Being thin has become an American obsession, but few earn hundreds of thousands of dollars simply by being a size zero.
Carr‚ Otis used to be in this position. After posing for the French edition of Elle magazine, Otis shot to stardom. Over her 17-year career, she worked for Calvin Klein, Guess and Sports Illustrated's swimsuit edition.
But after a long battle with anorexia and drug addiction, she sobered up and gained weight. Now, at a very normal 5'9'' and 160 pounds, she is a prominent "plus-sized" model.
Last night, Otis spoke to Penn students about her struggles with drugs and anorexia at an event sponsored by the Office of Health Education and GUIDE, a group dedicated to improving healthy body image.
"I got involved in the industry when I was a 13-year-old runaway," Otis said. "I had so little control with my [alcoholic] parents that I felt I had to control what I ate."
As she became more immersed in the modeling industry, she realized that her "self-esteem was based on how I looked."
She noted that modeling is "a little bit better than prostitution, but not much.... You're still selling your flesh."
Like most recovering alcoholics and drug addicts, she had to hit "rock bottom" before getting help.
"I became a woman I despised," she said. "I was no longer a human being I respected.... Nobody wanted to deal with me."
Health problems also influenced her lifestyle and career goals. Three years ago, she suffered a seizure induced by years of anorexia.
As soon as she began recovering from the disorder, she visited Nepal. "What I saw there blew me away," she said. "Women weren't starving themselves to fit into Calvin Klein jeans; they were starving because of a lack of food.... Being over there was the world shaking me awake."
"I have [now] made my life about humanitarian efforts," she said.
She said she feels grateful that she has "been able to take a career that was very generic" and turn it into one with "a purpose behind it. I'm not compromising myself."
"Life on this side rocks. Totally!" she said.
College alumna Rashida Holmes said that she could relate to some -- but not all -- of Otis's feelings about body image. "It's a process of making sure you have a healthy sense of self," she said.
But some felt that more is needed to affect change in society.
"She is what the industry needs right now," College senior Lauren Glaser said. "She's a stepping stone."
"I thought [the talk] was great," College senior Lauren Wiener said. "It's just sad that [a size 10 is] our idea of a plus-size model."
