Russell’s Real Lives

Russell Hemmings Real Lives

Back on-track to pursue her dreams – Khushi’s Story


Meet Khushi, she’s an absolute delight (mostly!). She’s 9 years old and lives with her family in Dubai ­– a city she simply describes as ‘cool’. She is a naturally inquisitive girl who is always keen to learn new things. She possesses a rare natural intelligence and an enviable ability focus on her studies, which ultimately, she hopes will culminate in her becoming a doctor. She likes having fun and if that involves having fun studying – then all the better! So, what was the issue? Why did Khushi’s parents urgently need to seek out help, support and guidance? And how did they arrive at my door in their quest to find it?

Khushi’s journey begins about a year ago when she started to become afraid to be in a room or cubicle with a locking door. She then later began to exhibit panic behaviour in public spaces, she would resist facing crowds or groups of people, she often became upset and distressed – she was developing socially anxiety, and this was affecting her self-confidence. If this cycle is left unchecked, it can develop into something more serious. Her parents Anjali and Nikhil knew they needed to act decisively when Khushi started to resist going to school.

Her mother Anjali explains “As a mother you just ‘know’ when something isn’t quite right. At first, I couldn’t really put my finger on what the change was, but over time the issue began to manifest itself into something we could see, but by no means could we understand. She had changed, she was grumpy most of the time and the fears of enclosed spaces, coupled with the fear of crowds was a challenge for us as parents, as we had never encountered behaviour like this. We were at a loss to know what to do. We did take her to a clinic, but as there was ‘nothing obviously medically wrong’ as such, they couldn’t help us.”

Anjali continues “We began to see her self-confidence begin to ebb away, it was as though she was carrying an invisible weight on her shoulders. We know we couldn’t simply solider on hoping for a natural improvement, or that she would ‘grow out of it’, no, it was getting worse by the day and when Khushi doesn’t want to study to pursue her dream to become a doctor, we knew it was time to seek professional help.”

On making contact with Russell “Like a lot of people, I was aware of Russell Hemings through Gulf News and social media, I decided to make contact through Messenger – not really knowing if he would have the time to interact with me – but, he responded quickly and positively, I was overjoyed that he instantly understood our situation and was confident he could assist us.”


Russell Hemmings Real Lives

When I first met Khushi and her family at my offices in Dubai, I instinctively could sense there was work required to bring things back into line for them. Like most of the parents I work with, love and support certainly weren’t lacking! What was lacking, however, is an understanding of the underlaying issues and the plan to resolve them.

I often feel the role of parents is virtually impossible to get right, it seems whatever they do there’s always something to feel bad or guilty over – or they have no time to spend with the child because of adult life-pressures. I try to ease the burden where I can and when a child says she’s ‘feeling wretched’ or ‘very scared’ like Khushi told me – I know I need to pass on my expertise and get the problem sorted once and for all.

Anjali continues by describing the process “I had my concerns about hypnotherapy and life coaching. I’d read some articles online and I had also read some of Russell’s articles in Gulf News and on Facebook. I knew it was safe, but I didn’t know for myself that it was effective in our case.”

On meeting Russell and getting started “When we first met Russell, he instantly put us at ease. After seeing him online so many times it seemed a little strange to be there just as one-to-one with us and him. But with his energetic manner and positive vibes you just know that things are going to happen! I think Khushi saw a kindred spirit in Russell, they sort of just ‘clicked’ when they first met. What was surprising, was how direct Russell’s approach is, he’s incredibly respectful and polite but, perhaps unusually in this day and age, he actually says what the problems are – where they lie, what are the probable causes and what is required to fix them!”

How did the first session work out? “After that first session with Russell it was like the weight had suddenly been lifted. For the first time in a while we had more than just a glimmer of hope, in fact the change… well, it was dramatic! We could see an instant change in Khushi. I know that it was only a matter of time and Russell would be able to rectify the problem fully – I had one hundred percent confidence in that.” She continues “We were so happy because there was now a way out from the issue, I never expected to see results right from the first session, but we did and for that we’re incredibly grateful.”

Progress and the future…“Khushi needed three sessions with Russell, she now no longer fears enclosed spaces, small rooms or closed doors. She’s back to her knowledge-hungry self. Recently family and friends have commented that she seems so much better and I have no hesitation in telling them about Russell and what we achieved.

We’ll definitely keep in touch with Russell because if other issues do arise in the future, we now know there’s always a solution. He is direct, forthright and thoroughly engaging; his results are very, very effective indeed and you can’t put a price on that can you? Thank you Russell.”


I thoroughly enjoyed working with Khushi. Anjali and Nikhil should be proud of the talented young lady they are raising. They are doing a great job. Parenting isn’t a perfect linear road which take us from birth to adulthood. No, it’s far from this, you need to be prepared for all manner of roadblocks, potholes, bends, hills and questionable surfaces… you should also brace yourself for the wheels to come off once in a while!

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