A case of mind over phobia



I recently heard that the royal rebel Prince Harry turned to the celebrity hypnotherapist Paul McKenna to kick his cigarette habit. McKenna (and other hypnotists) claim to be able to help you do almost anything you want, from quitting smoking to losing weight or improving your self-esteem. So, out of curiosity, I thought I'd put this technique to the test and address a lifelong phobia of blood and needles.

Hypnotherapy has been around since the late 19th century and is practised all over the world. A quick search online showed how many people are doing it here in the UAE. There were too many to even know where to begin, but I finally whittled the selection down to an Abu Dhabi-based hypnotherapist who, coincidentally, works just around the corner from my office. Unsure of what to expect, I went along cautiously and a little sceptical.

I was more than slightly nervous about the whole thing, but I do love to try new holistic therapies and if it is good enough for Prince Harry, it's good enough for me. Steve, my therapist (a member of the Professional Hypnotherapy Practitioner Association), sat me down on his couch and asked me what I wanted to "cure". I told him that I thought it was about time I grew up and stopped fainting every time I had a blood test and hiding behind the sofa at any sight of gore in films.

He hooked me up to a heart-rate monitor with some clips on my fingers to assess how relaxed I was while he talked me through his mind therapy for the next hour. I was fully prepared for the fact that one session was not going to magically cure my phobia. But after 30 mins of the output on the monitor looking more like I was running a slow jog than relaxing to a soothing mantra, I realised this was going to be no mean feat.

The second time around, I gave in and closed my eyes, trying my best to give this relaxation some real effort. Just as I started to drift and the therapist began to think he'd cracked it, there I was again, fidgeting and with my mind going into overdrive. I just couldn't relax, in spite of Steve's best efforts. I'm a great believer in the power of the subconscious but I'm also useless at relaxing, which I have found out several times when I've attempted to meditate in some of the most spiritual places in the world.

The mantra, the relaxing music - it all makes perfect sense. I can see how for some it would truly work. For those of us with a resilience to letting go, it's a little harder. The key? Persistence. This isn't going to work overnight. As McKenna says on his website, even if you fall asleep, "your unconscious mind is still listening".

Game Changer

Director: Shankar 

Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram

Rating: 2/5

How to register as a donor

1) Organ donors can register on the Hayat app, run by the Ministry of Health and Prevention

2) There are about 11,000 patients in the country in need of organ transplants

3) People must be over 21. Emiratis and residents can register. 

4) The campaign uses the hashtag  #donate_hope

Why your domicile status is important

Your UK residence status is assessed using the statutory residence test. While your residence status – ie where you live - is assessed every year, your domicile status is assessed over your lifetime.

Your domicile of origin generally comes from your parents and if your parents were not married, then it is decided by your father. Your domicile is generally the country your father considered his permanent home when you were born. 

UK residents who have their permanent home ("domicile") outside the UK may not have to pay UK tax on foreign income. For example, they do not pay tax on foreign income or gains if they are less than £2,000 in the tax year and do not transfer that gain to a UK bank account.

A UK-domiciled person, however, is liable for UK tax on their worldwide income and gains when they are resident in the UK.

MO
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The specs: 2018 Ford F-150

Price, base / as tested: Dh173,250 / Dh178,500

Engine: 5.0-litre V8

Power: 395hp @ 5,000rpm

Torque: 555Nm @ 2,750rpm

Transmission: 10-speed automatic

Fuel consumption, combined: 12.4L / 100km

How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

Company%C2%A0profile
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The specs

Engine: 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6

Power: 540hp at 6,500rpm

Torque: 600Nm at 2,500rpm

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Kerb weight: 1580kg

Price: From Dh750k

On sale: via special order

Five famous companies founded by teens

There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:

  1. Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate. 
  2. Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc. 
  3. Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway. 
  4. Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
  5. Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
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What is a Ponzi scheme?

A fraudulent investment operation where the scammer provides fake reports and generates returns for old investors through money paid by new investors, rather than through ligitimate business activities.

LA LIGA FIXTURES

Thursday (All UAE kick-off times)

Sevilla v Real Betis (midnight)

Friday

Granada v Real Betis (9.30pm)

Valencia v Levante (midnight)

Saturday

Espanyol v Alaves (4pm)

Celta Vigo v Villarreal (7pm)

Leganes v Real Valladolid (9.30pm)

Mallorca v Barcelona (midnight)

Sunday

Atletic Bilbao v Atletico Madrid (4pm)

Real Madrid v Eibar (9.30pm)

Real Sociedad v Osasuna (midnight)

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
The specs: 2018 Mazda CX-5

Price, base / as tested: Dh89,000 / Dh130,000
Engine: 2.5-litre four-cylinder
Power: 188hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 251Nm @ 4,000rpm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
​​​​​​​Fuel consumption, combined: 7.1L / 100km

THREE
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The specs

AT4 Ultimate, as tested

Engine: 6.2-litre V8

Power: 420hp

Torque: 623Nm

Transmission: 10-speed automatic

Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)

On sale: Now

The%20specs
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