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A woman who almost died after unknowingly injecting herself with "fake Ozempic" she bought on Facebook has revealed the telltale signs a weight loss jab is counterfeit. Michelle Sword, 47, first started taking weight loss jabs in 2020 after she put on two stone following the breakdown of her 20-year marriage.

She bought her first pen containing semaglutide - which mimics a hormone in the gut that suppresses appetite and helps with weight loss - from a legitimate online pharmacy and within three months lost two stone, going down to her regular weight of eight stone and dress size 8. Coming off the jabs, the school receptionist maintained her weight loss by "exercising and eating healthier" until the summer 2023.

By that time, Michelle, soon slipped into "bad eating habits" - which she pinned down to menopause - often accompanying "every meal with a glass of wine" until her small 5ft 2ins frame put the weight back on. In September 2023, a panicked Michelle - who then weighed 10 and a half stone and had gone back up to a size 10-12 - began to search for the same pen and came across a company selling them on Facebook which quickly came up on her feed.

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She paid £150 for one pen through PayPal, which arrived two days later, but 20 minutes after injecting she fell unconscious. Luckily, her 15-year-old daughter had unexpectedly come home early before heading to her dad's and called a family-friend who dialled 999 and Michelle was rushed to hospital.

After her blood sugar levels dropped to a deadly 0.2, doctors revealed the pen hadn't contained semaglutide and was actually fast-acting insulin - used to treat people with diabetes. Michelle, who was in a diabetic coma, remained in hospital over night until her blood sugar levels stabilised and swore to "never touch jabs again."

Sticking to her word, today, Michelle is a healthy size 10, fluctuating between 10st and 10.5st, and has "completely avoided" weight loss jabs since. She now wants to "warn others" about her mistake - and to help weight loss jab users to "spot the fakes".

It comes as data from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) revealed that more than 6,500 counterfeit pens were seized in the UK in just over two years. Mum-of-two Michelle, from Carterton, Oxfordshire, said: "It's absolutely disgusting there are people out there who pray on people's insecurities.

"And it's also not helpful that social media platforms endorse these fakes either - with pop up advertisements and links to websites. There should definitely be some regulation for that. If you are looking to buy weight loss jabs, please speak with professionals or visit your GP.

"Regulated weight loss medication always requires a prescription and if there are no eligibility checks, it's probably a scam. I want to make sure that no one makes the same mistake I did. Being skinny isn't worth dying for."

After taking a weight loss jab for the first time in 2020, Michelle was "ecstatic" with the results. The jabs really worked and my appetite disappeared completely," she said. "They came at a time when I really needed them. I'd always been a size 8 to 10, but the weight has been slowly creeping on as I turned to comfort eating.

"It would always be one more glass of wine or an extra takeout. I no longer recognised myself in the mirror."

Michelle dropped two stone - to a slender dress size 8 - in three months and came off the jabs "satisfied" with her new look. She maintained her weight loss by "exercising" and eating healthy" until 2023 but soon slipped back into her old habits - which she blamed to the hormonal changes from going through the menopause - and in September 2023 ballooned to 10 and a half stone.

"I'm quite a petite person so a few extra pounds really showed," she said. "I panicked and wanted a quick fix." Michelle admitted to swerving the legitimate way of obtaining weight-loss jabs as it was "increasingly hard to come by."

And said the 'shortage' pushed her to get hold of a beauty company on Facebook who said they could deliver it immediately. "When I saw the jabs advertised right on my Facebook feed for the same price I paid previously - it seemed like a no-brainer. I paid £150 through PayPal and two days later got a month's supply."

Michelle said the pens appeared to be identical to the previous ones – a blue pen with an 'Ozempic' sticker on it. But on September 20, Michelle injected herself and the dose on the pen did not stop after one click. "It just kept clicking. I didn’t really know what the dose was, so I just decided to stop after a few clicks," she said.

"When I looked at the inside of the vial, the liquid didn’t seem to have gone down that far, so I remember thinking I might have to take some more later."

But after 20 minutes of taking the drug, Michelle collapsed on the floor. "I remember becoming really unwell and sweaty before everything went black," Michelle said. "Luckily, my daughter returned home before heading to her dad's for dinner and spotted me on the floor.

"She wasn't even meant to come back - it was a complete one off chance. She called my friend, Vicky, who dialled 999. Paramedics came within 12 minutes and battled for over an hour and a half to save my life, eventually reviving me in hospital.

"My blood sugar level was 0.2 millimoles per litre - when it should have been between four and seven - and I was virtually on the brink of death."

Doctors tested the pen which revealed it was full of insulin. "I was essentially in a diabetic coma and could have died," she said. Now, Michelle who has "not touched a single jab since," weighs roughly 10st and slips into a size 10 wants to prevent others from making the same mistake.

It comes following a study by the MHRA which revealed that more than 6,500 counterfeit pens were seized in the UK in just over two years. With thousands of unlicensed injection seized in 2025 alone.

She said: "It's not the easiest to spot fakes but there are definitely a few telltale signs. The first red flag is if there are no eligibility checks before you buy - like a consultation or health check-up. Legitimate jabs are usually prescribed. It shouldn't be too easy to access. You're not shopping on Amazon."

She also said the price of the fakes seemed to match normal market rates for the legitimate jabs, which led to believe they were genuine. "Looking back, paying through PayPal was also a major red flag," Michelle said. "It should have been done through more official channels rather than a direct bank transfer. And the jabs came with instructions in a different language with a few spelling errors.

"I feel stupid and fooled looking back now. But if I can stop one person from seeking black market jabs, then my story is definitely worth sharing."

Ahsan Bhatti, Pharmacist and Owner of UK online pharmacy Quick Meds, warns that whilst it may be tempting to purchase these medications in a bid to save money or to gain access to medications you may not usually qualify for due to low BMI, falsified injections of any kind can pose a serious risk to health.

“The MHRA’s latest seizure figures are deeply concerning,” says Ahsan. These non-compliant injectables are a genuine risk to patient safety as we are unable to verify how they’ve been manufactured - whether they’ve been stored safely, let alone whether the dosage is even correct.”

He added: “Ultimately, the only real way to ensure you’re in receipt of a safe and legitimate product is by ordering GLP-1 medication from registered, regulated pharmacy providers. Under no circumstance should you trust weight-loss pens sold on apps such as TikTok, messaging apps or via unverified websites.

"The results are simply not worth the risk of injecting unidentified medication into your body. No matter whether you’re eligible for weight loss jabs or are simply looking for a quick fix - it has the potential to cause no end of harm to your health.

“Anyone who suspects sellers of providing counterfeit goods, should report them immediately to the MHRA via its Yellow Card scheme.”

1. There are no eligibility or health checks in place before buying.

2. Getting asked to pay through unofficial channels - including direct bank transfer.

3. If the price seems significantly low, then it's probably too good to be true.

4. If the packaging has spelling mistakes or information missing.