HemoLife Podcast

Losing Weight, Gaining Control, GLP-1, Peptides

• L.A. Aguayo • Season 3 • Episode 2

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Brandon shares how a single moment of self-consciousness sparked a 40-pound weight loss, less pain, and a steadier mind while living with severe hemophilia. We talk peptides as a tool, small habits that stick, and why momentum beats motivation.

• origins of weight gain after ankle surgeries and recovery
• mental health strain from immobilization and family stress
• GLP-1 peptides for appetite control and adherence
• joint pain relief with weight loss and reduced inflammation
• night shift snacking swaps and simple food rules
• starting with ten-minute workouts and stacking wins
• hydration challenges, nausea basics, and dosing tips
• cycling potency, maintenance dosing, and missed-shot windows
• community support, accountability, and rebuilding confidence

If this episode helped you, share it with someone who needs to hear it
stlmedweightloss.com — book a consult; hemophiliacs receive a discount; “I can get you weight loss medications, get your health right, get your weight down, like Brandon, 40 pounds down”

To get personalized assistance with peptides and weight loss reach out to www.stlmedweightloss.com and talk with Dr. Joe Moleski



Thanks for tuning into the HemoLife Podcast. Be sure to subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs a spark of hope or encouragement. Follow us on Instagram @HemoLife_Podcast and YouTube for updates, guest highlights, and behind-the-scenes content. New episodes drop regularly—your story matters, and this is just the beginning.

SPEAKER_02:

Welcome back to the HemoLife Podcast. This is your space where we talk about real life with hemophilia, not just the diagnosis, but the mindset, habits, and daily actions that actually move the needle forward. Today's episode is an important one because we're talking about weight loss, mental health, and consistency, especially when you're living with severe hemophilia. I'm your host, LA. I'm a competitive bodybuilder, entrepreneur, someone who lives with hemophilia every single day. And I'm joined by my co-host, Dr. Joe Milleschi, a physician, hemophiliac himself, and an expert in peptides and weight management through his clinic in St. Louis. And our guest today is Brandon Brooks, very special friend of mine for many, many years. Brandon is on a real weight loss journey right now. And he's down in weight. He's experimenting with peptides a little bit as a tool, but more importantly, he's learning how to build the proper mindset, behaviors, and daily actions that are needed to take his life to the next level. This episode isn't about perfection, it's about momentum. Brandon, I want to start here. Take us back to the moment you realize you needed to change. What was like going on physically and mentally at that time?

SPEAKER_00:

It was actually when I came out to Houston. It was the night after we had all gone out, right before the event the next morning, and we had all gone down to the hot tub, and everybody y'all got in, and I was like, I'm not taking my shirt off. And that was that was kind of the the the starting point of which it had started before then. I was I've I've been real unhappy with the the weight that I had put on, which all started back when I had my first ankle surgery back in 2016, I want to say. And they did a cynevectomy on it. And being off of it for a while, I started putting on weight and it just kept getting worse and worse. As a senior, and then within three years, I had jumped up to 240 to I'm at right the weight that I'm at right now is where I was when I had my first ankle surgery.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay. That's good then. That's good.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, because after the the cinevectomy, it didn't help, it got worse, and then I had the ankle fusion, and then the ankle fusion being off of my foot for 10 weeks, non-weight bearing, all you can do is sit in bed and eat. Yeah. That's all you can't imagine, man.

SPEAKER_02:

I mean, like we just got like a huge snowstorm in St. Louis, and like I have really good habits right now, eating habits, everything, like going to the gym working out, and then all of a sudden you get locked in for two days, and I'm like, what am I gonna eat next? You know, what what else can I eat today? Oh, I want some more cookies. It's just like it's so much easier to just like go down that path. So, how long was that recovery for you then?

