Pay close attention to the picture accompanying this article. The beautiful woman flashing a radiant smile is Karlyn Pipes, swimming world champion and member of the International Swimming Hall of Fame, which puts her on a similar level with aquatic legends such as Mark Spitz, Janet Evans and Johnny Weissmuller.

At one point in her life, Karlyn was a dental tourist in Costa Rica. Back then, Karlyn was not the dazzling and successful woman she is today. At that time, she was in a transitional stage; you could say she was swimming from the depths of alcoholism, looking up towards the surface and seeking to ascend to the heights of recovery.

Although Karlyn was blessed with the looks of a siren and the swimming prowess of a dolphin, her young adulthood did not involve Olympic medals, Wheaties boxes, and greatness. Karlyn is a recovering alcoholic; in her younger years she found herself in a destructive free fall that not only derailed her swimming career but very nearly took her life.

For many alcoholics, their addictions result in a lifetime of vomiting, which causes a breakdown of the dentition. In Karlyn’s case, the gastric acid caused severe tooth decay, similar to what happens to patients who suffer from bulimia. At one point, Karlyn was losing the ability to eat, and her deep shame at not being able to smile drained her self-confidence.

According to Dr. Simon Flikier of the Flikier Institute of Oral Rehabilitation, a specialty dental tourism practice in San Jose, Karlyn required a procedure known as a full mouth rehabilitation with zirconium crowns. This procedure is often requested by dental tourists in Costa Rica, and it is not solely for cosmetic purposes; in Karlyn’s case, it was part of a lifesaving plan.

Costa Rica has played a major role in Karlyn’s recovery. It took her a few years to return to the Olympic pool; in fact, her major swimming achievements have been at the Master level. She runs swim camps in Guanacaste and clinics in Hawaii. She is an inspirational speaker and the author, along with Tito Morales, of The Do Over: My Journey from the Depths of Addiction to World Champion Swimmer. In fact, she enthusiastically mentions Dr. Flikier in her book.

These days, Karlyn smiles a lot, and she is grateful to have been a dental tourist in Costa Rica.