Resilience, desert life and being uncle Elie.

Eid Mubarak(albeit belated), Trust all are well and enjoyed the Eid break with family.Mine was equally restful with family juggling between Entertainment Manager role for my son (Jabali) and Chauffeuring my wife. Unfortunately we also had to squeeze in some study time for him because like most students throughout the Emirates exams are scheduled to commence next week.He however did not take study time well because he could not understand how books and holidays could be end up in a single sentence.😄😕 Exam preparation and time can feel intense for the whole family with students are juggling revision and expectations, while parents are trying to help without making things harder. It’s completely normal to worry about whether you’re doing “enough,” or to wonder what support actually makes a difference. The good news is that small, steady actions at home can have a big impact on the eventual outcome. Parental support matters during exams because it shapes the environment your child studie...

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and last week was Mental Health Awareness Week 2026(Monday 11-Sunday 17 May 2026) with the theme for this year being” Every action counts for better mental health”. On a personal level as a father and professionally as a mental health practitioner I chose to take action by looking into literature/research on what qualifies as good mental health in Children and Young People(CYP) and how we can help promote it.One of the main objectives of research is knowledge translation(sharing findings) and in this case my course of action was to create awareness regarding understanding and promoting good mental health in CYP. Research revolves around answering questions and as such that was my start point and regarding this topic i ended up with multiple. What is good mental health means in children and young people?how it can be recognised and promoted? How does good mental health relate to but is distinct from mental illness? Is good mental health similar or d...