SPEAKER_00:

So the surgery itself wasn't horrible. The recovery was that was the bad part because I woke up when they did the surgery, they I don't really remember a lot of it. It was a lot of like secondhand information from my mom because she was there. The surgery was only supposed to last like four, maybe five hours. I was under for eight. And I they ended up from what I understand, cutting through a main vein or something like that. It wasn't an artery because that I did get clarification on that, it wasn't an artery. But they had cut through a main vein or something, and I lost a good bit of blood, and it was like a issue of being able to finish the surgery through all the blood that was coming out.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

And um, I woke up not the next day but the day after. Like I was under, like I was out for almost 48 hours. And when I did come to the only sensation that I can explain it was it felt like somebody was pumping my foot up with a basketball pump, and it was getting tighter and tighter and tighter until it got to the point like it felt like it was gonna explode. But they did that. I got sent home two days later because they had to get me set up on the the knee scooter and everything.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

But two days later I went home and it's just the the mental aspect of the recovery was the worst part. There wasn't really too much pain involved unless I like messed up on the scooter and like it was an accidental, like trying to catch myself, throw my foot down, and wasn't supposed to, and jarred something. And at the same time that that was going on, my grandmother was also at home on hospice. So the mental aspect of the surgery, and then also the mental aspect of seeing your grandmother die, it was just like a double whammy in a way. And my mom was working, my brother was working, so I was really the only one that could help take care of her when the hospice nurse wasn't here. So I would recommend the surgery to anybody that has wants to have it done if their ankle is to that point that it's bad enough that that's the only option. Because it really was my only option. They told me they could do injections for a year or I would have to have the surgery. So I went ahead and was just like, just do the surgery, just go ahead and get it over quick.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, I did.

SPEAKER_01:

Nah, have you, LA?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, they're they're tear they they hurt really bad.

SPEAKER_01:

Dude, they tear up. So I've had uh target joint is my right shoulder and right ankle, and I've had two steroid shots in my shoulder, and like I instantly like started bleeding. Like they would they would give me the shot and be like instant bleed.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, that's what I was worried about. That was my main thing because I'm like they kept telling me, Oh, you'll be able to walk the same day, and I'm like, No, not being a hemophiliac, I'm not gonna be able to walk the same day. There's gonna be bleeding.

SPEAKER_02:

So that's basically, you know, you went through that, and you know, I'm kind of gained some weight, you gained some weight during that time frame as well. Kind of got mentally not on the right page, but uh yeah, man. So, you know, we were I remember being in Texas with you in the hot tub and Dr. Joe and we were just having a good time. We uh we had our rise event. I think was it the rise event for that? Yeah, yeah, I had the rise event. But yeah, and then you know, Dr. Joe kind of you know brought he's talked about peptides with you and you're on that journey. And so how much how much weight have you lost so far?

SPEAKER_00:

When we were in Texas when he offered the peptides, and I was they didn't think about it, said yes. Um when I got home back from Texas, I bought a scale and weighed myself before I took the first injection. But when I weighed myself, I was at 283, and as of right now, I am down to 247.

SPEAKER_01:

Wow, that's really good. That's really good. Almost 40 pounds down, man. Can you build up a difference?

SPEAKER_02:

The peptides work. Oh, go ahead. Yeah, yeah, they do the peptides work, yeah. So I mean, has that like substantially changed the way you feel and the way you move each day? Or do your joints feel better?

SPEAKER_00:

It does. I can tell that there's a lot of a lot of which my hematologist would tell me all the time if you would lose weight, you would your ankle wouldn't bother you as much. And at first it was like uh it felt like an insult in a way. Because it's it's kind of hard not to take it as an insult when your hematologist is as blunt as mine was. But she um she's like, Yeah, if you'll lose weight, you'll start to feel better and your your joints will thank you. So I was like, Yeah, okay, whatever. But since taking the peptides, I've uh there I have noticed a huge decrease in issues with my ankles and my knees.

