Supermodel Linda Evangelista: 'I was brutally disfigured by Zeltiq's CoolSculpting procedure'

The candid Instagram post reads as follows:

"Today I took a big step towards righting a wrong that I have suffered and have kept to myself for over five years. To my followers who have wondered why I have not been working while my peers' careers have been thriving, the reason is that I was brutally disfigured by Zeltiq's CoolSculpting procedure which did the opposite of what it promised. It increased, not decreased, my fat cells and left me permanently deformed even after undergoing two painful, unsuccessful, corrective surgeries. I have been left, as the media has described, 'unrecognizable.'

"I have developed Paradoxical Adipose Hyperplasia or PAH, a risk of which I was not made aware before I had the procedures. PAH has not only destroyed my livelihood, it has sent me into a cycle of deep depression, profound sadness, and the lowest depths of self-loathing. In the process, I have become a recluse. With this lawsuit, I am moving forward to rid myself of my shame, and going public with my story. I'm so tired of living this way. I would like to walk out my door with my head held high, despite not looking like myself any longer."

Evangelista has immediately received an outpouring of support in the comments section, including from the likes of fellow modeling icons Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell and Christy Turlington (h/t People).

Campbell, Crawford, Evangelista and Turlington were the subjects of last year's Supermodels documentary series.