fasciitis, resulting in a ganglion cyst.