But there is more to the story than meets the eye. After a 16-year athletics career representing the Soviet Union and winning multiple medals in international sprinting competitions, my life changed dramatically when I moved to New Zealand with my husband and 4-year-old child, and ended up as a single mother 6 months later with no family support, no job, no connections, and very limited English. At the time, it felt impossible to understand how life could change so quickly. I had always been successful, highly driven, educated, and recognised in my field. Suddenly, I found myself living in a tiny rental unit with only a few dollars left each week after paying for basic necessities. That period became the beginning of a much deeper journey — a search for inner peace, resilience, and happiness. I soon realised that while I could not control every external circumstance, I could learn to manage what was happening within my own mind. I began exploring mindfulness practices, mental resilience, emotional regulation, and mindset training, applying these tools daily in my own life. Over time, everything began to change. Five years later, I was honoured as Athletics New Zealand Coach of the Year and built a successful high-performance coaching career, helping young athletes achieve international success representing New Zealand. Through that experience, Positive Psychology, mindfulness, and mindset coaching became deeply important to me — not only in sport, but in everyday life. Naturally, I began helping people beyond the athletic arena navigate stress, overwhelm, self-doubt, and life challenges by developing inner calm, emotional balance, and mindset mastery.