Hi, my name is Tamara O'leary. 
I've created this fundraising compaign for an extreamely deserving person... My mum! 



My mother, Kim O'leary,  is the strongest women I've ever known and I owe her so much.  My father is awarrent officer in the military and he was either overseas, working 6am to 6pm or leaving Monday and coming home Friday while my sister and I were growing up. Not only did my mum have to cope with an absent husband but she also had to raise a daughter that suffered from ADD and made her life hell.
Then all the illnesses set in... 
Spinal injuries, ruptured bursas, joint degeneration, rheumatoid arthritis, auto immune diseases, mental health issues and more. I could list them all but I'd be going for hours. 

(Facetiming her while she was in Wakefield Hospital, recovering from a laminectomy and fusion. She was unable to attend my sister 21st birthday which broke
her heart)

Ever since my mum was young she's had dental issues. She has gum disease in her genes, her many medications cause dry mouth and her teeth often cause her so much pain that she's unable to brush that area which only agrevates the issue further. 
Now she has almost no teeth left. She's had a bottom denture for as long as I can remember and she finds it utterly humiliating. She won't smile or talk without her teeth in and she can't eat anything crunchy or chewy like nuts, steak or even hard minties. 
Her bottom denture doesn't fit properly and not only dos it cause her significant pain but it's damaging the bone in her jaw. My mum is extreamely lucky that she's even eligible for implants with how weak and damaged her jaw bone is. 

(My dad making a speech for my sister. Facetime cut out twice and mum missed half the speech while I called her back)

She needs these dental implants. She's not even 50 and her face is sunken and gaunt because of her empty mouth. I want to see her smile again. 

(Mum in the 80s)


Mum will need a minimum of eight inplants. Four in either jaw. The implants are titanium fixtures that are drilled into the jaw bone. As the jaw bone heals it fuses to the fixture and creates a strong foundation for fake teeth. This is called osseointegration.
Mum will have two, full plates that are similar to
dentures but once they are capped onto the implants, they will become semi permanant. That can be professionally removed should they need repairs or whitening but mum will never have to worry about misplacing her dentures ever again.

(I would add more photos but, quite frankly, seeing chunks of metal drilled into a jaw isn't a pleasant sight)


The process will be painful but once the implants have healed, the dentures will cap on easily and they'll be as comfortable as natural teeth. 
The fixtures in her jaw will prevent further degeneration of the bone, the added mass will add fullness to her cheeks and jowls and she'll be able to eat hardy food again. 

Defence Health will cover a bit but unfortunately it just doesn't go far enough. Quite frankly, my dad is a bully. He is constantly harassing my mum about the money he has had to pay towards her medical bills and it's really stressing her out. I'm so sick of hearing her cry because the man that said 'In sickness and in health' belives she can and should live without a spinal fusion, shoulder reconstruction, bursa injections, platelet injections and now, extensive dental work.  

(My dad when he was in his 20s)


She's slowly giving up and it's killing me. She's barely middle aged, she has so much life ahead of her. I truly think new teeth will be just the thing she needs to pull her out of this depression she has been living in. 

I will be making my own donations from my centerlink, Etsy and cake decorating business income. It's not much but it's something!