SPEAKER_01:

I'll I'll say this. Even patients that I educate that are not hemophiliacs, I mean, people have osteoarthritis or arthritis in their knees and ankles. And you take 20 pounds off, I mean, it greatly reduces the inflammation in the joint, it greatly reduces their pain. Imagine that with a hemophiliac, it's like it helps out a lot to get the weight off, needless to say. And I also wanted to chime in about you know, you're you're feeling better, you're maybe more positive, your mood's changing after losing these almost 40 plus pounds. And really, I tell patients like this weight loss journey, you're gonna get your confidence back. The anxiety, depression that you're dealing with, maybe even get off those meds, and it's gonna affect each and every aspect of your life. Say, you know, you're I I feel like that positivity goes through every part of your life, whether it's your at your work, at your home life, the simple conversations you have with your family or friends. It's not just I lost weight and that's it. No, all those positive effects of you getting more confident comes around in all these different aspects of your life. And I think it's I don't know, I I feel like so many more, so many people need to realize like getting your confidence back, getting yourself back, like you said, like you you're you know, back in high school, I'm sure that you dream that, hey, one day I'm gonna get back to that and have a lot more confidence. It affects so many parts of your life.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, and and in and it has there's a lot more, and I know it kind of comes back to not putting the the junk that I was eating, that has helped out as well, too, because not putting that processed junk through that I was eating to kind of like mask all the other crap that I was going through. It's been a lot like a mental clarity thing too, because yeah, we're all addicted to food, let's face it.

SPEAKER_01:

I mean, we just kind of talked about in the intro. LA, you're on peptides too. Yeah. And we've had these conversations, it's like you're like, I feel like that's with being off the peptides, you're like not in control because like so many years have gone by where we're programmed to want the salty, sweet, fattening foods, and we think about it a lot. And these peptides just like put you back in control, and you're not like as you're just not as impulsive when it comes to your like cravings in other aspects of your life.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, absolutely. I've gained I've gained so much mental clarity since you know being on peptides. And you know, as a as a severe hemophiliac, you know, someone with a chronic disorder, you know, my first part of my life, you grow up and you feel so not in control of your circumstances, your body, you know, things that are happening to you. And so as I started going through my journey of, you know, trying to optimize myself and make you know, create the best version of myself, I started to hone in on every day what can I control? What factors can I control every single day consistently? And the eating part was was a really hard one. It really was. I I actually, you know, I'm I would I would consider myself an emotional eater. So you know, even if I have a bad bleed or you know, I get into a fight with someone, then I I will emotionally eat. And then I would find myself during certain seasons of life eating late at night all the time. And whenever I got on peptides, I found instant control within that first month. And then that control, you know, like you saw like Brandon was saying, you stop putting those processed foods and stuff inside of you. Not only does it help with weight loss, but I mean, if I eat clean for a week and you know, I feel and I feel that type of clarity, and then all of a sudden I eat junk food, my mental immediately goes downhill. Like it just so not just fat loss-wise, but like your it just makes you feel disgusting like in all ways. Like your body starts rejecting it, just being like, hey, this is poison that you're putting in my in your body. So yeah, having that control back is Do you feel that, Brandon?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, that's so I work nights and I literally like my schedule is 9 p.m. to seven and having that job, it's easy to have a bag of chips on your desk, have a bag of candy, and just like munch like in between calls or whatever. And I have cut a lot of that out. Like there's I don't have any type of food or anything on my desk currently at all. And I try to keep it that way because I know if I do, I'll be tempted to eat it. But if I do have something to snack on, it's usually like a couple of fruit snacks or something, or it's it it's something on the more healthy side rather than a handful of MMs or a a Kit Kat bar or a bag of potato chips or something like that.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. I mean, they really these these medications really keep you in control of these poor habits and uh just keep it in check. It's used as a tool. Like you still got to do your part, diet, exercise, you gotta be conscientious of what you're putting in your body. But this allows you to stay on your diet and it allows you to continue having that success and seeing the scale change. You're down what 40 pounds that we said?

SPEAKER_02:

Close to close to it. Yeah. So what's the next level? What's the next step for you? What what's your goal moving forward? What would you like to see over the next you know, couple of months? And what actions, what new actions would you have to take now to get to that to that next?

