The 25-year-old beauty, who is one of the most in-demand models in the world, said she still has her insecurities, reported Mirror online.
"I grew up very unaware of my body and how I look; that wasn't something anybody thought about. I wasn't quite tall enough either and I hated it to be honest.
"There was no individuality, no opportunity to be individuals. I think that people forget your are human and you just become an object," she said.
Talking of her time in New York, Whiteley said, "I was constantly reminded that I wasn't right wherever I went and that was difficult because I'd come from a place where it didn't matter."
Since becoming the face of Burberry and Victoria's Secret and her relationship with actor Jason Statham, her celebrity status has risen.
Now, the supermodel turned Hollywood actress and lingerie designer, models designs including Dolce & Gabbana, Chanel and Dior.
"I've wanted to design ever since I can remember and I fell into modelling through wanting to design and then, through my modelling career I modelled a lot of lingerie," she says.
