“I wish I could enjoy swimming, hiking and exercising…”
Esther Chan said, an ex-drug abuser.
These may seem ordinary to us, but they are the sincerest wishes for Esther. 20 years of drug addiction led to severe damage to her dental tissue, she had no choice but to pull out all her teeth and put on full dentures. Losing all her teeth not only seriously affected her daily life, but she was also unable to carry out normal social activities and hobbies.
“I once accidentally dropped my dentures in the pool while swimming, this was a really embarrassing experience. ” Esther told us. The inconvenience of wearing a removable denture kept her away from her hobbies. Her daily eating habits had also been affected, she needed to use her hands to chew hard foods such as apples.
Counselling Centre for Psychotropic Substance Abusers referred her case to “Shining Smile Project”, which is sponsored by MDGF. Two dental implants were implanted in her lower jaw to fix the lower denture, while the upper jaw part is still under observation due to atrophy of the gum. After the treatment, her daily life and social life have improved greatly and she is looking forward to further treatment.
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Esther lived with her grandmother when she was a child because her father died and her mother worked in mainland China. She was exposed to drugs for the first time at age 13 due to peer pressure. Drug addiction and drug trafficking dominated her life at the time, four jail terms couldn't stop her from taking drugs and she lost her normal life, family and health.
She believes that the project has brought significant help and hope to ex-drug abusers who are looking for jobs by rebuilding smiles and confidence. As drug will form an acidic substance that can wear down teeth, dissolving enamel, which causes severe tooth decay.
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After the treatment, Esther can enjoy the marathon with confidence and a smile. (Photo provided by interviewee)