For my graphic memoir, I wrote about an experience I had while at dinner on vacation, where I had a panic attack over a plate of rice. The comic is about my neurodivergency, most prominently Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and the way it affects me. There are two main reasons that I chose this dinner. The first reason is that many people often don’t understand how deeply mental disabilities can affect people in their daily life; how many times that I’ve been told by even my own family that ‘it’s not that big of a deal’ is enough evidence of that. The second reason is for it to be a letter of gratitude to my loved ones, the people who bear with me during times like that one; more than anyone else, my sister and my dad, but also my mom, brother, and my amazing and caring friends. I tried to use expressions to show that my mom, despite being a sort of antagonist to the story in a way, didn’t have any ill intent, and just wanted to help. I also used expressions, patterns, and vignettes to represent my own anxiety, and the different feelings I can experience in a panic attack. Additionally, i used lineart and lack thereof to represent dissociating and blocking things out or focusing on one detail. The biggest thing, however, was that I freehanded every single panel, not using a ruler or straightedge at any point while drawing them. I chose this so that I could seamlessly change the shape of the boxes to convey emotion, to get a more organic and shaky feeling, and also because I think that the boxes tell the story on their own without the drawings inside; The painstaking process of making them parallels the grueling stress of OCD, and the rules I feel I need to follow. I truly believe that this graphic memoir is a good representation of who I am as a person, writer, and artist, and, although it isn’t perfect by any means, the creation of the comic was a long and dedicated process of care and intentionality.