Day 1: The Big Injection

Finding peptides is surprisingly easy. After choosing a brand, I placed my order and had the package on my doorstep two days later. The funny part is that I’ve never injected anything into myself—or anyone—so I knew this was going to be a “take a breath and just do it” kind of moment.

The shipment came with two vials and a large assortment of single-use needles and syringes. That’s when I realized I wasn’t entirely confident about the dosing. A full syringe measures 30 (or .3), which was more than I intended, so I scaled it down and moved forward.

The injection itself was simple. I had about half an hour before my daughter (she’s 8) was being dropped off, so I took the dog and my husband for a quick walk to clear my head.

When we got back, though, my heart was pounding. It felt intense enough that I convinced myself I must have misread the syringe and taken far more than planned. I called Poison Control, and the woman on the line calmly walked me through how to read the markings and confirmed I had taken the correct amount. She also reminded me—very clearly—that unclear instructions should always be checked with a doctor or pharmacist. Unfortunately, I completely forgot I could have reached out to my contact at the company.

The rest of the evening unfolded normally—dinner, games, reading, bedtime—but my heart still felt faster than usual as I lay down to sleep. I took a look at one the sites I used to research (New England Journal of Medicine) and it would be extremely rare if my increase in heart rate was from the retatrutide.

It was a reminder that even when something is easy to access, it doesn’t mean the experience is simple.