Kathleen M. Welsh, MD

I’m pretty slim and everyone told me I was crazy to do this. I was slim, but not fit, and my abdomen always bothered me, after 5 treatments waist is about 2 inches smaller and I kinda have a 4 pack. I just signed up to do my butt too.

Both my daughters got married within two years of each other desperate to look my best I made an appointment with Dr.Kathleen Welsh. I had sculptura, juvederm and Botox ..basically the works! Dr. Welsh made me look and feel in my 40’s while in my 60’s. She is the Best!

Dr. Welsh is the best injector! She always takes care to enhance my features in a natural way. I never have to worry that I will look “done” after my treatment. She offers the latest and greatest injectables and her technique is flawless. There is no one else I trust more when it comes to my face!This review was created as part of a nomination to the RealSelf I Love My Injector Campaign.

When I lived in the Bay Area Dr. Welsh was my dermatologist of choice! The first time I came to her office was for tattoo removal when I was in my 20’s...it was a total success. Years later I am 100% tattoo ink free thank to her. It took time but was well worth it. I have also used her office for the V-beam laser procedure which removes dilated blood vessels. If you have rosacea, or are constantly red in the face, have tiny broken blood vessels on the side of your nose than go get them lasered off! It costs me a few hundred bucks and I went from piling on foundation to cover my redness/blotchiness to years of not needing any foundation. I go back to her for touch ups every few years when I am in San Francisco. Seriously, go do this! They work within your budget and they will help you.

No matter how much i workout and how healthy i eat, i can't seem to get rid of my saddle bags and tummy pouch. CoolSculpting gave me an incredible result with no downtime (some bruising and numbness but Dr Welsh and her staff told me to expect that)...this machine is incredible! It actually took about 20% off of the areas i want to get rid of and the staff informed me that each time i do a treatment in the same area, I'll see more reduction. I booked my second round and can't wait to see my before and afters!

I've always been the "chubby" kid despite being very physically active all my life. In periods where I didn't consistently work out for 6 months I would gain 20 lbs and one pant size, so I'm currently 165 lbs at size 10-12 depending on the brand. I was size 6 and 140 lbs about two years ago (but even then I had a tummy). So I read about coolsculpting and despite some negative reviews, as well as some scary stories from those who developed hyperplasia, I decided that the potential pros outweighed the cons (hyperplasia affects less than 1% of the population). I booked a consultation and they saw me the next day. They pinched my fat and said, you'd make a great candidate, and were pleased to hear that I worked out and ate healthy on a regular basis. See, apparently once you've stopped growing the number of fat cells you have stays the same, so if you eat right and exercise, coolsculpting results can show, but if you don't, after the 20% reduction your remaining fat cells can grow and net out to no visible change. Additionally, coolsculpting only treats subcutaneous (directly under skin) fat, not visceral fat under the muscle (the vacuum of the applicator essentially can only reach the top few layers directly under the skin). So if you pinch your fat and it's a hard beer belly, you won't have luck. I booked an appointment for 2.5 hours. They recommended the two small CoolAdvantage applicators on the upper abdomen and the large scary applicator on the bottom. I read that the late onset nerve pain often happens for abdominal procedures (late onset nerve pain is sharp shooting stinging pain that set in 3-5 days after the procedure due to cold sensitivity but no permanent nerve damage happens). I have had carpal tunnel before, so I knew what nerve pain was like. So needless to say I had the jitters for my appointment. The staff was really nice and gave me tea. For the CoolAdvantage, they put this sticky honey gel pad on you (wear clothes you don't like, this is messy) and honestly those applicators only took 35 mins each and weren't bad at all. I did pretty much feel it the entire time (some people say you go numb but these don't suction enough to do that). Afterwards instead of a massage they used a Z Wave which is like a static shock thing that breaks up cellulite, which is something only available at their practice and they've seen much better results with it. Anyway it wasn't painful, just highly uncomfortable. The large applicator was a different story. The initial suction didn't bother me, but the first 10 minutes I felt was kind of painful. I was like ow ow ow like I had just stubbed a toe. Then afterwards I got used to the painful feeling (again, didn't really "go numb") and that one took a full hour. When I was "thawing out" everything kind of tingled like tiny pins and needles. Not painful, but very annoying. I came home and was pretty swollen, and it hurt to bend over. So yes I could move around and whatnot, but "back to your daily routine" is an exaggeration. I just woke up this morning and the swelling has gone down dramatically. So far the pain is less noticeable and only happens when I touch it. So far so good. Updated on 12 Oct 2016: Skin stings, still swollen and tender, but no bruising. Compression wear definitely helps, also heat patches and these handy dandy lidocaine patches which numb nerves. It's called aspercreme I believe. So far no sharp shooting pain but not in the state to exercise yet, I move around gingerly to avoid hurting myself. Wearing jeans or pants with waistbands definitely stings. Updated on 13 Oct 2016: Painful, achey, and itchy like a sunburn under the skin. Hot to the touch and very swollen. Did yoga today and it actually felt better afterward for a bit. Lymphatic system is definitely kicking in - I almost look pregnant with all the swelling. Read online for ways to drain lymph nodes. I'm starting to drink lemon water and give myself tiny massages on the belly. Updated on 15 Oct 2016: twinges of pain in two specific spots. read somewhere that coolsculpting can disrupt the fatty protective myelin sheath on nerves, which is something that can regenerate but causes painful nerve pain in the process. so i have two specific spots that keep twinging like bee stings. surprisingly, exercise helps. i'm avoiding ibuprofen because while it does help, it can cause the inflammation to subside, and no inflammation means i will lessen the results of my coolsculpting - going to try to fight through the pain and pop tylenol so i can maximize my results. also drinking lemon water and doing lympatic massage to speed up the process (clearing out the lymph so my immune system can break these cells down faster). the pain is not debilitating but rather annoying and uncomfortable and distracting! not regretting yet as haven't seen results, but really really would have reconsidered getting this done had i known how persistent the pain would be even into day 6. Updated on 17 Oct 2016: day 7 was the worst. period came and boy was i not ready for that pain - easily cried in my sleep while clutching onto an ice pack. after a day of exceuciating pain, drank ginger lemon and honey tea and instantly felt better. woke up morning of day 8 feeling better. kind of the most comfort i've felt since the procedure. still tender to the touch, but random twangs of pain are occurring much less frequently and not as painful as before. will post pic tomorrow as swelling is almost 100% gone. Updated on 18 Oct 2016: my pain is gone. i have some slight discomfort now and then, but it is literally gone. i thank ginger and lemon for this relief. i think for my after photos i will be comparing to these photos since my swelling has gone down. Updated on 21 Oct 2016: some tingling or numbness occassionally but for the most part my body feels back to normal. no changes to report yet. i have still been working out 4x/week. I have cut back on sugars and red meat since I heard read that they are inflammatory foods, and I'd rather any inflammation take place in my abdomen and not in my digestive tract. Updated on 23 Oct 2016: it itches beneath my skin, like an itch i can't scratch. no pain or anything, just so so itchy. Updated on 27 Oct 2016: starting to notice some very minor differences. maybe. Updated on 29 Oct 2016: maybe a slight difference? Updated on 21 Nov 2016: Updated on 28 Nov 2016: due to thanksgiving celebrations w/ friends and family i haven't worked out in 7 days. i hope i'm not shooting myself in the foot.

