You might sometimes wonder whether your pen is working properly: it seems to be stuck, no drop comes out, or you notice liquid left in the pen after your last injection. The manufacturer always checks the pens carefully, and the pharmacy checks them again afterwards. In almost all cases, the pen itself is not broken, but one small step in how it's used needs to be slightly different. Below, we'll walk through it together.
Important for every pen: prime once
For all our pens (Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Saxenda): with a new pen, always check the flow ('priming') before your first injection. This makes sure the pen flows properly before you inject. The exact steps are in the instructions for use at www.goodweigh.de/instructions for your specific pen. This only needs to be done before the first injection — if you do it again later, you'll waste some liquid each time, and you may end up short of liquid for a full 4th injection at the end of the month.
The pen is blocked or gives no drop
With these pens, you only need to prime once: the first time you use a new pen. Skip that step for every injection after that, until you start a new pen. If the pen gets blocked in the meantime, follow these steps:
Important: if these steps don't help, our medical assistants can review it with you. For this, we'll need you to film these steps, so they can properly assess what seems to be going wrong and where the cause lies. This saves a lot of time in finding the right solution.
Check the instructions page at www.goodweigh.de/instructions and try again with the instructions for use next to you. This explains, per medication, exactly how injecting works. A step in the process is probably missing.
Replace the needle with a new one. A blocked or slightly bent needle is the most common cause of a stuck pen.
Still not working? Try again with a second new needle.
Still not working, and is this your 4th injection? Check how much liquid is left, and whether you primed after every injection. Unfortunately, there may then be too little liquid left for a full injection.
Still not working, and is this your 1st, 2nd or 3rd injection? Contact the Medical team.
Good to know
Have you been using the medication without issues for a while, but the pen gets stuck right around the last injection? You may have used a few pens without problems while accidentally priming before every injection. Pens have a varying amount of leftover liquid. It's possible this was enough to compensate before, but not this time. Not having had problems before doesn't mean the process was being done correctly.
Too much liquid left after the last injection?
That's normal. A small, varying amount of leftover liquid always remains in the pen. This is not a full extra dose and shouldn't be used. If you followed the instructions for use, you can assume all your injections were done correctly. Throw the pen away after the 4th dose, even if it still looks like there's medication left.
Never do this
Never inject the leftover liquid remaining in the pen after your last dose. This is not a full, reliable dose.
Never use a pen if the liquid is cloudy, discoloured, or contains visible particles.
Never use a pen that has ever been frozen or stored above 30°C for an extended period (for example, in a hot car).
Never use a pen past its expiry date, or more than 30 days after its first injection. Once opened, a pen has a limited shelf life.
Never share your pen with anyone else, even with a new needle.
Never skip the one-time priming step on a new pen, even if it looks the same as your previous one.
Still unsure, or does the pen keep not working despite the steps above? Contact the medical team via chat. If you can, include right away: the brand and strength of your pen, which injection number this is, and the video you made of the steps above. This lets us help you properly straight away. The chat can be found at app.goodweigh.de.