Stopping Saxenda and tapering off: how to do it sensibly

What happens in your body when you stop?

After stopping, the effect of liraglutide disappears within a few days: your stomach empties faster again, the satiety signal to your brain becomes weaker and you get hungry sooner and more often. You usually notice this change in the first week. Read more in our article how fast does Saxenda work.

At the same time, your body resists the weight you have lost. After weight loss, the satiety hormone leptin falls and the hunger hormone ghrelin rises, and your resting metabolism drops a little. That is not a lack of willpower but biology: your body tries to return to its old weight.

That is why, without changes to your eating pattern, some of the weight comes back. How much varies from person to person and depends strongly on the habits you have built up during the programme.

Tapering off Saxenda or stopping all at once: what does research say?

Research mainly shows that weight partly returns after stopping abruptly; direct evidence that slow tapering prevents this is limited. The largest study on stopping is the STEP 1 extension study with semaglutide: one year after stopping, participants had regained on average two thirds of the weight they had lost (from 17.3% loss to a net 5.6%). That study concerned a different GLP-1 medication, but the mechanism is the same.

For liraglutide itself there is the SCALE Maintenance study: people who had first lost weight with a diet kept that loss more often with liraglutide (81%) than with placebo (49%). This also suggests that the medication helps keep weight off for as long as you use it. Read more about the Saxenda diet.

In practice this means: tapering off is mainly a way of finding out how your body responds to a lower dose while you still have support. If at 1.8 mg you already notice that hunger is returning and your weight is rising, that is a signal to stay on that step longer or to adjust the plan. Results vary from person to person.

Saxenda tapering schedule: what it can look like

A tapering schedule for Saxenda follows the dosing schedule in reverse: from 3.0 mg back to 0.6 mg in steps of 0.6 mg, with at least one week per step. The pen has the same dose settings, so you do not need a new pen. The schedule below is an example; your doctor tailors it to you.

If you were on a lower maintenance dose, you start lower in the schedule. Some doctors choose longer steps of 2 to 4 weeks, especially for people who previously regained weight quickly. The dosing schedule that this mirrors is in the article on the Saxenda dosing schedule.

Would you like to lose weight with medication and also have proper support when stopping? The doctor assesses whether medical weight loss suits you and tailors the tapering plan to you when the time comes. Read more about medical weight loss with injections →

Stopping Saxenda temporarily

Stopping temporarily is possible, for example during illness with vomiting or diarrhoea, an operation, a trip without refrigeration or a wish to become pregnant. How you restart depends on how long you have stopped.

If you have stopped for less than about a week, you can usually continue on your old dose in consultation with your doctor. If you have stopped for longer, you start low again and build up in steps of 0.6 mg per week, to prevent nausea. You can make up for a single forgotten dose by still injecting within 12 hours; if it is later than that, skip that dose.

If you want to become pregnant, you stop before the pregnancy; Saxenda must not be used during pregnancy. How this works and what the alternatives are is in the article on weight loss medication and pregnancy. If you are stopping because the medication is doing too little, first read the article Saxenda not working: sometimes the cause can be solved.

How long can you use Saxenda?

Saxenda is intended for long-term use, as long as it works, is tolerated and the doctor considers it responsible. In research, the medication has been followed for up to three years. There is no fixed maximum duration, but there are fixed evaluation moments.

The first evaluation moment is after 12 weeks on 3.0 mg: according to Apotheek.nl, the patient information website of the Dutch pharmacists' organisation KNMP, you should have lost at least 5% within 3 months; otherwise there is no point in continuing. After that, the doctor periodically assesses whether weight loss continues, whether your weight remains stable and whether side effects are acceptable.

If side effects such as nausea, diarrhoea or constipation remain troublesome after the build-up phase, that is a reason to lower the dose or stop. Which complaints are normal and which are not is in the article on Saxenda side effects.

Can you use Saxenda every other day?

No, using Saxenda every other day is not a good idea. Liraglutide has a half-life of about 13 hours and is designed for one injection per day; if you skip days, the level in your blood drops each time and the medication works irregularly. It is not a tapering method and not a way to save money either.

If you want less medication, choose a lower daily dose in consultation with your doctor. That gives a stable level and a predictable effect. If you want to stop, use the tapering schedule above.

How to keep your weight stable after stopping

Keeping your weight stable after Saxenda works best with the habits you built up during the programme: fixed eating moments, protein with every meal, plenty of vegetables and fibre, few liquid calories and regular strength training. Those habits are the reason the medication could be temporary.

Weigh yourself weekly in the first months after stopping and set yourself a limit, for example 2 to 3 kilos above your end weight. If you go over it, that is the moment to adjust your eating pattern or get in touch, not to wait until it becomes more.

In a medical weight loss with injections programme, tapering off and the period afterwards are part of the support. If the last kilos will not shift or come back, read the article on how to lose the last few kilos.

Tried all sorts of things and wondering whether a medical programme suits you? A few questions show you where you stand, after which the doctor assesses your situation. Take the eligibility check →

Frequently asked questions about stopping Saxenda

What happens when you stop Saxenda?

Liraglutide leaves your body within a few days: your appetite returns and your stomach empties faster again. Without an adjusted eating pattern, some of the weight you lost comes back. There are no withdrawal symptoms.

Can you stop Saxenda all at once?

Yes, that is medically safe. Tapering off in steps of 0.6 mg is preferred, because you then see, with support, how your body responds to less medication.

What are people's experiences with stopping Saxenda?

Users generally report that hunger returns within a week and that their weight stays stable as long as they stick to their eating pattern. Those who fall back into old habits usually see their weight rise within a few months. What else users report is in the article on Saxenda reviews.

Is tiredness a side effect of Saxenda?

Yes, tiredness is listed as a side effect in the patient information leaflet and mainly occurs in the first weeks. If it persists after stopping, it usually has another cause.

Why am I no longer losing weight on Saxenda?

A plateau after months of use is normal: your body adapts and your metabolism falls along with your weight. First check your dose, eating pattern and sleep before concluding that the medication has stopped working. The full step-by-step plan is in the article on Saxenda that no longer works.

Should you taper off Ozempic in the same way?

The principle is the same, but Ozempic is a weekly injection with a half-life of about a week, so tapering off is slower and in different steps. The schedule for that is in the article on coming off Ozempic.

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