The licensed dose schedule
The UK prescribing information starts Ozempic at 0.25 mg once weekly for four weeks, then moves to 0.5 mg once weekly. If needed, your prescriber can increase the dose to 1 mg after at least four weeks at 0.5 mg, and to 2 mg after at least four weeks at 1 mg. The 0.25 mg dose is a starting dose and never a maintenance dose. The schedule describes licensed use. Only your prescriber decides when your dose goes up.
Dose, concentration and pen contents
The dose is the amount you inject at one time. The concentration is the amount of medicine in a set volume of liquid. The pen contents are the total in the whole device. Each number answers a different question, so never swap one for another. Check the product name, strength and label every time you collect a prescription, especially after a dose change or if the box looks different.
Take dose increases at a steady pace
A higher dose may improve glucose control, but stomach and bowel side effects may get harder to bear. The next step depends on a review. Hunger alone, or someone else's progress, is no guide. If nausea or vomiting stops you eating or drinking normally, contact your prescriber before any increase. A higher number on the pen says nothing about how well you are following treatment.
Missed doses and breaks in treatment
The product information lets you take a missed Ozempic dose within five days. After five days, skip the missed dose and take the next one on your usual day. Never double a dose. A longer break raises a different problem, because your tolerance may change. Ask your prescribing service for a restart plan. Do not assume your previous higher dose still suits you.
Never make your own dose conversions
No ratio converts milligrams of semaglutide into milligrams of tirzepatide, liraglutide or orforglipron. Even semaglutide tablets and injections differ in absorption and schedule. Online click-count charts cannot replace the manufacturer's dose selector or a clear clinical instruction. Never draw leftover medicine from a pen into a syringe to make an extra dose.
Keep an accurate treatment record
Write down your prescribed dose, injection dates, any missed dose and any symptoms affecting daily life. If you have diabetes, record glucose results as your team advises. A record like this makes your next review far more useful than one reading on the scales. If the pen you collect does not match your prescription, ask the pharmacy to sort it out before you inject. Bring the pen and packaging if you need help with a dosing error.
Record your weekly injection day
Pick one injection day, write it down and add it to the medicine list other clinicians see. If a hospital stay, procedure or prescription change disrupts your routine, tell the team the date of your last injection, as well as your usual weekday. This prevents an accidental extra dose when records move between services. Your diary should show the dose you injected as well as the pen strength, because a box name alone may not give your clinician the treatment history they need.
Sources
Your own medicine leaflet and prescriber come first. A source from another country does not mean the same rule applies in the UK.
- Ozempic: UK prescribing information medicines.org.uk
- Ozempic: patient information leaflet medicines.org.uk
- MHRA: GLP-1 medicines and rapid insulin reduction gov.uk
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