A Dundee dad hopes to give his fiancee her smile back after bulimia and pregnancies left her teeth “crumbling”.
Craig Armstrong, 37, says he has not seen his partner, Michele Glen, smile in more than five years due to embarrassment over her teeth.
Now he’s hoping to raise thousands for life-changing dental work for his wife-to-be – and thinks he may have found unlikely support in the form of an American TV actress and WWE wrestler-turned movie star John Cena.
Michele, a 35-year-old mum-of-two, battled bulimia throughout her late teens and early 20s.
She also experienced calcium depletion and morning sickness during both her pregnancies.
Dundee mum’s bulimia and ‘horrendous’ morning sickness left teeth ‘crumbling’
This left Michele’s teeth “crumbling” and falling out, leading to her worsening mental health and fear of leaving home.
Craig told The Courier: “Growing up, Michele had bulimia which was the start of what ruined her teeth.
“We have two kids and during her first pregnancy she had horrendous morning sickness which did not help.
“The next pregnancy also ruined her teeth as it was the same with the morning sickness and she was told that she had calcium depletion.
“Her teeth were left fragile and crumbling.
“Three of her teeth had also fallen out after being knocked while she was at work.”
Michele previously worked in dog daycare and dog walking but gave up her job when her son’s nursery shut down and the couple were unable to find a new one.
She has not been able to return to work since due to worries about her appearance.
Craig added: “She has no confidence left, the only way we can get her confidence back in her is getting her teeth fixed.
“I want her to be happy again. Our daughter is at an age now where she is starting to notice it.
“Michele will never let the kids see it affect her.
“We still go out to do things with the kids but when it comes to busy places I will take them, but she is their mum and she is missing out.”
Michele has also been diagnosed with autism and two types of ADHD in the past six months.
Craig says this has helped explain her history with depression and anxiety.
Fintry dad hopes to give fiancee ‘her smile back’ before wedding day
The couple, who live in Fintry, have been engaged for around five years.
Craig, an electrical technician, said: “My main thing is getting her smile back.
“We have been together for eight years and have been engaged for about five years as I proposed after our daughter was born.
“We can’t plan the wedding because Michele won’t walk down the aisle because of her teeth.”
Michele has been told it could cost around £15,000 to get dental implants as a permanent fix.
She currently has a partial denture but struggles to wear it.
The couple have raised nearly £4,000 after setting up a GoFundMe asking for donations to help.
This has been supported by several online communities Michele is part of on Discord and Reddit.
Craig even suspects that £450 may have come from American actress Candice Patton, whose name is listed in the donations.
He added: “Michele put it on Reddit and it blew up.
“We thought we would just see where it went but instantly there was £5, £10 being donated.
“The Reddit post has had 1.3 million views, over a thousand shares and 200 comments.
“Michele has been speaking to everyone commenting, even people being mean, but surprisingly there have only been a few people being hurtful.
“There has been an anonymous donation of £400, and a donation under the name of The Flash TV show actress Candice Patton.
“We don’t know if it is her but it is an unusual name.
“The wrestler John Cena has also followed Michele on X after she posted it there, so we think he must have seen it.”
Conversation