Rebel Wilson shared she briefly used Ozempic in weight loss journey

(NEW YORK) — Rebel Wilson is getting candid about her weight loss journey.

During her interview with The Sunday Times, the Pitch Perfect star shared she has tried weight loss drug Ozempic as one of the methods to help maintain her size.

Discussing the medication, which use has skyrocketed in popularity over the past year, Wilson told the outlet, “Someone like me could have a bottomless appetite for sweets, so I think those drugs can be good.”

Noting that she is no longer using the drug, the Australian actress explained her decision to slim down came after her fertility doctor shared it would help increase her chance of success at in-vitro fertilization.

“Basically no one apart from my mom wanted me to lose weight,” Wilson said. “People thought I’d lose my pigeonhole in my career, playing the fat funny character, and they wanted me to continue in that.”

Ozempic is one of a class of drugs called GLP-1 RAs that help people produce insulin and lower the amount of sugar in the blood. The drugs work by slowing down movement of food through the stomach and curbing appetite, thereby causing weight loss for some.

Ozempic’s active ingredient is semaglutide, it is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat Type 2 diabetes, and can be prescribed off-label for weight loss, as is allowed by the FDA. The same medication is approved under the name Wegovy and is approved to treat Obesity or weight loss for someone who has a comorbidity like high blood pressure.

Wilson has shared previously that she transformed her life after committing to a “year of health” in 2020.

At the time, Wilson said she had also committed to working on her mental health in addition to her physical health.

“I’m like, ‘I need to do a really holistic approach this time,'” the actress said during an appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show in November 2020. “I think what I mainly suffered from was emotional eating and dealing with the stress of becoming famous internationally … There is a lot of stress that comes with it and I guess my way of dealing with it was eating doughnuts.”

Earlier this year, Wilson shared in an Instagram post that she recently gained 30 pounds, noting that she has been busy working on new movies and a new memoir, which has led to stress.

“Working really hard has meant that, coz of all the stress, I’ve gained 14kg’s (30 pounds)! It makes me feel bad about myself…it shouldn’t…but it does,” Wilson wrote alongside a short video and photo of herself. “I’m really proud of the work I’ve been doing on new movies and my memoir, it’s just been a LOT and I’ve lost focus on my healthy lifestyle.”

Wilson’s relatable struggle with regaining some of the weight that she lost seemed to resonate with her followers on Instagram, where her post has received over 150,000 likes, and supportive comments.

Wilson later updated her post at the time to thank her followers for their support, writing, “Update: I woke up this morning and read all your comments – they bring a tear to my eye. Thanks everyone!”