Twitch star Imane “Pokimane” Anys has been wearing “fake teeth” for about a month now, but it’s not for cosmetic reasons. Instead, it’s to address a health issue that has made her life a “living hell.”
About a month ago, Pokimane noticed a ringing in her right ear whenever she tried to sleep. A specialist brushed it off as tinnitus from congestion and prescribed medication to clear things up, but the problem persisted.
A second specialist diagnosed it as an inner ear infection and prescribed antibiotics. But again, the problem persisted and even worsened to the point where it impacted her quality of life.
“The ringing got out of control,” she said. “My life became a living hell.”
She added: “For like a week, I heard ringing all of the time. I couldn’t sleep well. I couldn’t do much of anything. I was so down. I had no appetite. I felt like utter doo-doo.”
Eventually, Pokimane went back to the specialist, and they told her to stop taking the medication. She felt a lot better immediately, but the subtle ringing in her ear never went away. So, she looked into it herself and figured out it could be associated with some pain she felt in the temporomandibular joint on the right side of her face, which connects the jaw to the skull.
A CT scan confirmed alignment issues with her jaw could be causing the tinnitus. So, the specialist created what Pokimane described as “fake teeth” she has to wear temporarily to re-align her jaw.
“My bottom teeth are way longer than they normally are,” she said about wearing them. “It feels so weird. I’m not used to it. My face hurts a bit. I’m just hoping it helps.”
If the fake set of teeth seems to correct the problem, Pokimane said she might need to wear braces for a period of time to fix the issue in the long term. “Imagine having braces in your mid-20s!” she said.
But even though it’s been an arduous process, it hasn’t dampened Pokimane’s upbeat and positive attitude. The Moroccan-Canadian star even joked about having to potentially wear braces as an influencer.
“I can’t do it. Sorry! Not me,” she said while doing her best attempt at a British accent. “I’m an influencer. I have content to make. I don’t know if I can do it. We’ll see!”
