Whispers of Strength: A Veterinarian's Story of Overcoming Trauma and Discovering a Path of Resilience - Dr. Margit Gabriele Muller : 100

Dr. Margit Gabriele Muller is a veterinarian and Executive Director of Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital. She is also an award-winning author of the book "Your Pet, Your Pill" and a professional certified coach and speaker.
Margit tells a captivating tale of her journey from overcoming childhood trauma to becoming a highly respected veterinarian. She also shares a personal aspect of her life, growing up with a mother diagnosed with schizophrenia and how animals have therapeutic benefits for mental health.
Imagine being the only Western woman working at the largest Falcon hospital in the Middle East. Margit became the first female falcon doctor in the male-dominated world of Arab falconry. She tells of her remarkable experiences at the Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital, where she faced resistance from staff and falconers but succeeded through resilience and her knowledge of German veterinary practices. Under her leadership, the Falcon Hospital has become a major tourist attraction, sharing knowledge about this fascinating tradition. Our conversation takes us on an insightful journey through the mesmerizing world of falconry in the Middle East, where these majestic birds are deeply embedded into the daily life of the Bedouins. Margit's narration of the bond between a falcon and its owner, the preventive measures for a falcon's long life, and the protective glove for the handler's arm is nothing less than fascinating.
As we wrap up our conversation, Margit discusses her coaching program, Deep Inner Transformation in 30 Days, and how regression therapy can bring about powerful changes. You will surely be captivated by Margit's experiences and the unique insights she gets from her world.
Enjoy!
To connect with Dr. Margit Gabriele Muller https://www.coachformentalhealth.com/

Transcript

Daniela: 0:00

Hi, I'm Daniela. Welcome to my podcast, because everyone has a story, the place to give ordinary people, stories, the chance to be shared and preserved. Our stories become the language of connections. Let's enjoy it, connect and relate, because everyone has a story. Welcome. Welcome to episode number 100.

Daniela: 0:35

Yes, my guest is a special one, dr Margit Gabriele Muller. Margett is a veterinarian and executive director of Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital, one of the biggest Falcon hospitals in the world. She's also an award-winning author of the book your Pet, your Pill and a professional certified coach and speaker, and I really enjoy this episode as it takes us to a fascinating journey into the world of falconry, where these magnificent birds are an integral part of the Bedouin's daily life and the special bond between the falcons and its owners. Margett also shares her inspiring story of overcoming childhood trauma to become a highly respected veterinarian. She talks about how animals have therapeutic benefits for mental health. Drawing from her own personal experience as, growing up with a mother diagnosed with schizophrenia, it was fascinating to learn how she became the first female falcon doctor in the male-dominated world of Arab falconry and where she is now All the things that she has achieved since then.

Daniela: 1:50

I connected with Margett instantly, and I believe that people who shares her passion for animals are truly exceptional individuals. It was an honor to have this episode. I hope you enjoyed and learned as much as I did of topics that maybe will never cross your path. Welcome, margett, to the show.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 2:11

Thank you so much, Daniela, for inviting me. It's really an honor to be with you.

Daniela: 2:15

I'm so happy that you're here. When we met, we couldn't stop talking. We wanted to record a long time before and life happens for you especially but finally we're here and we are going to have your story. Thank you so much.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 2:27

It's lovely to share my story with your audience because maybe your audience can learn a little bit from my story and get some kind of inspiration out of it. I think this would be lovely.

Daniela: 2:37

Yes, and that's why you want to share your story, exactly.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 2:41

My life was not really easy, but in the end it shows that you can overcome so many things and so many problems, especially also childhood trauma, If you try to process everything and try to process the trauma and then really to move on. I think that's important to understand that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.

Daniela: 3:00

Yes, that's amazing. Thank you, and also I want to point out that you do have a German accent and you're from Germany, from the south, but you live in Abu. Dhabi. Yes, exactly.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 3:12

I'm here in Abu Dhabi, yes, since 2001,. It's quite a long time. It started off really as an adventure here. I never thought I will end up here, so it came really out of the blue. I think it has been destiny, definitely.

