How do I inject the Wegovy pen?

Check your pen. Make sure the pen shows the medication and dose your clinician prescribed. Look through the pen window: the medicine should be clear and colorless, with no particles (air bubbles are normal). Don’t use the pen if it looks like it has been used, if any part of it appears broken (for example, if it has been dropped), if the medicine isn’t clear and colorless, or if the expiration date (EXP) has passed.

Store it. Store the Wegovy single-dose pen in the refrigerator at 36°F to 46°F (2°C to 8°C). Don’t store it in the freezer or directly beside the refrigerator cooling element. Don’t freeze Wegovy, and don’t use it if it has been frozen. Keep the pen in the original carton to protect it from light. If you need to, before removing the pen cap, you can keep the pen at 46°F to 86°F (8°C to 30°C) in the original carton for up to 28 days. Throw the pen away if it has been frozen, has been exposed to light or to temperatures above 86°F (30°C), has been out of the refrigerator for 28 days or longer, or after use. Keep Wegovy and all medicines out of the reach of children. See “How do I store my weight loss medication?” in this help center for more.

Handle it with care. Don’t drop the pen or knock it against hard surfaces, and don’t expose it to any liquids. Keep the pen cap on until you’re ready to inject. The pen won’t be sterile if it’s stored without the cap, if the cap has been pulled off and put back on, or if the cap is missing.

Gather your supplies. You’ll need your Wegovy pen, an alcohol swab or soap and water, a gauze pad or cotton ball, and a sharps disposal container for the used pen.

Wash your hands.

Choose your injection site. Wegovy is injected under the skin (subcutaneously) of your stomach (abdomen), thigh or upper arm. Do not inject it into a muscle or a vein. You can inject into your upper leg (the front of the thigh), your lower stomach (keep 2 inches away from your belly button), or your upper arm, as long as you can clearly see the pen window while injecting. Do not inject into an area where the skin is tender, bruised, red or hard, and avoid areas with scars or stretch marks. Change (rotate) your injection site with each injection. You may inject into the same body area each week, but not in the exact same spot each time.

Clean the site. Clean the injection site with an alcohol swab or soap and water. Don’t touch the area after cleaning, and let your skin dry before you inject.

Pull the cap straight off the pen. The needle is covered by the needle cover, so you won’t see it. Don’t touch or push on the needle cover. You could get a needle stick injury.

Push the pen firmly against your skin and keep pressing. The injection starts when the needle cover is pressed against your skin. Make sure you can see the pen window. If the yellow bar doesn’t start moving, press the pen more firmly against your skin.

Keep pressing until the yellow bar stops moving. The injection takes about 5 to 10 seconds. You’ll hear 2 clicks during the injection.

(a) The first click means the injection has started. The yellow bar in the pen window should start moving.

(b) The second click means the injection is still going. Don’t stop after the second click. Keep pressing the pen firmly against your skin until the yellow bar has stopped moving. If you remove the pen earlier, you may not get your full dose. The needle cover locks when the pen is removed from your skin, and you can’t stop the injection and restart it later.

(c) The yellow bar won’t fill the whole pen window. Once it has stopped moving, the injection is complete.

Slowly lift the pen away from your skin. If blood appears at the injection site, press lightly with a gauze pad or cotton ball.

Put the whole pen in your sharps disposal container right away. If you do not have an FDA-cleared sharps disposal container, you may use a heavy-duty plastic household container, such as an empty laundry detergent container, as an alternative. Do not throw the pen in your household trash or recycling bin.

When the container is about three-quarters full, follow your community guidelines for getting rid of it. Do not put a used sharps disposal container in your household trash unless your community guidelines permit this, and do not recycle it. Disposal rules and programs vary depending on where you live. See “How do I safely dispose of needles?” in this help center for the features a household container needs and for your disposal options.