I'm Quin.
I like drawing, reading, and writing. I am not particularly infallible in all of the above. I have a special fascination for genetics and in a perfect world my dream job would be working at UCDavis. Instead, I cook food for hungry folks all day.
I enjoy various hyperfixations throughout the year, with dog sports being a reoccurring one. Whenever I feel I have hit a plateau, I often switch fixations for some time. My downfall is that training is not a fixation, only competition, something of which I am trying to fix for my dogs sake. I sometimes have medical issues.
I have had well bred purebred dogs since I was a junior handler and started out in Australian Shepherds, which I quickly abandoned due to poor environmental issues that ran wild in Aussies while supposed reputable breeders tried their very best to sweep it all under the rug and tell everyone what they wanted to hear when shopping.
A couple unsuccessful dogs later, I ended up with my first German and raised him as a simple pet with intentions of dabbling in sport. He suddenly showed extreme drive at one year old at one of our fun frisbee weekends. Since then I've just been doing whatever I can with that dog.
Let's just say the dogs are more interesting than I am.
Wait, you mentioned medical episodes? Are you disabled?
If you mean to ask if I am on state disability, then the answer is no, I am not. There's some doubt about me being "disabled enough" for that.
If you mean to ask about my medical and mental health, I don't mind sharing (though many people are private about such things, but I am not).
Through my mother I inherited the anxiety. My mother is on medication for it and suggested it to me, but I feel like it'd be a waste of money to get prescribed something that is so incredibly cost prohibitive.
I inherited migraines from my father and grandmother. It has been this way since middle school and leaves me bedridden for at least one day, sometimes two. My inherited anxiety often leads into a migraine when I work myself up badly enough - such as going to attend an event that makes me greatly nervous.
Through the aforementioned grandmother is where I believe the autism derives from. I located old family documents wherein she was diagnosed with a learning disorder. This was before they understood autism or diagnosed it in young girls. It would not surprise me if my mother is in the spectrum as well, but this medical information has never been provided and I don't intend to pry.
On my father's side through my bio grandfather I inherited another medical condition (stenosing tenosynovitis). This causes inflammation of the tendons in my hands. Much like arthritis my hands do "pop" but it is from the tendons rather than the bones. The day to day pain is constant but low. It often flares up when I use my hands too much - such as on a keyboard, from drawing/writing, or any repetitive task that requires exerting pressure on my tendons.
Do you use a service dog?
Not currently. If my migraines worsen I will probably choose to train a service dog. Additionally, my father has multiple sclerosis and they're not certain if genetics is a factor. If I develop MS I will mostly certainly start training a suitable dog in bracing, migraine detection, and guiding.
I am almost to my thirties with minimal symptoms of MS. I have developed some early symptoms, but I am hopeful that progression will be minimal.