As a plus-size woman with PCOS, I could work out every day, eat 100% correctly, and still not lose a significant amount of weight without assistance. I asked my doctor for the semaglutide shot and was prescribed it without hesitation. I wasn’t instructed to seek out hormone imbalance help and wasn’t recommended to see a specialized nutritionist; it was hesitation-less. So, I took it.
I did really well for the first month; I lost 12 pounds on the lowest dosage and was happy with my results. My doctor wanted to move it along faster and suggested we up the dosage, so I did. I took it for another month before I quit; the entire thing made me violently ill. I felt like I had food poisoning regularly, so it truly wasn’t for me. On the other hand, I know several people who have been on it super successfully and have lost tons of weight and felt just fine.
I say all of this to explain that it is a truly personal journey that deserves neither side shaming the other. That being said, one thing both sides of the “skinny jab” positions should agree on is that shopping for these on the black market is a big no-no.
Mom Karen McGonigal, 53, died in May 2025 after taking an allegedly illegally administered dose of a semaglutide “jab.” The UK mom’s surviving family members are now warning other consumers about the dangers of getting this shot outside of a medically monitored setting, People reported.
Abbie and Ffion McGonigal, Karen’s daughters, explained to iTV News that their mom took the injections after the end of a long-term relationship deeply affected her self-esteem.
“She didn’t feel happy in herself, she didn’t want to go out anywhere. I think she just wanted her old self back — she wanted to lose weight to get her confidence back,” Abbie McGonigal told iTV News.
The outlet claimed to verify that Karen McGonigal exchanged text messages about a £20 (around $26) jab at a local beauty salon she reportedly frequented multiple times. Ffion McGonigal claims that the beautician stopped doing a client’s nails to administer the injectable.
“No preparation, no cleaning, nothing. She’d give it to my [mom], my [mom] would pay her, and she’d be out in three minutes,” the daughter stated.
Although Karen McGonigal was beginning to lose weight, she fell ill four days after her most recent injection. She complained of severe stomach pain, struggled to breathe, and was in “agony.” After turning “purple,” she was rushed to the hospital where she spent two days in the ICU because her daughters were told it was hopeless, according to People.
Now, her daughters are committed to spreading awareness to save other families the heartache.
“If this saves another person … Or saves another person going through what we feel – then we’ve done enough,” Abbie McGonigal told iTV News.
People reported that one person has been arrested in this case during an ongoing investigation.
“My thoughts are with Karen McGonigal’s family following her tragic death,” Andy Morling, the deputy director of Criminal Enforcement at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency told the magazine. “Buying any medicine from illegal online suppliers significantly increases the risk of receiving falsified or unlicensed products.”
The statement continued, “We work closely with law enforcement partners, customs authorities, social media and online platforms to remove illegal medicines from sale, block harmful websites, disrupt payment routes, and delist offending domains from search engines.”
When it comes to your health, there are no shortcuts. That means getting assistance is perfectly fine, but you have to go about it the correct way for your safety and overall well-being.
