Name: Sanaa (pronounced "Suh-nay") Brightrays

Nicknames: SB, Sunny, Sunshine

Gender: Female

Species: Pegasus

Age: 22

Sexuality: Polyamorous bisexual

Place of birth: Ponyville

Currently lives: Ponyville

Personality: Despite having mental illnesses, she's very kind-hearted and a child-at-heart and will do anything to cheer up her friends

Likes: Cheering up her friends, art, movies, video games, plushies, her celebrity crush

Dislikes: Her abuser, bullying and harassment, bigotry, ponies who make fun of others' interests and hobbies, loud noises

Hobbies: Drawing, playing video games, self-shipping, collecting plushies, watching movies, practicing her acting skills

Talent/ability: Artist and aspiring actress

Backstory: Sanaa's life started with a fairly decent childhood despite her struggles to communicate with others. However, when she was a teenager, her life started going downhill when she was forced to wear braces at the age of 13. The braces triggered her body dysmorphia and suicidal thoughts to the point where she ended up in the hospital, where she was diagnosed with and treated for depression, anxiety, and autism. Her autism diagnosis led to her switching from braces to clear aligners. During the time when she wore braces, she was also in an abusive relationship with her orthodontist. The orthodontist would accuse Sanaa of "attention seeking" whenever she had mental breakdowns due to the sensory issues with her braces. Once she switched to clear aligners and left the relationship, she ended up in therapy, where she learned how to cope with her trauma by expressing herself in ways that didn't hurt anyone.

Despite her autism, Sanaa helped cheer others up whenever they were sad or hurt, and her creativity with art and acting led to her earning her cutie mark. Not only is Sanaa an advocate for mental health, she's also an advocate for abuse survivors. Right now, she has a crush on an actor who lives in Las Pegasus and is dealing with an abusive relationship with Sir Hallmark, and she hopes that someday, she'll get to meet him and get him out of the environment.

My first OC of 2024! La la la la

This is actually the first time I've made a character who's officially on the autism spectrum, and I did my best to do some research about it. Also, her blue coat color has nothing to do with "Light It Up Blue" from the infamous Autism Speaks, it was purely a design choice.

When it came to designing Sanaa, it was actually much quicker and easier than I ever anticipated.

And yes, her abusive relationship with her orthodontist is based off of mine IRL, except this one is a little more dramatized.

Feel free to draw Sanaa, or any of my OCs if you like! :) (Smile)