Daniela: 3:26

Yes, excellent, okay, so when did your story start?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 3:30

Well, actually my story started when I was eight years old. My mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia. This was, you can say, the biggest impact that I had on my life, because when you are eight years old and your mother is suffering from schizophrenic attacks and you see all of this, you are not able to process it because, yes, your mother is your mother, but it's another person talking to you. It's a completely different behavior and it is such a massive impact that, for example, I had nightmares for more than 20 years, every single night, because I was not able to process all these experiences and all what I had seen. The thing is that at that time, there was no kind of therapy for relatives of mentally ill people. There was nobody who could help. So in the end, I had to help myself and I had my cute little pet rabbit and this lovely little rabbit helped me so much because it was there for me. I could talk to my little rabbit and it was such a comfort and the consolation for me. So it helped me tremendously and I think this is where my love for animals started and where I started to understand how much they can help us actually. And later on I had my dog and my dog helped me and helped also my mother. She was just amazing. Whenever my mother was just ahead of an attack, my dog was putting the paw on her knee and trying to motivate her to take her for a walk to get her out of this dangerous situation. My dog was an incredible help for all of us. So that's how I went into this field.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 5:05

But before I started veterinary medicine, I actually started two years human medicine. At that time I did it because I thought I cannot euthanize an animal. But later on I realized that I started human medicine because I thought that I couldn't help my mother enough at that time when she was so ill. And my mother always said I helped her tremendously, but I didn't feel it actually. So that's how I started human medicine. It was a kind of feeling of guilt and it was an unconscious guilt that I had and I was not even realizing that. But after two years I somehow I realized that that's not the right thing for me. So I changed to veterinary medicine and this has always been perfect for me. I sailed through the studies. It was, it was amazing. And then I did my PhD in veterinary medicine on falcon medicine and in 2001,. They called me from Abu Dhabi, the Abu Dhabi falcon hospital, and offered me a job as a veterinarian here. So I didn't know them.

Daniela: 6:10

Wait, how did you decide that you wanted to specialize on falcons?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 6:15

I'm fascinating because in our studies we had in the avian clinic. We had some kind of injured birds of prey that came for rehabilitation and I you know it's like when you look in these little black eyes of falcons, it's just it's like a virus that's catching you and doesn't let you go. So it was just amazing. I love them on the spot and and I really wanted to know more about them. I wanted to learn more about them. So I did an internship about falcon medicine and then this in the end I saw a lot of falcons that had problems with their feet, like infected feet, and this was really bad. So this became my PhD topic. So I did my PhD on a food disease in falcons.

Daniela: 7:02

Where were they? Because you were in still in Germany. So where were all these Falcons?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 7:06

Well, actually this was. I did it in Germany at Munich University, but the internships, the actual research part, was done in Dubai. There was a small private falcon clinic at that time very, very small, and I did all the practical part there. So I did all my research there and the theory I did it in Germany. And then when I finished I said, Okay, if you know only about falcons, you can never survive in Germany or in Europe. So I specialized in veterinary dentistry, so I'm also a dentist for animals and I specialize in veterinary homeopathy. So I do a lot of homeopathic treatments for my animals.

Daniela: 7:44

And then in two, because in Germany they're very big at homeopathic things.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 7:49

Oh yes, it's like it's the cradle of homeopathy actually, and the beautiful thing is that there is no placebo effect in animals, because they don't know if they get an antibiotic, a painkiller or a homeopathic remedy. So it's amazing how you can see how it really works. So no discussion in animals about that.

Daniela: 8:10

I see how interesting A good point that you bring that that they can see a placebo effect that doesn't work for them. Yes, True.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 8:20

And for example, when I give here, when I give falcons homeopathic medicines, because we have no no, let's say conservative medicines for kidney or liver problems in falcons, because whatever exists, let's say, in dogs and cats, it's contraindicated. So you don't have any medicines. So when I use homeopathic medicines I check again the blood parameters after two or three weeks or I do another endoscopy after that time. You can see, for example, in the endoscopic picture how the liver has improved and how the blood parameters have improved. So that's what I mean. There is no placebo effect. It actually works and you can really see it with the results that you have. And I mean when you have a blood result, it is an independent result. It's nothing that's that gives way to interpretation. You just have your value. It really shows how much they improve. So it really worked. I've saved a lot of falcons with homeopathic medicines, because it's just amazing how really beneficial they are for for not just falcons, for animals in general.

