CoolSculpting Consultation & Treatment – My Fat Freezing Experience

So, I went for CoolSculpting Treatment at Halley Body Slimming Clinic (Halley Body) 3 weeks ago, and I am going to share about my CoolSculpting review. I’ll cover what to expect during the CoolSculpting consultation and treatment procedure in this post. There are so many of you curious beings asking me about it after seeing it on my IG, so here’s the blow-by-blow account.

First, here are some facts on CoolSculpting so you can follow through and understand what it is all about, or watch a 1 minute+ YouTube video on how fat freezing work by Dr. Terence Tan of Halley Body.

The What: What is CoolSculpting? 

CoolSculpting is a non-surgical, non-invasive, no downtime fat reduction treatment. It’s the only US FDA-approved fat freezing treatment that uses the concept of cryolipolysis to freeze and destroy unwanted fat cells, which are then disposed from the body naturally. 

The How: How does CoolSculpting reduce fats? 

The treatment removes 20-25% of fat cells in the treated area each time. And because our body is unable to produce any new fat cells after five years of age, the fat cells that die after fat freezing will be gone forever. Lesser fat cells means lesser fat “storage” in the body = lesser body fats! 

The Why: Why CoolSculpting?

Long story short, I need to salvage my “pregnant-but-not-pregnant” belly. In my opinion, it needs severe help – 19 months post-partum, and I am constantly being offered seats in the train and my colleagues even tried to ask gently if I’m expecting! The non-invasive fat removal process is one huge lure for me definitely. As a busy mum of 3 kids with no domestic help, I cannot afford any downtime. And the quick win for me is that it targets a particular trouble spot of mine – tummy. My tummy just protrudes out like a monster and CoolSculpting can be used to remove unwanted fat, which cannot be removed through spot toning exercises. Compare that to liposuction where cutting and wounds are involved, the choice is quite clear.

The Where: Where can CoolSculpting be applied on?

Areas that can be treated by CoolSculpting include the abdomen, love handles, inner and outer thighs, arms, bra fat, back, banana roll (butt cheeks), knees, and even the double chin and cheeks. But I’m not greedy. I just want my belly gone so I was treated on the abdomen and flanks.

You can read more about CoolSculpting. Now that I got all the boring bits out, here’s what to expect for the treatment if you are still reading. 

Before getting any treatment done, there will be a consultation with the doctor. Dr. Terence Tan from Halley Body explained all the facts you need to know about CoolSculpting, the process as well as the possible CoolSculpting side effects. He also answered my concerns about CoolSculpting risks. Halley Body specialises in non-invasive and no downtime weight management, fat removal, body firming, and muscle toning treatments. Halley Body also a sister clinic called Halley Medical Aesthetics that focuses on medical aesthetic treatments for the face, which was also started by Dr. Terence Tan.

My body weight and height is also taken to determine if my BMI is suitable for the treatment and some body measurements for records. With all that cleared, I changed into a bra top and paper shorts & Dr. Terence Tan then proceeded to check the body fats and assess if it is suitable for the procedure. Be prepared for some fat pinching! 

I’m surprised that the doctor told me I actually don’t have much fats in my upper abdomen. He then proceeded to mark out the areas that we will be treating – my abdomen and my flanks to give me some “shape” at the sides. I’m in total agreement, totally need to lose those inches. 

Each oval shape on my body is the position of the applicators that the doctor will be working on my body. Dr. Terence Tan prescribed 12 CoolAdvantage applicators to treat all stubborn fats in my mid-section. The CoolAdvantage applicators treat a larger area and reduces treatment time by nearly half, which is really great.

Drawings done. Photos next.

Some photos are taken in different angles before the treatment so one can compare the before and after with the results in 3 months.

The good thing about having the treatment at Halley Body is that they have many CoolSculpting machines and can do more than 1 applicator at the same time on different spots, saving even more time! I did 6 rounds of 2 applicators each time, and each session is about 35 mins. The traditional Coolsculpting applicators takes 60 mins so imagine the time I saved. 

Just how many CoolSculpting machines does Halley have for its patients?

Fun fact: Halley Body offers QuadSculpting too – the use of four CoolSculpting machines in tandem to reduce treatment time on different parts of the body. How interesting. 

Ok. Onto the CoolSculpting treatment process. I get into the treatment chair, I watch movies and I sleep and the magic happens. End of story. I’m half joking!

Dr. Terence Tan applying the applicator on my flank first so that I can lie down comfortably before putting the other applicator at my abdomen. I’m smiling, so it’s no pain at all. Just feeling a little bit of suction and then it’s just cooling. 

All set up and that’s when my movies and nap began. I clocked in 2 movies while at it (there’s wifi!), and at some point even napped through the treatment. The clinic assistants were real sweet. They gave me a call button which I never pressed, but they checked in on me every now and then and kept asking if I’m ok. I generally don’t feel any pain with the treatment, but may be in an awkward position depending on where the applicators are placed. I have to disclaim on the pain part – it really depends on your pain threshold. 

The machines have the countdown timer so you know exactly when the treatment is going to end. The assistants will then remove the applicator and the gel pads, and then proceed to massage the treated area. Hello, frozen fats!

This is the part that is interesting to me. The treated area feels like slushie under my skin. It’s numb, it’s cold, it’s icy and really interesting to touch – omg, is that part of my body?  But yay, they are really frozen!

The massaging is slightly uncomfortable for me at the flank area but totally bearable in the abdomen area. It’s just a weird sensation because it feels like you have foreign objects in your body. This helps to speed up the breakdown of the crystalised dead fat cells, which will then be passed out by the body naturally in the months to come (the results will show in 2 to 3 months). The applicators then get rotated around the different parts of the body till we covered all 12 areas that were marked out.

Rocking the treatment and just enjoying my quiet me-time. Oh so precious. No kids screaming for me, not thinking about work and just enjoying the peace and the whirling of the machines. Oh, it really reminds me of being on a plane though. Must be my wanderlust at work.

Once the treatment is done, I just wipe myself dry from the gel pads, put on my clothes and I’m off to do whatever I want next. It’s really quite fuss-free and easy.

I’ll update in another 2 months with a blog post on the final results. Can’t wait to see how it will eventually turn out. Meanwhile, follow my journey on my IG @Cherieladie or check out the IG story highlights that I have on CoolSculpting.

27 June 2020 Update: 2020 is an extraordinary year for a lot of us, and with the COVID-19 situation, I have not been able to head back for a follow-up review at the the clinic this year to really measure the results of this fat freezing. I do, though have gotten much feedback from friends and people around me that I seemed to have “lost weight”. My waist was definitely smaller and my clothes doesn’t feel as tight pre-lockdown. Fast forward a few months, I am definitely much smaller now, as I added exercising into my routine during the lock down period. I would definitely say that the fat freezing works, and it is a good kick-off to a slimmer waist line if it feels like losing fats is hard.

Disclaimer: All thoughts and opinions and excessive, gross fats are real and of my own.

Where to find Halley Body Slimming Clinic

277 Orchard Road #03-16 Orchard Gateway Singapore 238858

T: 6246 8806

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