Coolsculpting Using "Stacking Technique" on Abdomen and Flanks. It works!

Quick update I should have added this shortly after the procedure. The weight all came back, but with a hard area on my abdomen the exact rectangular shape of the Coolsculpting device. The doctor's office diagnosed it as hyperplasia and submitted the paperwork to Coolsculpting for the guarantee to provide free lipo if hyperplasia developed. Coolsculpting denied the request. The doctor's office appealed their decision. Coolsculpting denied the appeal. I've changed my review to "not worth it" because the weight came back, I developed hyperplasia, and Coolsculpting didn't even make good on their guarantee.

I'm still seeing improvement at 7 weeks! My stomach is not completely flat (I'm waiting until I get the "before" side pic from the clinic to post the "after"), but it's SO much better than it was. I'm wearing some form fitting tops I haven't worn for a couple of years! :)

BACKGROUND:
Some background for those looking for reviews from someone with the same body type.
I'm 58 years old, 5'10", 168 lbs day of procedure. 160 pounds 5-1/2 weeks later!
I was very thin all my life and never gained weight - too thin, really. When perimenopause hit I began to gain weight. At first, I liked it - my stomach was still flat but I finally had curves! But then full blown menopause hit and the weight kept piling on, but mostly on my abdomen. Then 2 years ago I was diagnosed with a large benign growth on my thyroid that slowed my metabolism way down, so the thyroid added to weight gain, and menopause directed all new fat to my abdomen. My jeans size stayed the same (6/8 or 27/28 low rise jeans, so below the buddah belly) so it was obvious all the new weight gain was going straight to my abdomen. After several low carb diets that made me lose weight everywhere else except on my abdomen, I gave up on them and now I just try to eat healthy all of the time, only good carbs, and I'm on the treadmill a minimum of 30 minutes/day. But I still cannot lose weight from around my middle.
THE PROCEDURE:
Dr. Harrington uses the "stacking technique" of coolsculpting, treating the same area twice in the same day. According to Dr. Harrington, "Back-to-back applications to the same area during the same treatment session can be 2 to 3 times more effective, eliminating up to 60 percent of fat in the target areas."
The price reflects this - you're paying for two sessions on the same areas, but doing it all at once.
Everyone at Dr. Harrington's offices was fantastic. I highly recommend them!
So doing my lower abs and flanks with the stacking technique, it was 60 minutes with the large applicator on lower abdomen, then massage, then 60 more minutes on the same area, then massage. Then using two machines to do both love handles at the same time: 35 minutes on each side using the smaller applicators, then massage, then 35 more minutes over the same areas, then massage.
The level of suction when the large applicator was placed on my lower abdomen was much stronger than I imagined it being and caused a moment of panic. Prepare yourselves that it's a very strong suction with the large applicator and just knowing that ahead of time you can brace yourself for it.
The first 60 minutes on my lower abdomen were painful the whole time. I never got to that point of everything going numb in the first few minutes like they say will happen. It felt like having a bad rug burn and then someone pinching the rug burn hard. When the RN left the room she left me with a buzzer to call her if I needed anything or if the pain didn't go away in a few minutes. When the pain didn't go away, I just decided to try to withstand it rather than press the button, figuring I didn't want to have to start all over again or come back another day.
So I was lying there trying to just stay calm and endure it. At one point I felt a cough coming on, and knew that would hurt, so I tried to cough as gently as I could. It hurt so bad when I coughed that I saw stars and thought I might pass out. I was about to hit the button so someone would come who could take the applicator off me, but I saw on the Coolsculpting machine that there were only 3 minutes left. So I just braced myself and endured the last 3 minutes in more pain after the cough. If you have a cold or sometimes cough or sneeze for any reason, take medicine to try to avoid that happening - it hurts!
So when the time was up and the RN came back into the room, she removed the machine and did the massage. It wasn't pleasant, but not bad either. It felt like bad cramps.
When she hooked me up for the second round on my abdomen, that same pinching rug burn feeling was there. When I told her that it never went numb and hurt the whole time in the first round, she said let's try something different, let's have you lie all the way back instead of just reclined in the chair. Oh, what a difference that made! I didn't feel a thing. By the time the second hour was done that area was so numb that I didn't even feel the second massage. If you don't go numb after a few minutes and it still hurts, don't just endure it like I did - have someone come and try putting you in a different position!