Daniela: 9:21

Talking about that homeopathic, you know a lot of people don't believe in that, and so if you, you will say that you can fix the falcon or help the falcon. Can you help the dog as well, like it doesn't matter, right?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 9:34

It doesn't matter, it works for all of them. And, as I said, let's say, when you have blood parameters that are very high, for example, very elevated, because there is a major problem, and then you give them homeopathic medicines and you check them again, let's say after three weeks, and you see that all these parameters have decreased, then it's very clear from where it comes, because you have only given homeopathic medicines. So this means these are the homeopathic medicines and nothing else, because the disease cannot just disappear on its own. That's simply not possible. But like this you can really see the difference and you also see how the animal is improving physically, how they are more active, how they start to eat more, how they are moving more. So it's a big difference, a big change.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 10:20

Actually, that's beautiful to see and I know that a lot of people have some kind of prejudice against homeopathic medicines, but from my personal experience they are just amazing and honestly I take them myself. Like I have some allergies and before my doctor put me on a cortisone and antistaminics and it was just going on and on and then I said this can't be the result and that we cannot go on like this. So now I'm using my homeopathic medicines, my homeopathic antistaminics and it works perfectly no more cortisone, no more antistaminics normal antistaminics and I have it completely under control. So it works, but you need to know what you're doing.

Daniela: 11:04

Yes, yes, and why do you think that Germany is so good at homeopathic doctors? However, it hasn't taken in other countries, especially in North America.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 11:16

It's true, I think that Germans are pretty much open-minded. I know people think we are not, but we are pretty much open-minded and we think that whatever helps is good either for humans or for animals. And we are still very much connected also with nature and like natural remedies, herbal remedies, and there is a long history of using them. So I believe that's why a lot of real good homeopathic remedies are actually coming from Germany, and I mean, the father of homeopathy is a Hanuman, so that's really something which comes from that country. Yeah, it's quite sad that it didn't take off in some other countries like North America, because they are hugely beneficial. They make such a positive impact. It's beautiful to see.

Daniela: 12:07

Great. So you had your PhD and you didn't think that you were going to have a job in Germany, to be so specific, on Falcons feet. So what happened? What did you decide you were studying more. And then what happened?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 12:19

Yeah, actually I studied more and that's why I went into dentistry and homeopathy. Then I was offered a job in Switzerland at a university to teach dentistry and at the same time they called me from Abu Dhabi, from the Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital, and offered me a job as a veterinarian. And the funny thing was, you know, first I thought it's a prank, because I didn't apply for the job, I didn't know them even, I had no clue about them. But it turned out it was real. Then I said, okay, let me go for an adventure, I will go for one year, then I have a good experience and that's it. Now this one year became actually now 22 years. So it's quite a long time.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 12:53

But it was very difficult in the beginning because I was the first female veterinarian and first Westerner veterinarian who worked in this Falcon field. And you know, you have to imagine, especially at that time, two decades ago, everything was very conservative. They were not used to have a woman there who knew what she's doing as a vet. There was so much resistance, not just among the Falconers but also among the staff. So more or less there was resistance from all different angles. It was really, really hard and that's where you can say the resilience that I got through my mother's disease really, yeah, came to my advantage, because it helped me to really overcome all these obstacles and hurdles, and it was so difficult. If I would have known how difficult it is, I'm not sure if I would have done it, but that's why we don't know what comes up in the future.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 13:42

I started as a veterinarian and after half a year I became the boss of the clinic. So this means I became in charge of the Falcon hospital. And this made it even worse, because now it was not just that the staff had problems with me, but now I was their boss. They had to follow my orders. I changed everything in this hospital because I had a good knowledge from Germany. I knew what's working, what's not working. More or less, I turned it upside down and then I brought all these homeopathic things with me and it was the complete shock for everybody. So it took a long time for them to really understand what I'm doing here and to accept it and to understand that, yeah, the Falcons are surviving now. So that's how things started to improve when all these emergency Falcons came and they started to survive.

