WOMEN WHO INSPIRE
MODEL LEARNED TO LOVE HERSELF
Battling years of self-doubt, she discovered beauty in pictures
By VICKI BENNINGTON
Alexandrea “Lexi” Spencer’s portfolio work, taken by a
number of different photographers, is breathtaking.
In almost a chameleon manner, her persona transforms
from glamourous to edgy, touching to whimsical.
Lexi has worked with photographers Trevis and Chrissy
Thomas, Steve Yancey, Aliya Waldman, Dennis Dixon,
T.H. Kruse, Alexandria Burns and Attilio D’Agostino.
There was a time that she would not have thought that
was possible.
Battling anorexia nervosa for five years, she went from
a healthy 130 pounds for her five-foot, five-inch frame,
down to an unhealthy 90 pounds in a relatively short
period of time.
Beginning around 14 or 15 years of age, Lexi developed
body dysphoria (not happy with your body) issues.
“I just couldn’t see myself as others saw me,” she said.
“When I started modeling, I began to see myself in a
new light. It’s almost like I rediscovered who I am.”
She had a friend who was modeling, and then a
photographer asked Lexi if he could take some shots of
her, and she agreed.
“I actually looked at some of the pictures and thought,
‘Oh, those don’t look bad.’ I never thought I looked OK
before,” she said.
She recently appeared in “Plenilune Magazine,” in
photos taken by Alexandria Burns of Alexandria
Photography, and some of Lexi’s other photographs have
been exhibited in various art shows. So her face has
been out there.
But it wasn’t long ago, Lexi suffered from severe self-doubt,
which manifested in anorexia, self-cutting and overall
thoughts that she was not good enough or pretty enough.
“I’m not sure what started it,” Lexi said. “But to think
of myself as looking pretty enough to model and be in a
magazine was unbelievable to me.”
This summer, for the first time in several years, she put
on a bathing suit and went swimming.
“I love to swim, and I’ve missed it so much, but there
was no way I would put on a suit before,” she said. “I felt
fat, and I had scars from where I had cut myself, but I put
it on this year, swam – and it felt great.”
Photo by Aliya Waldman
GAZELLE STL