How To Use The Mounjaro Kwikpen: A Guide For Beginners

Mounjaro can help you lose up to 20% of your body weight [1], but taking it correctly is essential to help you achieve best results and minimise discomfort and adverse effects. We've created this guide to help you learn how to inject Mounjaro yourself at home so you can approach your weight loss journey with confidence. 

How Mounjaro works

Mounjaro contains the active ingredient tirzepatide, a dual gastric inhibitory polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) inhibitor. It mimics the action of two naturally occurring hormones in your gut and helps you lose weight by regulating your blood sugar levels and appetite. [1]

How to take Mounjaro

Your Mounjaro Kwikpen is sent to you as a pre-filled pen, which means you don't need to use a syringe or measure out your doses yourself. It's taken as a once-weekly injection — we recommend taking each dose at the same time of day, so you develop a routine and reduce the risk of missing a dose. 

Here's a step-by-step guide of how to take your injections: 

1. Check your pen 

You should refrigerate unopened pens 2°C and 8°C before use. Once opened, you can store your pen at room temperature (up to 30°C) for up to 30 days. Before starting your injection, check your pen for the following things: 

• The medicine name and dose should match your prescription 
• The expiry date shouldn't have passed
• The medicine should be clear or slightly yellow in colour

If your medication is cloudy, discoloured, frozen or contains any particles, don't use it. 

2. Wash your hands 

Your hands should be clean when you administer your injection to prevent infection. Wash your hands with hot water and soap and dry with a clean towel. If someone is helping you with your dose, they should also wash their hands.  

3. Choose your injection site 

Mounjaro is a subcutaneous injection, which means you inject it into the layer of fatty tissue just below your skin. You should choose an injection site from one of the following areas:

• Your stomach, at least two inches from your belly button. Avoid any scar tissue. 
• The back of your upper arm. You may need someone to help you. 
• The front or side of your thigh. Choose a different area from your last dose to reduce the risk of hard lumps.  

4. Prepare your injection pen 

Remove the pen cap and wipe the inner seal with an alcohol swab. Take your new capped pen needle and tear off the paper tab from the outer needle shield. Then, push the pen needle onto your pen and twist until it's tightly secured. Pull the outer needle shield off and place it to one side for later. Take off the inner needle shield and dispose of it. 

Each pen needs to be primed before use. Twist the dose knob until you hear two clicks and see a long line in the dose window — this is the prime position. Hold your pen, needle facing up, and gently tape the cartridge to move any air bubbles to the top of the pen. Gently press the dose knob to release some medicine and the air bubbles. When it stops, slowly count to five while holding the dose knob. Now, you can continue with your dose.  

5. Inject the medication 

Turn the dose knob until it stops and the number 1 is visible in the dose window. Insert the needle into your skin and push the dose knob to inject the medicine. Hold the dose knob down while slowly counting to five, until you see the 0 icon in the dose window. Then, you can gently pull the needle out. You may see a small amount of blood at the injection site — just gently apply pressure with a cotton ball or sterile gauze until it stops.  

6. Safely dispose of the needle

Take care while replacing the outer needle shield. Once the used needle is capped, twist it off the end of your pen and dispose of it in a sharps container. 

Put the pen cap back on your pen and store it away from direct sunlight. If you've had your final dose from that pen, you can dispose of it in your household bin as long as the needle is removed. 

For more detailed injection instructions, and a visual guide to your Mounjaro pen, watch the video above.

Things to avoid when using the Mounjaro Kwikpen

Reusing needles

Used needles harbour bacteria, which can increase your risk of injection. They also become damaged with every use, causing pain and scarring.

Dropping your pen

Your pen contains glass parts. Don't use it if you drop it on a hard surface.

Not taking your full dose

You can't give yourself more than one dose at a time with the Mounjaro Kwikpen. But, you won't receive your full dose if you don't wait five seconds while the needle is in your skin. If this happens, don't inject again as you may overdose.

If you have any other questions about taking Mounjaro, get in touch with your clinical team for additional support. 

Just beginning your weight loss journey?

You can increase your results. Visit our website to see if you're eligible for medicated weight loss today. 

References:

1. Jastreboff AM, Aronne LJ, Ahmad NN, Wharton S, Connery L, Alves B, et al. Tirzepatide Once Weekly for the Treatment of Obesity. New England Journal of Medicine [Internet]. 2022 Jun 4;387(3). Available from: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2206038