We asked 4 people what it's really like to date on Ozempic.

On their first date, Jane* and her partner fell in love over cooking. They bonded over spices, argued over flavours, and waxed poetic over aromas.

They would go on to share many more meals in their years together; some home-cooked, but most over a restaurant candlelight.

That was before. But when Jane's doctor prescribed her a GLP-1 medication to manage her diabetes, everything changed.

Suddenly, her portions became smaller, her enthusiasm for spices and aromas waned, and candlelight dinners grew seldom.

"GLP-1 medications are essentially a synthetic version of a hormone our gut releases after we eat, called Incretins, which tells us we're full," said endocrinologist Dr Isobelle Smith, who specialises in diabetes, obesity and metabolic health, as well as osteoporosis.

Watch: How do drugs like Ozempic work? Post continues below.

Drugs like Ozempic, which have become ubiquitous with Hollywood stars, stimulate insulin production in the pancreas, slow down the digestion process, and reduce appetite, which can lead to weight loss.

"Dinnertime now looks different, because I'm just not as hungry as I used to be," Jane told Mamamia. "It took me and my husband a while to adjust, to be honest, but he is the most supportive guy ever, especially considering I'm healthier than I've ever been."

While Jane found comfort in cooking, other Ozempic patients have been grateful for the de-centring of food in their lives.

"A lot of my patients tell me that they didn't realise how much 'food chatter' or 'food noise' they had (before GLP-1 medications)," said Dr Smith.

"They would think about what their next meal would be. They were thinking about the snacks in the cupboard, and how they really shouldn't be eating them. And they didn't realise how much space in their brains that Food Channel was taking up until it went away."

This rang true for Fran* whose food noise disappeared after a few months on the GLP-1 medication. Finally, she was able to think about her romantic life.

Located 800km away from Jane and her husband, Fran waited in a dive bar for her first date since losing 15kg on Ozempic.

Chewing on her fingernails, she re-opened the dating app where they had matched a week earlier.

She had noticed the difference instantly since re-downloading the app. Her matches had increased. Messages came quicker. And the enthusiasm to meet was almost instant.

"It was night and day compared to before," she told us. "Which, you know, isn't surprising. Men in general are just treating me better, and talking to me like I'm a human rather than ignoring me and just speaking to my skinny friends like they did before. It's a confidence boost, for sure, but it's sad that that's what it took. I'm still the same person, just thinner. And maybe more confident."

The date, however, sucked.

"I thought being on Ozempic would fix my dating life," said Fran. "I was wrong. It's as hard as ever. Not sure if it's me or the men, but we're going to go with the men."

In a recent Juniper study of 507 Australians, nearly 40 per cent said they experienced rejection before losing weight. But for 23 per cent, that rejection continued even after the weight was gone. And 27 per cent said they suspected their weight, or body shape, was still a factor in how they were treated romantically, even when no one mentioned it explicitly.

Before Ozempic, another woman named Susan* hadn't believed a relationship was even a possibility due to her body.

"Since losing weight, I've taken my first photos in over five years that I actually feel okay about," she told Mamamia.

"That gave me the confidence to post on a dating site, even though I didn't think anyone would find me attractive. To my surprise, I got a lot of matches, but meeting people in person was scary. I was afraid I might look bigger in real life."

Conquering her fear, Susan met a special someone, but that has come with new anxieties.

"I'm scared to develop intimacy. I worry that he might be repulsed by my body and the effects of my weight loss. I hate my naked body, especially the loose skin and everything that comes with it."

When Susan told the man that she had loose skin that could only be corrected through surgery, he was taken aback, but not unsupportive.

"That scared me, because I worry he might be negatively surprised when he sees the reality," she told Mamamia. "He says it doesn't matter to him, but I'm afraid that while he might feel that way now, it could matter later when we're actually intimate."

Dan*, who has been using Ozempic for two-and-a-half years, had a different experience when it came to intimacy… in that, he lost his libido completely.

A shame, considering the 40-year-old finally felt "more confident talking to women".

"I feel 100 times more confident about my body. And, although I'm in a weird 40s area, I feel like I can find someone to complete my life with," he told Mamamia.

During his time using the medication, Dan has had a "friend with benefits" he sees regularly. It was only briefly that his sex drive plummeted due to a drop in testosterone levels, and some other factors.

"These medications act centrally, so they act on our brain, and that includes the parts of our brain involved with the reward cycle," explained Dr Smith.

"And so that's why, for some people, they notice changes in reward-seeking behaviours like sex. Some people stop smoking or alcohol or things that maybe made them feel good, like eating chocolate or cake, because they don't have that same activation that rewards centre of their brain."

Rapid weight loss can also cause a loss in period, vaginal dryness, and fatigue, which can also lead to a lowered sex drive.

But since starting testosterone therapy, Dan has fixed his libido problem.

"It solved it," he said. "Along with some other ageing-male stuff".

While everyone's experience on Ozempic is different, Dr Smith maintains that most of her patients have a "new lease on life" after GLP-1 medications.

"It's quite empowering to, you know, for the first time, have something that helps them maintain their weight; they're feeling more in control of their health," she said.

Jane concurs.

"I've never felt more healthy which, at the end of the day, is the main thing. I obviously think there is a broader problem of people taking it who don't need it, just to lose weight, and I don't support that. But for those with health issues like I had, it's honestly transformative.

"I've never been happier, which means my partner has never been happier. And we've never been closer."

This content is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional for any health concerns and before making any health decisions.

*Names have been changed for privacy reasons.

Feature Image: Getty