SPEAKER_00:

I want to get as close to 200 as possible. Okay, because I don't want to get below that, because I know if I get below that with my height and my frame, I'll look sick in a way, I feel like. Well, I wouldn't look like me. Yeah. So I want to get down to that point and then start going back to the gym and try to replace the weight that I lost in fat with muscle.

SPEAKER_01:

Love it. Yeah, that'd be awesome.

SPEAKER_00:

And try to get rid of the the looser skin that I know I'm gonna have because I've already noticed the loose skin that I've got now with just the 40 pounds that I lost. I lose 40 more, I know there's gonna be a lot more. So I want to do what I can to try to tighten that up so I'm not yeah bingo.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, this is just the next level is let's get into the gym and actually start implementing a program.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, and you know, for a lot of hemophiliacs, I mean, maybe you did gain weight because you had an ankle surgery or immobility issues. I mean, I would venture to say like this, these meds, these GLP1 medications, they can help a lot of folks. And uh, I mean, I'm I have severe hemophilia. And so, I mean, if you anybody that's listening, if you're wanting to get access to these medications that can help you lose weight, get your confidence back, put it in the uh, you know, we can put it in the comments or whatever, LA.

SPEAKER_02:

I'm actually really glad you just said that. I was just gonna ask you because I I've been I have been getting messages over the past couple of weeks. I don't know if maybe I made a video recently about GLP ones. I'm not I did something. I did something where I had hemophiliacs reaching out to me asking where they can get access.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, I mean get access through a doctor that you can know, like, and trust. You already see me on the podcast here, and uh yeah, I'm happy to go through things with you. Our website is stlmedweight loss.com. That's stlmed weight loss.com. And you simply book a consult, and uh, I can definitely for my hemophiliacs, I can give you guys a discount and uh just get you on the right path to better health, like I did with Brandon.

SPEAKER_00:

And I can personally, and I can personally say with Dr. Joe, I would recommend anybody to him because it's not just uh, hey, here's your medicine, let me know when you need more. It's not that type of thing. It's a it's a check-in. How are you doing? How are the beds doing? It's it's a two-way conversation street that's always open. And you don't really get that with a lot of doctors, so that's why it on the hemophiliac side, I would recommend Dr. Joe to anybody.

SPEAKER_01:

I appreciate that, Brandon. And you know, we're on this podcast and we're trying to really just get the message out to folks that whether you're depressed or you want to shed a couple of pounds or you just need some guidance, this is what this podcast is all about. LA, you started this podcast years ago, and you know, I recently joined, but I see how the value adds so much to whether you're depressed, whether you, like I said, want to lose weight, whether you just want to get information or just tell your story. I think this is a great platform to do it.

SPEAKER_02:

So yeah, yeah. I mean, this is awesome. I mean, a lot of people, you know, the platform was created because a lot of people don't have access to these relationships. Like we're blessed, right? Like us three right here, we we get to talk to each other very frequently. We have personal relationships and we can feed off of each other. You know, we have a doctor, you know, I'm a uh competitive bodybuilder. I've got a lot of experience in what it takes to kind of you know to build muscle while managing a chronic disorder. But yeah, some people don't have access to that. So this platform gives people the opportunity to to reach out to us and we will respond. We will start building a personal relationship with you if you reach out to us and you know welcome you with open arms into our circle.

SPEAKER_01:

So I have a question for Brandon. Yeah. So like, you know, you're losing the weight. Do you feel like I guess in your other job where you're working nights, do you feel like just even you being on the phone with folks or going to the grocery store or doing that, do you feel like you're more like engaged with people because you've lost the weight and you're feeling more confident?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, it's it's definitely brought my confidence back a lot. Um, I wouldn't say it's back to back to a hundred percent because I don't think it ever was at a hundred percent, but it's it's back to where it was when I was a lot more comfortable with how I look.

SPEAKER_01:

I mean, the other thing, go ahead.

