Linda Evangelista says she's done 'hiding' after CoolSculpting left her 'disfigured'
Linda Evangelista is showing her fans how a cosmetic procedure left her "brutally disfigured" by sharing photos of herself for the first time in years.
In a People cover story published Wednesday, the 56-year-old supermodel said she no longer wants to live in hiding following her claims that a Zeltiq CoolSculpting procedure, an FDA-approved fat reduction process that uses cold temperatures to break fat cells, left her body disfigured and sent her into a "cycle of deep depression."
"I loved being up on the catwalk. Now I dread running into someone I know," she told the outlet. "I can't live like this anymore, in hiding and shame. I just couldn't live in this pain any longer. I'm willing to finally speak."
What is CoolSculpting: Linda Evangelista says she was 'brutally disfigured' after
The People story included exclusive new photos of Evangelista and she described the "bulges are protrusions" on her body.
"They're hard. If I walk without a girdle in a dress, I will have chafing to the point of almost bleeding. Because it's not like soft fat rubbing, it's like hard fat rubbing," she said.
In September, Evangelista first spoke out about the adverse effects of the procedure she says she experienced. She was diagnosed with Paradoxical Adipose Hyperplasia (PAH), which according to a 2014 medical journal case report, is an adverse reaction to CoolScultping that results in the cells growing in the treated area, instead of shrinking.
The model said before the diagnosis she tried to fix the protrusions with diet and exercise, but to no avail. She recalled finally going to her doctor in tears as she showed her body.
"I was bawling, and I said, 'I haven't eaten, I'm starving. What am I doing wrong," she said. Her doctor told her diet and exercise would not fix it.
The CoolSculpting safety information site suggests "surgical intervention, such as liposuction" to reverse PAH.
Evangelista followed through with the corrective procedures, adding that she paid out of pocket because Zeltiq would only pay if she signed a confidentiality agreement. After the liposuction, she said the adverse effects weren't "even a little bit better."
In her recent interview, the model said she doesn't "look in the mirror" because it "doesn't look like me."
More: More exercise, fewer calories? Weight loss is more complicated than that.
"I hope I can shed myself of some of the shame and help other people who are in the same situation as me," she said. "That's my goal."
Evangelista has filed a lawsuit against Zeltiq Aesthetics, Inc. seeking $50 million in damages. Zeltiq moved to dismiss the lawsuit in December. The judge presiding over the case has not responded to the motion. The next pretrial conference is set for May.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Linda Evangelista talks CoolSculpting, shares photos in People
