We recently connected with Alexia Libre and have shared our conversation below.

Alexia, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

To be successful, you must be open to change, being uncomfortable. and most importantly, you must be open to failure. I believe being open to these things can be frightening, yet such a crucial step to make. When you are put in an uncomfortable situation, you will eventually adapt to that environment. This is the first step. Growth is not always a straight line and failure doesn’t have to be a negative thing. Failure can be seen as an opportunity to reflect on what went wrong or what could have been done differently. You can then take what you learned from that experience to make your next move. Vladimir Lenin once said, “It is necessary sometimes to take one step backward to take two steps forward.”

Alexia, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I was born in Cebu, Philippines and migrated with my family to Toronto when I was 7 years old. Shortly after moving to Canada, my parents divorced, and my mother was forced to work extra hours to provide for my two siblings and I. I learned to cook and clean at an extremely young age while my mother worked long hours. With these circumstances, I feel like I had to grow up before I was truly grown and I always made sure I did my best to help out. Having come from a traditional Filipino household, I was always taught to focus and do well in school. Although I was not the smartest, I knew what I had to do even if it took me longer to succeed than others.

In school, I was always fascinated by science and I eventually discovered how much I loved learning about health and ways we can optimize our well-being overall. I am a natural nurturer and I thought becoming a Nurse must be my calling. I attended Nursing school immediately after high school and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Science of Nursing with honors. I obtained my first nursing position in a Surgical Spine unit where I worked for 2 years. In 2019, I had the desire to explore other nursing specialties and worked as a float nurse for 5 months. Eventually, I was deployed to our ICU floors as covid immediately overwhelmed our staff. I officially joined the ICU team 6 months later after completing the Critical Care course online whilst working in ICU full time.

In January 2021, I began to feel emotionally overwhelmed where I almost lost a sense of purpose after having experienced so much trauma and loss when caring for covid patients. I started to question my profession as a nurse, yet I was extremely conflicted because I love what I do and I take pride in knowing that I am making a difference in my patients’ lives. During this time, nursing did not bring me happiness, rather darkness. I knew I needed change because I wasn’t happy. I thought of baking cakes because they bring joy to people, although I am certainly not a baker. Then one day my mother thought I should try cosmetic injectables. Since I am already qualified as a nurse, I am eligible to take the course.

Spontaneously, I decided to register for an intro course for cosmetic injectables where I even tried to back out last minute! I knew nothing about this industry, nor did I know how to run a business and I personally haven’t had any work done myself at the time. However, I began to imagine a different area of my profession where I could potentially instill confidence in my clients and overall change lives in a way that differs from the hospital environment. It took about 4 weeks after having completed the course to finally feel confident injecting people’s’ faces.

With ever changing trends on social media, I know how easy it is to compare ourselves with what we see online. We are subconsciously consuming unrealistic ideas of “beauty” and we never really take the time to appreciate what we have or who we are. As the natural nurturer that I am, I knew going into this industry that I have to remind people that cosmetic injectables are not meant to change or alter their natural features, rather maintain or enhance them. When we are constantly comparing ourselves to someone else, we will never be completely satisfied, but most importantly we will never be truly happy with who we are. My brand, Lexxsthetics’ mission is to remind people that the most beautiful part about this industry is how very different, yet beautiful we all are in our own unique way. Together, we learn to appreciate and value your natural features before we proceed with any treatment rather than rushing to get something done because of how appealing it may look on someone else.

Since March 2021, Lexxsthetics has been open for business where we offer services such as neurotoxin for fine lines and wrinkles, TMJ, and (excessive sweating). We also offer dermal fillers, PRP (platelet-rich plasma) for hair restoration, IV drip therapy for hydration, fat dissolving, and PDO threads for a non-surgical alternative for face lifts and overall skin rejuvenation. Additionally, we provide Canada’s cleanest medical skin care product by AlumierMD, which can only me sourced from trusted health care professional. Here at Lexxsthetics, we maintain your natural anatomy while enhancing your most favourite features where you will feel more confident in your skin than ever before!

