25, 5'5", 165 Lbs, Work out 4x/week, No Kids, Have Always Had a "Tummy"

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.

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.

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.