Polokwane, Limpopo

Chantelle Vogel

For as long as I can remember, dental problems have been something my brother and I have struggled with. I have always had teeth that were prone to problems, but unfortunately my dental health became much worse when I was a young adult. I struggled with bulimia when I was younger, and the damage it caused to my teeth has stayed with me. Much of my enamel has been lost, and over the years my teeth have become extremely fragile. After having my pregnancies, the condition of my teeth seemed to deteriorate even further. I have had root canals on almost all of my teeth, as well as fillings on nearly every tooth. Because there is so little healthy tooth structure left, my teeth can break incredibly easily, sometimes without me even doing anything that should cause it. I am already missing three teeth, and I am constantly worried about what tooth might break or fail next. I also live with constant dental pain. There are days when the pain is manageable and days when it is much worse, but it has become something I have learned to live with because I simply cannot afford to have all the necessary treatment done. I worry about another tooth becoming painful, breaking or developing another problem, and it is exhausting never knowing when the next dental emergency will happen. The condition of my teeth has also had a huge impact on my confidence and my mental wellbeing. I am extremely self-conscious about my teeth. I work with people every day, which makes it especially difficult because I am constantly aware of my smile and worried about what people are thinking when they look at my teeth. I often hold back from smiling or laughing, and I am conscious of how I speak because I don’t want people to notice my teeth. I have also stopped socialising as much as I used to. I avoid going out and meeting people because I am constantly worried about what they will think of me. Something as simple as smiling for a photograph or laughing with friends can make me feel embarrassed and anxious. I know that other people may not judge me at all, but the insecurity is in my head constantly, and it has made me withdraw from people. I have reached a point where I desperately need proper dental treatment rather than continuing to repair one problem at a time. I have considered dentures, but because I have already experienced significant dental and bone loss, I am very concerned about losing even more bone and about how dentures would affect my quality of life. Unfortunately, the treatment I need is far beyond what I can afford. I am a divorced mother of two boys who are both in school, and my financial priorities have to be my children and keeping our household going. There simply isn’t enough money left over for the extensive dental treatment I need. This is not about wanting a perfect or purely cosmetic smile. I want to be free from the constant pain, protect the teeth I still have, restore my oral health and feel comfortable smiling and speaking to people again. I want to be able to go out without worrying about my teeth, laugh without covering my mouth, smile at people without feeling ashamed and have the confidence to interact with others without constantly wondering what they are thinking about me. Receiving this treatment would genuinely change my life. It would give me the opportunity to finally deal with years of dental problems properly instead of continually putting temporary solutions on teeth that are already severely damaged. I would be incredibly grateful for the opportunity to receive the dental treatment I desperately need and to finally have a healthy, functional smile that I can feel confident sharing with the world.