The Coolsculpting procedure on my stomach area dramatically reduced the appearance of fat. It slimmed out the 4 areas that I had it done. I never thought I would feel confident with that area of my body, but now I do :) It has motivated me to stay in shape. Also Sarah and Dr. Welsh were amazing to work with!

When I was in elementary school my first grade teacher had harsh lines all around her mouth; looked like she was sucking on a lemon. And she was mean too. So when I started developing the same it was horrifying. I never smoked and don't purse my lips alot so I guess this is just a genetics issue. So although I don't consider myself vain the appearance was something I didn't want to see in the mirror everyday and went to Kathleen. I have worked with her in the past professionaly and know how good she is; really smart and skillful. I had botox in between my eyes for my "eleven" (mine was more like a "one" as one line was very noticible and made me look scowly. The lip lines filled out beautifully without looking sausagey or pouty. Not a good look for anyone but particularly not at my age. My lips looked like my lips but circa thirty years ago. Between the lips and botox I looked more rested less irritable and certainly less like my first grade teacher. The best part about these treatments is that they were subtle small changes that made a significant improvement in my appearance. with zero down time and lasted longer than expected. I could go six months between botox treatments with very little change in that time. And her office staff is wonderful. I haven't been getting treatments in the last few years (my husband protests when I do) but if I had any interest in starting them again I would go to no one else. She is terrific! HIghly recommended without reservation.

Researched for an Esthetician to help remove broken blood vessles on my face and came across Dr. Kathleen Welsh because of great reviews. Had a consultation and received the V Beam treatment just once for a red dot in between my eyes and a bigger blood vessle on my upper lip, which looked like a small, smooth wart. The process was virtually painless. The Technician gave me UV glass because the V Beam transmitted light to the source of the problem. A tiny ray of light shot onto each of the dots about 2-3 times and that was it! Very minor bruising occurred at the site. The staff gave me ice to accelerate the healing and bruising. No downtime at all. Bruise and red dot vanished within a few hours. It has been over 10 years and never had them reappear. Going back soon for treatment of age/sun damage, and any other future skin treatments. Great, knowledgeable staff!!

I came in tot he office wanted to get rid of that hard to get rid of front pouch!I work out and eat right but I am also approaching 40. I thought the process was a little painful at first but it quickly goes away and I relaxed and read magazines for the next two hours. Pretty amazing that I just left the office after that and waited for my body to do the rest of the natural action. Of course I would have loved for the whole pudge and replacement with 6 pack abs but that's not possible. But I really saw some good results. It was amazing how quickly I felt confident in my skinny jeans again. After about two weeks I could see a flatter tummy. Ther was some tingling sensation for a couple weeks too, but that went away with the extra fat! Thanks Coolsculpting! Updated on 1 Aug 2011: At first I was a little nervous about pain and results but, after I had my nearly painless treatment I started to see the the changes after about 4 weeks. I waited a few months and then I had another treatment and now I have a much flatter belly. I work out, eat right but had a problem with the belly fat. I am really glad I had the treatment and I would do it again!