SPEAKER_00:

I was gonna say, because it's something that I've noticed like started to notice like in my face, I've lost the weight in my face. My jeans, I'm down two jean sizes, I'm down a shirt size, and just seeing that progress, even though it's a little bit at a time, just seeing the progress, it's it's keeping me on track to get back down to where I want to be.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. I mean, it's just incredible. You look, you look great. I'm happy that you're investing in yourself, you're investing, you know, in your health and you're making the right choices. I just it's just so encouraging to see someone that wants to change your life. I feel like we can all just be complacent and be like, whatever, whatever, whatever. But at the end of the day, you only get one life, and you we really want to make sure like you're at your optimal health. You lose the weight, your joints are gonna be less inflamed, and then you're able to do whatever you want in life better.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. So tell me, uh, just so the viewers can have a better understanding of what the process looks like to do the injections. What you know, was it hard to understand how to do the proper dosing and stuff like that, or do the injections hurt? Stuff like that. I mean, maybe people don't really understand what supplies is needed and like what the inject injection frequency looks like.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, absolutely. Uh, it was real easy for me because it was one of those Dr. Joe gave me a rundown of what I was supposed to do when I got him. He told me what I would need, what all would come in it, what would be entailed. I think there's a video on his Instagram page for his office, or might be his his own per face uh Instagram page where it's like a step-by-step on what comes in the package and everything. Yeah. And uh, but the instructions were were very easy. The injection, like getting it drawn up, was very easy. Having a bleeding disorder, I've had some bruising and some knots pop up, but that's because of the bleeding disorder.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

But I I do it in my thighs, because I was on uh another medication that I don't want to name that involves injections in the stomach for a bleeding disorder, and I had bad bad experience with that. So I I yeah, it kind of ruined any type of like subcutaneous injections in my stomach. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. I'm I'm just happy that it's it's helping. And you know, that injections are simple, like you said, you're injected in the thighs, and basically it's a once-a-week injection. The needle's super, super small. You inject it, it curves your food cravings, it boosts your metabolism. Look, you're down 40 pounds, you look great. Uh, so I mean, we're just one brother helping out another brother, helping out another brother. I mean, we're all in this. That's why I became a doctor. I mean, that's why I became a doctor. I was like, look, I've been in that hospital bed and laid up, and I was like, you know what? I want to do what they're doing, but I want that person on the other end to recognize, like, hey, you have hemophilia, I have hemophilia, I get it. I want to connect with you, and we're gonna make your life better. And what even just to simply talk as a friend, not like I have to prescribe something or do this. Like, I feel like me and Brandon, like we're we're friends, and we'll just like we'll just talk, just you know, friends. And I think that's part of this podcast is us, we're truly friends, like connecting uh throughout the entire United States. I mean, we have people from New York, we have people from Missouri, we have people from Texas, yeah, just connecting everybody, and we have a beautiful platform to do it.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, yeah, we're building something special for sure. Brandon has known me probably longer than anyone. He's seen my roller coaster ride of a life, and I've I've seen, you know, we've shared so many vulnerable, deep moments. Um you know, one thing that I want to point out, something special about Brandon, you know, and I is that you know, I've spent such a long time always like trying to be an advocate, reaching out to other people, making sure everyone else was okay. And I I personally never had that one person who cared enough about my life to reach out and ask me if I ever needed anything. You know, and how am I doing? How's my mental? Brandon has been that for years and it's grown and grown. Um we have fun, we play, I mean, we we play around with it's you know, so it's you know thank you, you know, Brandon. I told you that the other day though, personally. I already told you that, you know, but but I something I really appreciate, you know. No one no one I never really had that person who really cared. Dr. Joe's been that now for me as well, too. So you know, we're we're building some really special relationships, and you know, anyone's welcome to to be a part of our group. We we've got group messages, you know, because we know there's lots of people who need someone in their corner.

