A 29-YEAR-OLD woman who was once ashamed of her smile has revealed how she now pops her dentures out for a laugh.
Lacey Danielle Dunaway neglected her teeth as a child and, as a result, was left with a sore, broken, and yellow smile.
The mom-of-four was extremely unhappy with her teeth, and her confidence was rapidly declining.
After a visit to the dentist, Dunaway had 21 teeth removed and now lives with dentures.
“I didn’t have proper insurance, and as I got older and started having children, my teeth really started to go through it,” the shop assistant from Mississippi told The U.S. Sun.
“I had a couple pulled out, and many broke off," she added.
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“I was ashamed and embarrassed of myself because I felt I couldn’t smile.”
In 2020, she looked into different dentists to see who could help her.
Dunaway said: “I found someone pretty quickly and was actually very relieved to find a dentist willing to pull all of my teeth being as young as I was.
“We came up with a plan for me to get dentures, and a few weeks in, I had 21 teeth pulled out.”
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After two months for her gums to fully heal, Dunaway was fitted with her new dentures.
“I was supposed to have immediate dentures, but they didn’t fit!" she added.
“They were way too big for my mouth, so I healed without them in.
“So I went back a couple of months later and got another set they fitted.”
Dunaway was charged $5,000 for the whole process, paying off $90 monthly on her payment plan.
She now feels more confident than ever and often shares her dentures online.
She said: “I honestly only wear my top set of dentures for TikToks and pictures.
“Maybe if I had a full set that fit, I would wear them all the time, as my bottom ones are now too big for me.
“I just don’t have the money for them at the minute.
“I would love to get implants, but I don’t think that will ever happen.”
She has also had an incredible amount of support from her family throughout her journey.
“My family and friends have been my support system – they love me regardless, toothless or not," she added.
“You get a lot of negative comments online, but they never get to me because I’m in better health now than I was when I had bad teeth.
“People make dirty jokes, jokes about drugs, which I’ve never done and are just really negative.
“But I have found a lot of people out there that are just like me, embracing their denture journey, and some have even told me I’ve inspired them not to be ashamed of themselves.
“That is the best part of it all!
“I don’t have a huge following, but knowing that I can help a couple of people feel better about themselves makes it truly worth it!”
In a video shared on her TikTok, Dunaway gathered more than 6.3million views.
In the clip, she can be seen singing along to a song with her teeth in before suddenly popping them out and showing off her gums.
The post captioned: “Your teeth are so pretty,” has received 390,00 likes and thousands of comments from baffled users.
One commented: “Don't let them ruin your confidence.”
“The fact I was in a bad mood till I (have) seen this,” added another.
A third said: “MY JAW BROKE.”
“I can't wait to get dentures, I don't have 20k to fix my natural teeth,” wrote a fourth.
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“As a young denture wearer also, I LOVE this. I wish I had this confidence,” said another.
“You’re so cute !!! With or without teeth, but they are beautiful teeth!” added a fellow TikToker.
