{"id":57111,"date":"2025-04-28T09:38:10","date_gmt":"2025-04-28T09:38:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/57111\/"},"modified":"2025-04-28T09:38:10","modified_gmt":"2025-04-28T09:38:10","slug":"im-on-benefits-borrowed-8-7k-for-turkey-teeth-now-theyre-botched-cost-18k-to-fix-im-gutted-the-nhs-wont-help","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/57111\/","title":{"rendered":"I\u2019m on benefits & borrowed \u00a38.7k for Turkey teeth\u2026 now they’re botched, cost \u00a318k to fix & I’m gutted the NHS won’t help"},"content":{"rendered":"

AN UNEMPLOYED, benefits-claiming mother says her botched Turkey teeth have left her \u2018drowning\u2019 in \u00a38,700 debt<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Marsha Thomas, 54, has suffered with endless mouth and throat infections and is sometimes unable to bite food after she spent \u00a38,000 having seven implants and 26 crowns installed at a Turkish clinic in 2023.<\/p>\n

\"Close-up<\/a><\/p>\n

4<\/p>\n

Marsha was lent money by a friend to her new smileCredit: SUPPLIED\"Woman<\/a><\/p>\n

4<\/p>\n

Instead of a gorgeous smile, Marsha has been left with side effectsCredit: SUPPLIED<\/p>\n

The mother-of-one recently got half this money – which she borrowed from a friend – back.<\/p>\n

However, she claims it would cost around \u00a318,000 to fix her teeth privately in the UK and so has \u201cno choice\u201d but to return to Turkey.<\/p>\n

This is because she says she is unable to get a dentist to do the work on the NHS near her home in Wrexham, north Wales.<\/p>\n

Therefore, the former support worker – who has not worked for four and a half years because of anxiety, depression, stress and high blood pressure – said she\u2019s borrowed more money and is currently in \u00a38,700 debt to the same male friend.\u00a0<\/p>\n

READ MORE REAL LIFE STORIES<\/p>\n

Despite living off less than \u00a3400-a-month Universal Credit payments<\/a> she is determined to get her teeth sorted.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got to get my teeth done because they are getting worse and worse,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll have to go back to Turkey because I won\u2019t be able to get them done in the UK.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe NHS won\u2019t do it. My own (UK) dentist<\/a> said they could check my mouth for infections.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBut they will not touch my teeth. I went to see a hospital dentist who checked my mouth but wouldn\u2019t touch the crowns.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThey said I was getting infections because the crowns aren\u2019t fitted properly and they\u2019re letting food underneath them.\u201d<\/p>\n

I spent \u00a313k on a Turkey makeover with veneers, a face of filler & a nose job – trolls still say I looked better before<\/p>\n

Shortly after returning to the UK, Marsha said several of the crowns became loose and her face and lips swelled up so much she could hardly breath at points.<\/p>\n

Marsha – who also worked with ex-offenders through the Probation Service before she had to give up work – endured a long dispute with the dental clinic to get a refund. It recently paid her back \u00a34,000.<\/p>\n

But that hasn\u2019t resolved her issues with her teeth, which she claims are constantly getting worse.<\/p>\n

The repeated infections lead to her needing two hospital trips as well as frequent trips to her GP.<\/a><\/p>\n

Despite NHS dentists treating them with antibiotics, she is unable to sort the root cause of her problem – her teeth – without going private.<\/p>\n

She has been told it will cost around \u00a318,000 to fix them in the UK – prompting her to begin saving and borrowing money from friends to fund another trip to Turkey.<\/p>\n

\"Close-up<\/a><\/p>\n

4<\/p>\n

Marsha’s teeth were shaved down to have new veneers put onCredit: SUPPLIED\"Close-up<\/a><\/p>\n

4<\/p>\n

Marsha wanted a Hollywood smile on the cheapCredit: SUPPLIED<\/p>\n

What are the risks of getting surgery abroad?<\/p>\n

IT’S important to do your research if you’re thinking about having cosmetic surgery abroad.<\/p>\n

It can cost less than in the UK, but you need to weigh up potential savings against the\u00a0potential risks. <\/p>\n

Safety standards in different countries may not be as high.<\/p>\n

No surgery is risk-free. Complications can happen after surgery in the UK or abroad.<\/p>\n

If you have complications after an operation in the UK, the surgeon is responsible for providing follow-up treatment.<\/p>\n

Overseas clinics may not provide follow-up treatment, or they may not provide it to the same standard as in the UK.<\/p>\n

Also, they may not have a healthcare professional in the UK you can visit if you have any problems.<\/p>\n

Source: NHS <\/p>\n

Marsha recently went to a clinic near Istanbul on the understanding it was going to cost her \u00a33,640 to fix her teeth.<\/p>\n

But when she arrived and a dentist<\/a> examined her teeth, he told her they were so badly damaged that it could cost up to \u00a315,000.<\/p>\n

Despite the fruitless trip ending up costing her more than \u00a3200, Marsha still believes her only option is to return to Turkey if she is going to fix her teeth.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m living on the breadline,\u201d she said – explaining that if she didn\u2019t own her house outright then she would probably be homeless.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have to\u00a0pay for water, gas and electric and my phone bill. I can\u2019t afford to pay all these bills and I\u2019m trying to pay somebody back for borrowing me money.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m trying to sort my teeth at the same time and the whole thing is making me depressed. When I have friends come out I just cry because it\u2019s so depressing.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"AN UNEMPLOYED, benefits-claiming mother says her botched Turkey teeth have left her \u2018drowning\u2019 in \u00a38,700 debt. Marsha Thomas,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":57112,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4316],"tags":[345,939,487,931,393,105,426,4348,897,211,3061,561,17503,461,16,15,1764],"class_list":{"0":"post-57111","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare","8":"tag-benefits","9":"tag-bills","10":"tag-cost-of-living","11":"tag-energy-bills","12":"tag-england","13":"tag-health","14":"tag-health-warnings","15":"tag-healthcare","16":"tag-jobs","17":"tag-nhs","18":"tag-nhs-crisis","19":"tag-section-fabuloushair-beauty","20":"tag-teeth","21":"tag-turkey","22":"tag-uk","23":"tag-united-kingdom","24":"tag-wales"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114414924835790602","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57111","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57111"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57111\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57112"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57111"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57111"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57111"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}