Marriage and Sex in the Age of Ozempic
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
This is Andrew Ross Sorkin, the founder of Dealbook. Every year, I interview some of the world's most influential leaders across politics, culture, and business at the Dealbook Summit, a live event in New York City. On this year's podcast, you'll hear my unfiltered conversations with Gavin Newsom, the CEO of Palantir and Anthropic, and Erica Kirk, the widow of Charlie Kirk. Listen to Dealbook Summit wherever you get your podcasts.
From The New York Times, I'm Rachel Abrams, and this is The Daily.
How are GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic changing relationships?
In the last few years, GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Zepbound have been radically reshaping the lives of millions of Americans. They have the power to change everything, from our appetites and our health to the clothes that we buy. But they also have the power to affect other parts of our lives, how we date, how we see ourselves, even our closest relationships. Today, my colleague Lisa Miller tells the story of how these drugs upended one couple's marriage and how they dealt with the fallout.
It's Tuesday, October 7th.
Lisa, I don't think it's an understatement to say that we, in 2025, are in the middle of this, what feels like kind of a weight loss revolution in the United States. And, of course, we're talking about these drugs that everybody's probably heard of, Ozempic, Wegovi, Monjaro. I think most people know somebody who's been transformed by them. Maybe a lot of people themselves have actually had some experience with them. But I would just like to hear a little bit about what interested you initially.
What initial questions did Lisa Miller explore about marriage and weight loss?
Yeah, it's a revolution in how we look. It's a revolution in our health. It's got gigantic potential to help people who have not been able to be helped before. And the data show that one in eight Americans has tried one of these drugs, so that's a lot of millions of people, right? And so it's creating all kinds of conversations, not just about how we feel and our health, but also how we look and how that matters in the world. Like, I have a friend who takes the medicine, and he says... You know, if you are able to eat just five French fries and you used to not be able to eat just five French fries and had to eat the whole plate of French fries, it gives you grounding in the idea that you can control food.
things in your life that you didn't think you could control. So if you're a person who was completely helpless in the face of a plate of French fries and suddenly you get control of that, what else can you control? Can you control your gym-going habits? Can you control your the way you relate to your children, the way you talk to your boss. So my question was, like, if your body has changed so much, just the shell you walk around in, and your mindset has changed so much about what's possible for you, wouldn't that affect the way you relate to everything and everyone in your life, including your most intimate relationships?
How did Jean and Javier's relationship evolve after weight loss?
And what really interested me was this question of how the GLP-1 drugs affected a marriage, especially when one partner is on the drugs, and the other partner isn't.
How did you go about trying to find the right people to talk to to satisfy that question? Right.
Well, we at The Times have a thing called a call-out where you ask the public a question and that question is posted on social media and in the paper and all over the place. And then we get responses to that question. And the question was this. Has a GLP-1 drug like Ozempic and subsequent weight loss changed your relationship?
Mm-hmm.
And so it was the week last year between Christmas and New Year's, and it was like presents. And I was getting all of these responses to the call-out, and a lot of them were really interesting, I just want to say. And one jumped out at me. Should I just tell you what he said? Yes, do you have it? Yeah, I have it.
What challenges did Jean face with her self-image after losing weight?
He wrote, And I thought, there's a lot between the lines here. First of all, a lot of people wrote in about sex, but he was very pointed about it. He's ruminating on why, struggling with it. And so I called them up. Can you hear me? And I talked to both of them.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–0:41
2
How are GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic changing relationships?
0:41–2:06
3
What initial questions did Lisa Miller explore about marriage and weight loss?
2:06–3:58
4
How did Jean and Javier's relationship evolve after weight loss?
3:58–5:05
5
What challenges did Jean face with her self-image after losing weight?
5:05–6:15
6
How did the couple's intimacy change after Jean started taking GLP-1 drugs?
6:15–7:01
7
What are the emotional impacts of losing weight on Jean's relationship?
7:01–8:07
8
How did Jean's changing lifestyle affect her marriage dynamics?
8:07–38:36
Speakers
7 identifiedMore from The Daily
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