Many users report sudden intense cold sensations starting soon after beginning reta or tirz, sometimes affecting the whole body or just hands and feet. The feeling often eases after several weeks on a stable dose but can linger for months or remain even after stopping in some cases. Contributors link it variously to the drug itself, rapid calorie deficit, or loss of insulating fat, with no clear fix identified.
What this discussion establishesWhether the cold stems mainly from the GLP-1 medication or simply from being in a calorie deficit and losing fat
Still openWhy it lasts over a year for some people or how to make it stop
Nothing here is advice.
On 2mg of reta for about five weeks now, and right from the beginning I've been freezing constantly even with warm layers on while living in Australia. Has anyone else run into this as a reaction or am I just imagining it?
You're not imagining anything. The same thing hit me hard while on reta and stuck around the entire time, even through June. Once I quit the medication I started feeling warm again.
Pretty usual reaction. I noticed it during spring in England and at first figured the weather was just slow to warm up. Only realized something was off when coworkers gave me odd looks for cranking the heater in the break room. It felt strongest at the 2mg starting dose and again when moving to 4mg, then faded after staying at 4mg for a few weeks and never came back at 6mg.
Not on reta but on tirz and I had the exact same thing, though it faded after about a month. Seems fairly typical.
Happens to me sometimes with reta too. Last week I needed a blanket for a nap even though the room was at 27°C. Temperature reading was normal and thyroid checks came back fine, so maybe it's just nerves or that idiopathic paresthesia doctors mention when they can't pinpoint it.
Thought it was only me. Been chilly for weeks here in winter in Oz and figured the weight loss was the reason. Can live with the cold if the scale keeps moving though.
Figured the chill came from losing that fat layer that used to keep me warm. It showed up after the pounds started coming off rather than right away. The skin sensitivity has been the longest-lasting reaction so far, going on four months.
Same here on tirz, especially in the hands and feet for a stretch.
This winter on reta I was freezing even with the seat heater and cabin heat maxed out in the truck. It's a known reaction and not one that bothers me much. It eased up after a few weeks. Now in summer in the southeast US I still get cold inside and keep the house at 73-74 instead of the usual 68. I work outside so heat hasn't been a problem, though I spend more time in equipment than before.
Had the same experience. Been really cold since dropping the first twenty pounds. As a bigger guy I almost never used to feel cold, so this one caught me off guard.
Last few weeks I've been raising the AC setting in the evening and grabbing a blanket while sitting in the recliner. Never connected it to the reta until now.
I get it. Didn't notice the reaction until 4mg. The constant cold eased with time but any air movement still feels like a blast on my skin. Still carrying extra weight and usually run warm, so it might be worse closer to goal. No fix found, but at least we're all in it together somehow.
Live in a hot climate and still got the cold feeling mentioned earlier, though it appears to fade eventually.
Still hits me often even after seven months and up to 6mg per week. One upside is running the central air less this summer.
I always end up feeling chilly whenever my calories drop sharply. This occurs for me no matter what medication is involved, and the pattern goes back long before those drugs appeared.
Might as well collect the full set with Raynauds, dysautonomia, and now reta on top. Do I win anything?
Had it in the first few months on tirz as well. Seems tied to the calorie deficit and quick weight drop while metabolism adjusts. It stops once weight loss slows and the body starts pulling calories from stored fat instead.
A full year on tirz and the cold feelings were hard to explain, worst in the hands and fingers. Always ran warm before and liked cooler weather. Now on reta the same cold returns but milder than on tirz. Even after pausing the GLP-1s the cold hands stayed, so maybe it's permanent. Guess I'll be buying winter gear from now on.
Whole-body cold from these meds means wanting a blanket in a room where no one else is cold. Persistent cold only in the hands could point to something different. Used to smoke heavily and had cold hands until quitting, plus carpal tunnel on both sides that resolved after surgery.
Did have the full-body cold along with the worst symptoms in hands and fingers. Doctor found no other cause and linked it to tirz at the time. Non-smoker and no alcohol. On reta now the overall cold feeling is just as strong, though the hands and fingers remain the main issue. Manageable at least.
In my experience it lasted no more than three months. Went from 102kg to 73kg, dropping 29kg over 39 weeks. No longer cold and also don't overheat and sweat like before. Cold lasting more than a year isn't typical, so another cause might be involved. It varies between people.
Thanks for posting. Started reta a few weeks back and keep switching the AC off whenever it runs. Was starting to suspect the thermostat until realizing I just feel cold. At least groceries and power bills are both down.
This helped my peace of mind. Thought I was just getting older or unwell until noticing it began after switching to reta. Never had the issue on tirz. Another reason to stay at the 4.5mg I'm on now, since dysesthesia appears above that.
Weight loss or extended low calories can make you more sensitive to cold once metabolism slows and insulation drops, but five weeks seems too soon for those changes. Might instead be a form of the allodynia or dysesthesia reported with reta. One version makes my arms feel cold and extra sensitive so a jumper goes on even when the rest of me is fine. Reta can also boost sympathetic activity and cut skin blood flow, which could add to the cold feeling.
After my shot with reta I get extremely hot instead, even at just 0.5mg. First tirz dose made me cold, but no one else seems to run hot with reta after injecting.
By pinching you mean the shot? 0.5mg seems far too low for side effects to appear.
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