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I mentioned earlier that it was actually my mother’s idea that I look into cosmetic injectables as a business, but I must clarify that she specifically thought about PDO thread lifts (otherwise known as polydioxanone threads, a non-surgical option to a face lift). At the time, I was extremely excited because I know this service is not at all common since not too many people have ever heard of it before. I spontaneously signed up for an intro course for PDO threads where I was required to pay a deposit. I later came across a trainer who developed amazing results with PDO threads and I was eager to inquire about training. When I reached out to her, she had asked me how long I have been doing botox and filler and she was stunned when she learned I had no experience with cosmetic injectables whatsoever. Her demeanor changed immediately and was quite flustered to hear that I had registered for a PDO thread course with no cosmetic injectable background, despite being an ICU nurse. I remember so vividly the trainer speaking so passionately on the phone, “you need 1-2 years of botox and filler experience and when you do, you can call me back”.

Discouraged is an understatement for I actually shed many tears that day on my lunch break. I then tried to get my deposit back, but of course it was nonrefundable. I decided I take her advice and requested to transfer my deposit towards their botox and fillers course. I even maxed my credit card at the time just to take this course. I felt like I was starting all over again with my research, but this time I wasn’t as excited.

About 3 months into business, I broke even. Within 9 months I took 4 additional supplementary courses and just over 1 year later I became certified in PDO threads by the same trainer that scolded me. During the training, she was so impressed that she offered to train me to become a trainer. I even heard from my own medical director later that day that she heard about how well I did!

Today, I thank her for being so direct with me even if it brought me to tears. It was definitely a pivoting moment, even though I haven’t gone into business yet. I look back to that day each time I feel discouraged because it is just a reminder to myself that if what I want to happen isn’t happening now, I know it will later as long as I continue to work towards it. No matter how many steps it takes to get there, I know eventually I will get there.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Most people might think that because I am a nurse, I am naturally smart or that I am someone who doesn’t need to try in order to get good grades. Truly, I struggled in school especially because English was not my first language. I often had to stay behind or retake courses in the summer to upgrade my marks. High school was especially difficult for me because I had the tendency to compare myself with my peers who did not take as much time as I needed to understand something.

In 2013, it was my first semester of nursing school and I was living away from home. I remember coming home from writing my first (out of six) nursing exam. It was a stormy winter night and I just sat on my bed with my winter jacket, gloves, scarf, hat, hood and backpack still on when I began crying hysterically. I called my mom almost screaming and demanding her to pick me up because I was quitting school. I was so overwhelmed and was certain that quitting school at that moment was a valid decision. Somehow my mother talked me out of it and 3.5 years later I graduated with honors.

It was certainly not over yet because I was still required to take the big nursing exam in order to obtain my nursing license. In 2017 after graduating, I planned to study for one month before taking the NCLEX. I even reduced my hours working in retail to 4 hours a week. I attempted the exam and failed. Needless to say, I was devastated. I took another 3 months off to study and attempted the exam a second time and failed. At this point, I felt embarrassed. I had family members using it against me, which also made me feel very inadequate.

Within those 9 months of studying and attempting the exam, I lost 3 people including my grandmother. I had never experienced death before and I fell into deep sadness. I took time off social media for about 6 months. I isolated myself from my friends and my family. All I was focused on was studying for my licensing exam. After careful reflection, I realized that my goals have not changed and that I was even more determined to achieve them because I had nothing more to lose. I reflected on what I could do differently in terms of my studying habits and gave myself breaks in between. My third attempt was a success and I was offered a position from 2 different hospitals almost immediately.

I learned throughout my life that failure is inevitable regardless of how hard you try to avoid it. So I tell myself each time I get fearful of failing; you never know until you try and if you fail, you will know what went wrong and now you will have a better chance at success!

Contact Info:

• Website: http://lexxsthetics.com
• Instagram: http://instagram.com/lexxsthetics
• Facebook: http://facebook.com/lexxsthetics
• Other: Tiktok @lexxsthetics

Image Credits
Vick Jordan Ace Media