UTAH’S LEADING WELLNESS PROVIDERS
Take your weight loss goals to the next level with a new comprehensive wellness program that guarantees you will lose at least 10% of your starting weight in 12 months. This program will address weight loss and fitness from several different directions. Our medical professionals will create a personalized plan based on your medical evaluation and guide you through your weight loss and general wellness journey.
WHAT IS MEDICAL WEIGHTLOSS?
Do you struggle to fit into those great jeans, dream of playing at the beach without being self-conscious, or even just want to be able to play at the park with your kids more? Believe it or not, your weight doesn’t have to hold you back from any of those things! Let us guide you on your journey to a healthier and happier you through medical weight loss.
Many individuals struggle to lose weight on their own and may resort to dangerous medications or extreme diet programs that put their overall health in jeopardy. Medical weight loss is a safe and effective way to lose weight and improve your health. It involves a combination of diet, exercise, lifestyle changes, and prescription medications that are tailored to your individual needs. It is directed by a medical professional who meets with you regularly to evaluate your progress, symptoms, and lab work to ensure safety.
Benefits of Medical Weight Loss
Medical weight loss can help you lose weight, improve your health, and inspire your confidence. It can also reduce your risk of developing chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.
How to Get Started with Medical Weight Loss
The first step in beginning a medical weight loss journey is to speak with your wellness expert, Shalia Hartvigsen, PA-C, at Ward Institute. Shalia can help you determine if medical weight loss is right for you and provide you with a personalized plan including prescription medications like Semaglutide to both enhance and expedite your results.
What is Semaglutide?
Semaglutide is an injectable GLP-1 receptor agonist used to treat Type 2 Diabetes and obesity. It functions by helping the body use its own insulin more effectively, decreasing glucagon, and delaying gastric emptying (incretin mimetic). It also blocks receptors in the brain for the hormone that signals hunger, Ghrelin, decreasing the feeling of hunger. When used in combination with diet and exercise, Semaglutide may result in significant weight loss. One study showed an average loss of 15% - 20% of body weight. This was enough to see measurable improvements in health including reduced risk of heart attack, stroke, and osteoporosis. It also resulted in better overall mental health of participants in the study. Because Semaglutide causes a significant reduction in appetite and cravings, the time you spend on the medication is used as a training period to instill healthy and sustainable habits that allow you to keep the weight off long-term.
Semaglutide is injected into the subcutaneous fat on a weekly basis. Injections sites change with each visit to reduce the risk of lipoatrophy. You will begin at a very low dose to assess your response. Doses may be increased at subsequent visits in accordance with efficacy and side effects. The most common side effects include nausea, vomiting, constipation, diarrhea, and fatigue. If OTC remedies are not sufficient to treat symptoms, contact the office so that your Wellness Provider can help you to appropriately manage your side effects.
WHAT IS HORMONE BALANCING?
Do you struggle with feeling tired all the time, maintaining your concentration, or just generally feeling “blah”? Most of us simply attribute these symptoms to aging, but it may be time to check your hormone health. Part of natural aging involves a decline in hormones like Testosterone in both men and women. However, this can result in unpleasant side effects if the decline is too rapid or occurs out of balance with your other hormones.
Hormone balancing therapy is a treatment for both men and women that is used to replace hormones like Testosterone, Estrogen, and Progesterone that are no longer being sufficiently produced in the body. It can treat a variety of conditions associated with menopause, andropause, or general aging, leading to an improvement in overall health and well-being.
Benefits of Hormone Balancing Therapy
Hormone balancing therapy can provide many benefits, including:
- Weight loss
- Improved energy levels
- Improved sleep
- Improved memory and cognition
- Improved libido and sexual function
- Improvement of anxiety and depression
- Increased muscle mass
- Reduced hot flashes and night sweats
- Reduced risk of osteoporosis
- Reduced risk of heart disease
How does it work?
Ward Institute’s wellness expert, Shalia Hartvigsen, PA-C, will meet with you to discuss your symptoms and wellness goals. She will evaluate the hormone levels in your blood and discuss options for treatment. This may include prescription medications and/or hormone pellet therapy. Hormone pellet therapy is an increasingly popular treatment for balancing hormone levels. It is a quick and simple procedure in which a small hormone pellet is surgically placed into the fat under your skin. Over several months, the pellet releases the hormones into your bloodstream, delivering consistent results without the need for messy creams, conspicuous patches, or painful weekly injections.
Hormone pellets can be more effective than taking pills because pills are partially altered by the liver after they are swallowed and digested. This is referred to as the “First Pass Effect”. Pills also lead to variable blood concentrations of the hormone throughout the day. Hormone pellets circumvent the First Pass Effect because they are placed directly into and absorbed by the adipose tissue. The pellet releases a consistent amount of hormone into the bloodstream over 3-5 months, delivering steady results.
Your hormone needs may change over time. Shalia will monitor your bloodwork and symptoms to optimize your treatment.
WHO IS AN IDEAL CANDIDATE?
If you struggle with losing or maintaining a healthy weight, feeling sluggish, low libido, or are beginning to feel other signs of aging, then you would likely benefit from the Ward Institute TransFORMation Wellness Program. This program is for generally healthy adults who looking to optimize their energy and physical fitness. You do not have to be an athlete or a supermodel to start, but you may feel like one at the end! Patients who get the greatest benefit and satisfaction from this program are willing to put in some time and effort to achieve their goals, but aren’t afraid to accept a little help to get there.
During your consultation with a medical wellness expert, your health history including family history of certain cancers or other conditions will be reviewed. Your provider will discuss your goals and provide you with realistic expectations regarding the program. They will not, however, treat you with medications if it is unsafe to do so. We pride ourselves in offering both safe and effective treatments.