SPEAKER_01:

So there's we've got some real ones here. Yeah, and uh yeah, I mean, I'm just excited we're able to jump on today. And uh I feel like each episode we dive into just you know the basics. I mean, I feel like some people, you know, it's not like we're trying to cure cancer or go to the moon. We're we're literally just one to connect newophiliac to hemophiliac. What are you dealing with? You know, I'm dealing with I need to shed some pounds. The other guy might be dealing with some depression or chronic pain. I mean, why I just love this type of platform that we can just like connect and it's it's just taking it back. I know this previous podcast we were talking about medications and the different treatment options, but it these episodes specifically friends just talking is I feel like this is what a lot of folks like really enjoy.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, yeah, for sure. I mean, brand, you know, we talked recently too about kind of like the you know the next steps, you know, moving forward. And I was just telling, you know, Brandon, you know, obviously it's the gym now in order to start progressing. But one thing that I wanted to like let the audience know about is that like some advice that I told Brandon was don't think that you have to take like major steps all the time. So like you know, you don't just because you're going into the gym now, it doesn't mean you got to be there for two hours to get results, you know. I was like, start start with 10 minutes. Do you know 10 minutes of cardio, that's it. Do it for a month, then do 15 or 20. So that's that's been my philosophy with everything because we a lot of times mentally too, we get into these really dark holes, dark spots where we don't really know how to get out of it. And a lot of times we think we have to do this grand gesture of an action in in order to see that light at the end of the tunnel. But really, it's really small daily actions that are in your control. Drinking, you know, okay, today when I wake up, I'm gonna drink water. I'm gonna drink a gallon of water. Okay, you can you can control that, and then that's a new action maybe that you can start taking. Uh, I'm gonna write down what I'm grateful for today. I'm gonna I'm gonna read it out loud. Maybe I'm gonna read a Bible verse today. Like start thinking of these positive actions that you can start doing every day. And you don't have to do them all at once, but just add one new thing to your schedule, to your regimen, your daily regimen, and and then slowly start adding new things into that. And and the momentum that you build up will be so powerful. And what you you know, you'll find out, you know, one month later that you are so much more capable now. It's just like it's like you just level up, keep on leveling up over and over again. You start stacking all those victories together. But yeah, whenever you're ready, Brandon, to to hit the gym. I know I think you were talking about you know, needing some gym membership essentially to kind of get going, but yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, I gotta get that started back up, but I want to kind of get a little bit down first before I get like into that aspect of it. Yeah. Have you I don't want to go ahead.

SPEAKER_01:

Um, have you had any sorry, do you have you had any nausea? Like after starting, that's a common thing. Like, have you had any like wow, like I have a ton of nausea. Have you had any of that?

SPEAKER_00:

I had it one time, and it was when I came back from the Hope conference, and I think it was because I had eight. It was the same day that I was supposed to take my injection, so I know my levels were a little lower. So my appetite was there, so I ate a little bit more than I normally have been eating. And then that night when we got back to the hotel room, I took my injection, and then it was like the next two days I was very nauseous. I felt like I was gonna throw up, and then once I did throw up, I was fine. But it was one of those things I think it was because I had eaten so much the day that the same day that I took the injection, and that there was just some kind of that's what I chalked it up to is that there was some kind of interaction from just eating more than what was normally on my stomach, and I think it was just a combination of that. But other than that, I haven't really felt other than that one time there hasn't been any nausea, any vomiting, yeah, any upset stomach or anything like that.

SPEAKER_02:

I felt that I felt it a couple times in the beginning and then away.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, it just I guess the meds, you know, that's the one side effect is when you first start it, you can get some nausea, but then that goes away and you still see the scale change.

SPEAKER_00:

And so I don't know, I just interested any other like side effects or anything else, or just other than the the knot and the bruising that I sent you the the picture of, but other than that, but I think that's just from the bleeding disorder itself. Yeah, but other than that, I haven't noticed well tolerated. I mean, there's there's dry mouth here and there, but it's because I think it's just because I'm not drinking enough water that I should be. But yeah, it's weird.

SPEAKER_02:

I noticed that I struggle to drink water more now, too.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

It's hard for me to drink.

