Topic Introduction

When thinking about a topic to base all my future creations in this class on I started by thinking about the things I love the most and are most passionate about. After going through many topics one really stuck with me, my dog. My dog Meeko, that I mentioned in my “about me” page, is actually a registered Emotional Support Animal. He has made such a strong impact on me and my emotional health making me sure that I would be able to come up with the content to do these projects on Emotional Support Animals, or ESAs. I plan to collect material for this through my own experiences as well as asking other registered ESA owners the experience they have had through owning an ESA. For two of the four upcoming projects, I plan to make a poster advertising the benefits of an ESA (Unit 1 Graphic Design Project) and an audio story for unit 3 with interviews about the changes people have found in themselves since having an ESA. A website I found very inspirational once I picked my topic and began looking for the inspiration to do more was “ESA Doctors”. Two articles specifically stood out to me: Mental Health Benefits of an Emotional Support Animal & Positive Effects of Emotional Support Animals. As someone who has struggled with mental health and the stigma around it, having my ESA I have first-hand seen the effects they can have, but I am always interested and fascinated when I find out more facts about these ESAs that can be anything from a dog to a guinea pig. Another article I found on JournalistsRecourse.org was also very interesting to me. This article is titled “From best friend to therapist: Research on emotional support animals” and I found it attention-grabbing because although I got Meeko with the intent that he was going to be my registered ESA I had many other dogs and pets before him that also had an incredible impact on me and really could affect my mood in a positive way, I could easily say all my family pets were some of my best friends.

Without a doubt,my ESA Meeko has made a remarkable impact on me and my life and I am ready to share that with you through these future assignments.