HOW IT WORKS
If you are curious about how you can improve your weight and wellness, call to schedule a consultation with a Ward Institute TransFORMation Program Provider. During your consultation, they will review your medical history, what medications you take, and your current health habits. They will also order blood labs to get a comprehensive view of your health and hormone levels. They will discuss risks and benefits of various treatments and develop a treatment that best fits your needs. It is important that you are completely honest about your health so that your treatment can be safely maximized.
Once your lab results come in, you will be able to review them with your provider and begin your personalized treatment program. If this involves medical weight loss using Semaglutide injections, you will be able to register for the monthly subscription program. This program includes all of your weekly Semaglutide injections, B12 injections, FormSculpt sessions, and access to 50% off of any CoolSculpting treatments while enrolled. Your wellness provider will meet with you regularly throughout the program to monitor your response to treatment and manage any medical concerns you may have.
If your personalized plan includes hormone balancing, you will meet with your wellness provider regularly to evaluate and optimize your treatment. This could include prescription medications, hormone injections, hormone pellet placement, and/or various lifestyle adjustments. Your blood labs will be closely monitored during this process to ensure safety and efficacy of your treatments.
RESULTS
The goal of the Ward Institute TransFORMation Program is to improve your life by inspiring confidence. How we feel physically, mentally, and aesthetically, has a lot to do with confidence. Your individualized program will not be like any other patient’s. We work closely with you to maximize results based on your unique health and goals. Rather than wasting your time and money on all the supplements and diets that haven’t been working, we want to get a full and accurate picture of your health and design a safe and effective treatment. Most patients are surprised by how quickly they both feel and see a difference in their health.
FAQ
-What if I have a lot of weight to lose?
No worries! Your wellness provider will design a treatment program tailored to your needs.
-What if I only want to lose a few pounds?
No worries! Your wellness provider will design a treatment program tailored to your needs.
-Will I have saggy skin after my weight loss?
Losing significant amounts of weight may or may not leave you with excess skin. The greater the weight loss, the greater the risk. Things you can do to minimize skin laxity during and after weight loss include maintaining a healthy lifestyle with a balanced diet, plenty of protein, lots of water, and strength training exercises. After you reach and maintain your goal weight for a while, there are definitely other options. You should consult with your Ward Institute TransFORMation Provider to find out which treatments would be most suited to your needs.
Mild skin laxity may be treated with certain lasers. Moderate skin laxity of the lower face may respond well to other nonsurgical skin tightening procedures like Profound. For those with aging features or moderate to severe skin laxity, surgery may be the best option. Your TransFORMation Wellness Provider will guide you. If indicated, they will even prepare you for the necessary surgical procedures such as facelift, neck lift, tummy tuck, or body lift with one of our exceptional Ward Institute plastic surgeons.
-What if I’m not a candidate for Semaglutide?
No worries! Our medical providers will always evaluate your medical history and lab work before beginning you on Semaglutide. While it is a safe and effective option for the majority of patients, some will not be candidates due to preexisting mediations or medical conditions such as hypoglycemia or pancreatitis. Your Wellness Provider will present you with medical weight loss alternatives that are appropriate for you and your situation. This could include hormone balancing, other weight loss medications, or certain surgical procedures.
-What are the risks of Semaglutide?
Possible reactions include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, constipation, diabetic retinopathy, eructation, appetite suppression, hypoglycemia, dyspepsia, abdominal distension, GERD (heartburn), flatulence, gastritis, gastroparesis, amylase increase, lipase increase, and injection site reactions.
Serious reactions include thyroid C-cell tumor (only shown in animal studies), medullary thyroid cancer risk, hypersensitivity reaction, anaphylaxis, angioedema, acute kidney injury, chronic renal failure exacerbation, pancreatitis, cholelithiasis, cholecystitis, ileus, syncope, and hypoglycemia. While uncommon, hypoglycemia can be dangerous. Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) can make you feel very hungry, dizzy, irritable, or shaky. To quickly treat hypoglycemia, eat or drink hard candy, crackers, raisins, fruit juice, or non-diet soda. You may be prescribed a glucagon injection in the event of severe hypoglycemia.
Do not use Semaglutide if you have any of the following: hypersensitivity to drug or ingredient, personal or family history of medullary thyroid cancer, multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or type 1 diabetes mellitus. This medication should be used with caution in patients with renal impairment, volume depletion, pancreatitis risk, a history of pancreatitis, a history of stomach or intestinal disorders, diabetic retinopathy, or female patients of reproductive potential.
Females should discontinue use of Semaglutide at least two months prior to a planned pregnancy.
Semaglutide delays gastric emptying and may alter the absorption of oral medications. Be sure to disclose any medications you are taking with your provider prior to initiating treatment.
CONSULTATION
If you are curious about how you can improve your weight and wellness, call to schedule a consultation with a Ward Institute TransFORMation Program Provider. During your consultation, they will review your medical history, what medications you take, and your current health habits. They will also order blood labs to get a comprehensive view of your health and hormone levels. They will discuss risks and benefits of various treatments and develop a treatment that best fits your needs. It is important that you are honest about your health so that your treatment can be safely maximized. Use your consultation to ask questions and make sure that you are comfortable with your provider. You will be seeing a lot of each other throughout your treatment and you should feel totally comfortable bringing up questions or concerns at any time.
At the end of your consultation, you will be provided with educational material and pricing regarding your individual program. Our goal is that you leave your consultation feeling informed, empowered, and excited about your upcoming wellness transformation!