5 Top Models Discuss Body Insecurity & Bullying

Getting candid about the harsh realities of the modelling world, these 5 top models have opened up on how the industry can make models feel insecure as they face constant rejection based on their appearance alone - or they experienced body bullying before they even became models. Sharing the ways models can develop body insecurity or go through bullying because of how they look, these models have spoken out on the subject.

1. Cameron Russell

Cameron believes being a model comes with insecurities naturally because it's so image-driven: “The thing that I have never said on camera is that ‘I am insecure.’ And I am insecure because I have to think about what I look like every day. If you ever think, ‘If I had thinner thighs and shinier hair, wouldn’t I be happier,’ you just need to meet a group of models. They have the thinnest thighs and the shiniest hair and the coolest clothes and they are the most physically insecure women, probably, on the planet.”

2. Gisele Bundchen

At the beginning of her career, Gisele was knocked back many times and told she was not attractive enough: "I remember some people telling me my nose was too big or my eyes were too small, that I could never be on a magazine cover. It wasn't easy to be 14 and hear that kind of criticism. It made me feel insecure."

3. Jourdan Dunn

Before making it big as a model, Jourdan was bullied for her appearance at school and felt sick just looking at herself: “I didn’t want to leave the house. I didn’t want to look in the mirror. I would feel physically sick. I hated being me. I hated going to school. I already didn’t like the way I looked and now people were making me feel bad.”

4. Miranda Kerr

Miranda says she knows so many models who struggle because of the constant rejection: "Models are some of the most insecure people I've ever met,' she said. 'They're constantly being told they're not good enough. You've really got to practice loving yourself. There was so much rejection in the beginning."

5. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley

Rosie was bullied in school and often body-shamed, which she says is common for models: "I got teased because of my lips. I used to get called 'T*t Lips' - because I had big lips but no breasts. And then I was called 'Kipper Lips'. I was really teased about the way I looked at school. I think most models will tell you a similar story."