SPEAKER_00:

I have to remind myself to drink. I like I have to draw a myself to drink.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, your appetite and your thirst are connected. So, like I always tell patients, like, you know, if you're on this med, you need to be drinking water, you need to be drinking water. Just because it, I mean, there'll be days where you're just like, I don't want to do anything, I don't want to drink water. Yeah, I don't want to have anything.

SPEAKER_00:

I remember that's one of the first things you told me when you were in the hot tub talking about the peptides. You were like, just make sure you're drinking enough water because you will not want to drink, you will not want to eat. Just make sure you're drinking water.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. I mean, I so I've been on the peptides for throughout the last three years that I've been doing this, maybe out of those three years, like two months. And so when I noticed when I'm on the peptides, like you're just not hungry. Like you'll go, like in the morning, I was like, I'll just have a cup of milk. And then you don't eat at all. You're like, I'm good, I'm good. I can just have a cup of milk. And I think LA, you were saying like the same thing, like, yeah, I don't need anything.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, I do have a question for you, Dr. Joe, because I'm getting into a very interesting position in my peptide journey where I guess I've been on it for roughly four months or so. Okay, and I was at it's so crazy too. If you look on my Instagram feed, you can see a video from when we did our um our rise promo video. Yeah, and the way I looked there. Oh, yeah. And that video, my face was like a lot bigger. Yes. And I was probably about 220, 220-ish there, something somewhere around there. I haven't weighed myself until yesterday because somebody at the gym was like, Hey, how much do you weigh? And I was like, Actually, I have zero idea. I I don't know. I've just been I know I've been losing weight. I stepped on the scale at 187. I when I was competing on stage, my lowest I ever got on stage was 190. Whoa, it was crazy, dude. Okay, so that's not my question though. My question is I feel like it's wearing off the potency of it. Is do you believe that you should maybe it could be beneficial to stop for a short period of time? Yes, kind of let your receptors kind of like remote. 100% and then get back onto it. I I don't know. I was just a thought that came out of my mind.

SPEAKER_01:

We get that too. I don't know what dose you're at, but if you increase the dose of these meds and you're on them for a couple months, yeah, you just have to understand that like if there's no more dose range. So if you're like, I'll just give an example. If you're at five milligrams, you need to go to, you know, you can go up to 15. Well, you still have a gap, or you can go up to that five to 10 to 12. So you could go up on the dose, or if you're like, no, I'm at the highest dose, you could just cycle your receptors, just wait like four to six weeks, don't do anything, and then do it, and it'll just refresh the receptor. We do see that in patients, yes.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, that's interesting. I might have to do that then because I feel like it's not really doing anything anymore.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, so we go over this once patients get to a maintenance phase where, like, say, Brandon, you're down, you're at your ideal weight at that 200 pounds. You're like, no, I just want to maintain, we'll drop your dose by 50% and then keep you on it every 10 to 14 days to maintain that weight.

SPEAKER_02:

So probably like titrate off though, right? Like not go cold turkey, like off, or do you or can you? Can you quit cold turkey? Okay, okay.

SPEAKER_01:

So um, yeah, it's the medication lasts seven to ten days in your body, and so it's an easy, it kind of titrates yourself down easily. It's not like up. So uh yeah, I mean, I love these medications, man. They really work well for so many things. They really do.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, there was one time that I that I like full on missed a dose, and it was like I didn't notice it till two days after because I downloaded an app on my phone that like reminds me when I'm supposed to take my shot. Like I put all the information in and it reminds me of it and everything. But before I had got that app, there was a I want to say it was like maybe a month and a half after I started them. I had forgotten to take it and I freaked out because I'm like, do I need to wait till the next week rolls around? Do I double up? Do I what? And I know it was I want to say it was Thanksgiving weekend and I didn't want to bother you. So I went on Google and there's like they it said that there was a nine day window from the original injection. As long as it's within that nine days, you can still take your normal dose. So I was like, okay, I'm good, I can still do this. Um but it was there's been times where I'm like, I need like first I was like, make sure you're taking it at the same time on the same day, the same minute, like I was like dead set on that. But then I got to realize I was like, that's that's not possible to take it at the same time on the same day every week. So I've I've I take my injections on Saturdays now, and I take them Saturday morning when I get off work. That way I know it's between that 7 and 7:30 time period every Saturday morning.

