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emi Buckley initially tried to lose weight through diet and exercise, she said, but despite her efforts nothing worked. The 16-year-old from Saginaw, Michigan, said it was really discouraging to watch other girls do the same workouts as her. “I didn’t know what was wrong with me or why I couldn’t lose weight,” she said. Her mother, Deana, understood what it was like to struggle with her weight. She had bariatric surgery over 20 years ago, but didn’t lose as much weight as she needed to. It wasn’t until she started taking Mounjaro, a diabetes drug often prescribed off-label for weight loss, that she started to see results. Those results opened Demi up to the idea of trying a weight loss drug herself. She started Wegovy in March 2023, not long after the Food and Drug Administration approved it for use in adolescents as young as 12. She has since lost 58 pounds. The weight loss, she said, hasn’t just transformed her appearance, but her mental health as well: Demi said she’s been able to go off medication for anxiety and depression. “Now that I’m confident in my body, I can be confident in my mind, and that helps me a lot,” she said. It’s a similar story for 15-year-old Brenden Gallagher of Los Angeles, California. He also had depression, and said his weight contributed to those feelings. After his doctor started prescribing him Mounjaro off-label three months ago, he said he’s lost 25 pounds. (The drug is not approved for people under 18). Brenden’s parents, Dawn and Jayson Gallagher, said they have already noticed differences in his confidence and mood. “He’s really starting to come out of his shell now,” Dawn said. “He’s trying basketball, he’s trying after-school programs, where before he would just stay in his bedroom. Now I’m seeing almost like a whole ‘nother child.” Demi Buckley initially tried to lose weight through diet and exercise, she said, but despite her efforts nothing worked. The 16-year-old from Saginaw, Michigan, said it was really discouraging to watch other girls do the same workouts as her. “I didn’t know what was wrong with me or why I couldn’t lose weight,” she said. Her mother, Deana, understood what it was like to struggle with her weight. She had bariatric surgery over 20 years ago, but didn’t lose as much weight as she needed to. It wasn’t until she started taking Mounjaro, a diabetes drug often prescribed off-label for weight loss, that she started to see results. Those results opened Demi up to the idea of trying a weight loss drug herself. She started Wegovy in March 2023, not long after the Food and Drug Administration approved it for use in adolescents as young as 12. She has since lost 58 pounds. The weight loss, she said, hasn’t just transformed her appearance, but her mental health as well: Demi said she’s been able to go off medication for anxiety and depression. “Now that I’m confident in my body, I can be confident in my mind, and that helps me a lot,” she said. It’s a similar story for 15-year-old Brenden Gallagher of Los Angeles, California. He also had depression, and said his weight contributed to those feelings. After his doctor started prescribing him Mounjaro off-label three months ago, he said he’s lost 25 pounds. (The drug is not approved for people under 18). Brenden’s parents, Dawn and Jayson Gallagher, said they have already noticed differences in his confidence and mood. “He’s really starting to come out of his shell now,” Dawn said. “He’s trying basketball, he’s trying after-school programs, where before he would just stay in his bedroom. Now I’m seeing almost like a whole ‘nother child.”