After the two rounds on the lower abdomen we moved on to the flanks. They were easy. No pain during, and the massages didn't hurt.
THE RECOVERY:
The recovery was prolonged on my abdomen with a lot of swelling, a non-stop rug burn feeling on my abdomen and the dreaded nerve pain, but only on the lower abdomen. The flanks were easy - swelling and bruised and hurt when I touched them for a few days, but overall barely noticeable.
Nerve Pain: I'm one of the unlucky ones that suffers from the nerve pain side effect, and doing the stacking technique on the abdomen with the large applicator I believe made all of the side effects last longer. It hurt, but now that I'm seeing great progress, I'd do it again in a heartbeat. It started on day 4 and continued pretty intense up until 1 month after the procedure. I had to take the gabapentin prescription all day and before bed. I didn't use ice as many have reported - I preferred a warm bath. The gabapentin took away the strongest pains but I still felt the constant smaller pains. I still occasionally get some nerve pain now at 6 weeks post procedure, but it's light and not bothersome.
Arrange with your clinic to get gabapentin quickly if the nerve pain starts. Start taking it as soon as you start to feel the pain and keep taking it. It seems to work better when it builds up in your system. A few times I quit taking it to see if the nerve pain was better on its own, and when I realized it was still bad, it took a few days for the gabapentin to work as well again.
Tenderness and rugburn feeling: I wore a spanx type tank top 24/7 for a month except when bathing - it helped the treated areas from jiggling around and hurting. On day 25 the skin on my abdomen where the applicator was placed began to flake off like after a sunburn. It's still slightly red at 6 weeks post procedure. I was able to start exercising a week after the procedure and wore an abdominal support belt around my waist.
I didn't wear regular pants for a month because the waistband would have been uncomfortable. I work from home so I was able to get away with wearing yoga pants for a month. Check your wardrobe for clothes that won't be tight on the treated area, keeping in mind you could be very swollen. If I didn't work at home, I'd probably have been wearing loose dresses to work or any pants that the waist band could be rolled down to below the treated area.
Swelling, hardness, and numbness: The swelling and hardness were very bad the first week, and then gradually got better ever so slightly every week, but I don't think it fully went away until after week 5. The numbness has gotten better every week, but I'm still numb in some areas 6 weeks later.
As the swelling started to go down during the 2nd week, I noticed a very hard area on my abdomen that was exactly the shape of the applicator - I could feel and hold onto the edges of it and it worried me. The clinic told me it's a reaction that some people get and not to worry. The edges of the hard area gradually faded and now at 6 weeks it's still there but much smaller and still shrinking.
Ab muscles: For the first 2-3 days after the procedure my ab muscles felt like they'd been shredded. It was nearly impossible to even get up out of a chair or do anything that required using ab muscles for the first 2-3 days. It also hurt a lot just to bend over. I've read other reviews talking about how it feels like they did 1000 sit-ups. I think the stacking technique and treating that area twice in one day made it worse than that.
RESULTS:
One month mark: Love handles almost gone! But no change on abdomen. Measurements were still larger than day of procedure, so still swollen. But starting one day later - days 29 through 32 - I thought I started to notice changes, and I lost a lot of weight this week without changing my diet or exercise. But then 4 days later it seemed like I was a bit swollen again and my abdomen very hard again - I lost all signs of improvement and looked just like the before photo.
5 weeks: I was getting worried it wouldn't work for me on my abdomen. No changes in measurements and looking in the mirror it looked just like my before photo.
Overnight results at 5-1/2 weeks: All of a sudden, at 5 weeks and 3 days, I saw amazing results in one day! I woke up feeling much thinner, and by the end of the day I looked in the mirror and was astounded at the improvement. This after photo was taken that day, and it literally all happened within 24 hours. It was amazing. I suspect the fat loss began back when I thought I noticed a difference at just over 4 weeks, but then I had increased inflammation again so couldn't see the progress of the fat cells dying off, so when the inflammation went down in one day, it looked like I had such drastic results in 24 hours.
Today is 6 weeks and I'm so excited and can't wait to see further progress!
I go back to the clinic for a two month check-up and after photos in 2 weeks. I'll post updated photos then if they give me copies of them, that also includes photos from other angles.