I met Ulyana in high school. She was the most honest person I had ever met up to this point in my life. She was direct, but she was also gentle, humble and confident. She internalised so many qualities that you would think cannot coexist. Back then, we were kids. Uly has worked hard and has fought many battles since then. She’s now a certified psychologist, nutritionist, a walking ball of highly charged energy. That’s who Ulyana is to me: she is here to prove to you that there is a different way of being, one where you can be in sync with who you are. Get to know more about her in her answers below.

1) What does Beautiful Mind mean for you?

Beautiful Mind is a superpower I never knew I had. And what I know about superpowers (which is not much) is that your environment helps you discover them. I feel like before Beautiful Mind my life was divided into parts. Being a psychologist is a part of me, being a nutritionist is a part of me, being a dog mom and animal lover is another. Loving my friends, my family and my partner is the third part … the list can keep going. Beautiful Mind showed me that I could be all of the things I feel about myself, and there is no need to differentiate. I can create a lifestyle that makes me excited to wake up and accomplished to go to sleep. That’s what I want to deliver to you: a place where we can be one.

2) What can we expect from you?

SO MUCH! I feel like a bouncing energy ball whenever I think of what I would like to make part of Beautiful Mind. Apart from holding consultations and workshops, I would like to share some information about nutrition, psychology and people who inspire me. That will be a consistent input to the page. I also would love to connect with as many of you as I can, be it through consultations or your emails. I’d love to learn what you would like for Paola and me to make a part of Beautiful Mind, so please reach out. As I have already mentioned, BM is a superpower, and I want as many people as possible to feel that way.

3) If you could eat one thing forever, what would it be?

Such a tricky question because I’m trying to calculate the nutritional benefit of the food I choose. So I’ll need to put that aside to answer that question as let’s be honest, no single food can be good enough to eat forever. If I had to choose one type of food, I would have to go with eggs! The runner up was bread, but bread can make me feel heavy and can be a little plain to taste. Eggs and I have had a stable, committed and loving relationship for a long time now, so I can trust my choice has been tested by time. If I think that I couldn’t eat eggs, I literally feel sad.

4) Close your eyes and think of something that has left a deep impression on you. What is it?

I have to tell you the answer to the question is a little far fetched. When I closed my eyes, I had flashes of different memories, and all had a common theme. The theme is people who I love being happy. I think once one such memory left a very remarkable impact on me. I understood that I am truly happy when people around me are happy. That’s why I chose the path to become a psychologist. It is such a rewarding, unique feeling to feel that even if for 5 minutes together, we can achieve a space that feels happy, non-judgemental and pure.

5) Everyone has Pet Peeves. What are yours?

Hihi, I think some of my friends are screaming the answer at me here. I can’t stand mess. I physically can’t. I am a little bit like Monica. I think that is enough said.

6) We finish this interview, and you find out that you won €10 million. What would you do?

Not long ago we moved to a house and guess what, our garden is a little bit messy due to all the construction work. I would spend some of the 10 million to invite professionals to help organize and set up our garden. I laugh at my own answer, but that’s the first thing to come to my head. Other than that, I would share the amount with my family and set aside the money until I knew where I would like to invest it. I don’t think I would rush into anything. Also, I always wanted to set up a dog shelter, so I would definitely make this dream come true. Overall, I feel very content with my life now, so I wouldn’t use the money to change my immediate environment.