The TikTok Vampire Queen's road to self-confidence

Other than her awesome TikTok dance covers, what makes Kim Banawa trend time and time again is the fact that she has no two front teeth.

Dubbed the “Vampire Queen,” Kim's confidence in her teeth constantly wins over viewers.

However, in an episode of “Pinoy MD,” the Echuage, Isabela native said that she wasn’t always that bold when it came to showing it off.

Before getting her big break on TikTok, Kim was very insecure about the small dents in her teeth, so she had them filled or what is better known as dental pasta.

But even after that, the toothaches became unbearable.

“Almost one year ko siyang tiniis talaga kasi takot ako mabungi,” Kim said. “Pero dumating sa point na hindi ko na kaya, kailangan ko nang patanggal ‘to.”

The TikToker star shared that getting her teeth pulled out really took a toll on her.

“Kino-coveran ko yung [bibig] ko kapag may kaharap ako. Di nga ako makakatawa kasi nga wala akong ngipin sa harap. So tinitiis ko talaga 'yun.”

Kim added that she also didn’t enjoy going out because of all the teasing.

“Ang pinaka masakit na sinabi nila sa akin, mukha daw akong matanda," she said. With a laugh, she added, “Totoo naman."

However, Kim said that the mocking was what eventually led to her realizing that her teeth should not be something she should be ashamed of.

“Tanggap ko na kung ano meron ako ngayon kesa naman 'yung masakit na iniinda ko. Mas gustuhin ko pa rin yung ganito,” she said.

Gaining strength, Kim flexed her teeth and dance skills online to become the trending Vampire Queen we know today.

“Malaking influence sa akin yung [2.6 million followers] na ipagpatuloy kasi gusto nila, gusto nila akong suportahan," she said.
 
“Pagbabasa ko lang ng comments, madaming natutuwa. Mas na-i-inspire pa ako, mas nagaganahan pa ako na ipagpatuloy 'yung ginagawa ko kasi meron naman sila na sumusporta sa akin,” she added. —Nika Roque/JCB, GMA News