The Cut
The Unlikely Professional Who Helped Heal Childhood Trauma
Identical twin sisters TK and Cipriana Quann are recognizable by their voluminous hair and arresting wardrobes. The 34-year-old models from Baltimore have been on best-dressed lists published by Vogue, Elle, and Harper’s Bazaar, and in campaigns for Valentino and Giorgio Armani.
But if you look back at photos from early in their time before the camera, you’ll notice something different. They rarely smiled.
“When we started to become involved in fashion and working together in the industry, in most of our modeling photos, we barely show any teeth,” says TK. “I remember we did a Gap campaign and they requested a big grand smile, all your teeth showing. I did it, but I was really uncomfortable.”
Recently, the two have started to open up about their past — which included physical and mental childhood abuse — sharing stories on social media as they seek to process and heal from it. For the first time, they are talking about how they healed.
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A journey of repairing the damage of their past took them to an unlikely professional: a dentist, Dr. Stephanie Dumanian, whom they could connect with.
“It was the first time in my life I had ever experienced meeting a doctor who didn’t judge, who listened and had compassion,” adds TK.
The Quann sisters and Dr. Dumanian talked to the Cut about childhood trauma, undergoing extensive dental work to address years of avoiding dental care as adults, and the power of health.