unknown:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. I mean, uh, yeah, man. Well, I tell you what, it's been a great podcast. It's great connecting with you. I'm so happy that you're doing so so you're doing so much better. I mean, I can just see in your face, your attitude, you're seeing the scale change. Here at you know, the podcast, we just love to see folks just succeeding in their life, living with this chronic disease. LA, take it away.

SPEAKER_02:

All right, guys. Thanks, thanks so much, Brandon. I want to leave everyone with this. Breakthroughs don't come from motivation, they come from showing up imperfectly, consistently, and honestly. Use the tools, you know, build the habits, audit yourself weekly, and remember you're not behind. You're building. Thanks for tuning in to the Hemo Life Podcast. If this episode helped you, share it with someone who needs to hear it.

SPEAKER_01:

Once go to stlmedweight loss.com. You got Dr. Joe, severe hemophiliac. I can get you weight loss medications, get your health right, get your weight down, like Brandon, 40 pounds down. I can help you. STLmedweight Loss.com. I'll give you every advice, everything you need to get on these weight loss uh peptides.

SPEAKER_00:

If we did that thing at in Texas, it's it's kind of been like an itch that I've been kind of wanting to get back into it. Because it's hard for me to go back and look at pictures from that trip because I was so so because I knew that there was a camera at all times. And I was so self-conscious about I felt like I looked like an umbrella in a way because of how my stomach stuck out, my shirt stuck out farther, and I just I hate the way that I look at myself or the way that I look at that point. And just just the difference from September to now.

SPEAKER_01:

It's been changing, man.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, it really has been, and it it's it's without getting emotional about it. Um it's made me feel like I've got some kind of purpose again, in a way. And it's crazy that a shot that makes you lose weight would make you feel that way. But it's it's like it's brought me out of the hole that I was in where I felt like I was walking around just doing nothing, like I had no purpose in life, that I was just like a a spaceholder in a way. And just losing the weight, it's like just going to the grocery store or something, like you said, it's not even the whole confidence thing. It's it's I'm not worried about people looking at me for being heavier or I don't know. I just I don't feel like I've got many as many eyes looking at me as I did before.

SPEAKER_01:

And I think that point right there, and I appreciate your candor with that, is why so many people, it's hard to make that first phone call and like pick up the phone and be like, there's a lot of courage. But once you do it, you're in for a lifelong journey to um investing in yourself because, like you said, you're getting these small wins, 20 pounds, 30 pounds. Now you don't feel like all these eyes are on you. And that's that's literally changing your mindset uh in how you approach different things. I mean, you're on the podcast today. I mean, let's just let's put it out there. Like, you're on the podcast. I don't think before you'd be like, let me sign up to talk about this. Like I can just see, like, and then you just think about like what's the next thing? You lose another 40 pounds, you get in the gym, you know. I mean, you could be on stage one day, like with like I don't know, like the worst thing in the world is to wake up and not have something to be excited about, yeah, and not be a spaceful whenever you feel like that.

SPEAKER_02:

Whenever you start losing weight, and then you know, you can wake up and have have that be like, Man, like I can be excited about that. I can be excited about progression. If we're not progressing, you know, we're dying. Like, so it's I'm I'm super happy that you have something to look forward to.

SPEAKER_00:

Uh yeah, and because I like the doing the podcast this time, it was different from how it was the first time after the Texas event. And after that video got posted on YouTube, I went and I watched it with my mom, and the whole time I was just like like this watching it because I was I didn't I I didn't like the way that I looked. Uh my face was a lot fuller than it is now. It's like just the the difference, and this time it was I don't know, I was more excited to do it than well. I mean, I was excited to do it last time, yeah, but this time I wasn't yeah, it's one of those I've I'm not as ashamed of.