Daniela: 14:31

There has to be somebody who believe in you, because if nobody liked you, the staff was against you. The people who owned the Falcons. They were all skeptical about who was she, so who actually kept you there and also promoted you?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 14:46

Well, it was actually, you can say, like the chairman of the hospital. I didn't know him at that time, but he heard of me. It seems he knew about the research I had been doing on this Falcon feed. That's how he thought, obviously, that I'm the right person for this job. At that time, the hospital was not doing very well, so he told me okay, you bring it up, you have one year. If this doesn't work, otherwise we might be closing it.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 15:09

So I had a responsibility for a lot of families I mean, it was not just the staff, but they have extended families of 10, 20 family members or even more. So it was a huge responsibility and I wanted to bring it up to give all those families a chance to live a better life and to have a stable life, a stable income where they can build their future on, where they can send their children for good education and they can give them higher education and this was always very, very important for me Plus, as well as to provide the best possible medical care for Falcons, because I wanted to improve their overall living standards and their health conditions. So it's really nice to see how things have improved.

Daniela: 15:51

That sounds really great. And what was it that the Falcons were not getting? What is the people were not doing?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 15:57

Well, they were not used to a hospital like ours because it was new. So they thought this hospital is only there for Falcons that are critically ill, like not eating since two or three weeks, and of course by that time the Falcon is in such a bad condition that it's almost impossible that they can survive. They didn't understand that a hospital is there also for preventive examinations to keep them healthy, not just to treat the critically ill Falcons. That's where I started to change their mindset. I started to introduce preventive examinations, pre-purchase examinations before they buy the Falcon, that we check them.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 16:35

Now it's so nice to see when the Falcons come and they say, oh, I bring my Falcon to you today. My wife takes my son to the doctor. Then I say why are you not accompanying your wife and your son? Then they say yeah, because I need to take care of my Falcon. I mean this says everything. I mean it's nice to see how, not just how important the Falcon is it's like a child, it's much more than a cat or dog in a Western culture but also how much they care for those Falcons and they really love them and that's so beautiful to see.

Daniela: 17:07

Can you describe a little bit of, as you said, the Western culture? We have cats and dogs, so how is that with the Falcons? I cannot imagine having one, and what would I do with them. So how is the mentality over there in Abu Dhabi? It's totally different.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 17:21

You know, often it's displayed in Western media that the Falcon is a status symbol and only rich people are having Falcons. But it's not like this, because historically, falconry here in the Middle East, and especially in Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates Falconry has always been a necessity for the Bedouins to survive in the desert, because the Falcon was hunting the meat that the family was eating. So it was not a sport like it's, for example, in America or in Europe. It has never been considered as a sport here. It has always been a means of survival.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 17:57

For this reason, the Falcon was integrated in the Bedouins' family and they have the same position, like a son or a daughter. They live with the family. They have their own place in the living room. Many of them sleep in the bedroom of their owner. Yes, thank you Alicia. Yes, they have their own place in the bedroom. They have their own place in the car. Nobody will ever dare to sit on this car seat which is reserved for the Falcon.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 18:23

So, yeah, they are part of the family and that's beautiful to see. So it has nothing to do with a status symbol. They are really on the same level. Yeah, like a child. That's why you can say, this bond between the Falcon and the Falcon is so strong and it's a mutual bond. It's not just that the Falconer really loves his Falcon, but also the Falcon lives with the family, the Falcon lives with the Falconer. It is a mutual affection and that is so nice to see. It's not just because of food, what a lot of people say. It's not just because of that. They know their owner, they recognize them. When they see the Falconer, they start to move, they make some sounds. So they really know it's their owner and they really love each other. So that's beautiful to see.

Daniela: 19:11

Wow, that's so interesting. Thank you for the lesson. I have no idea that this was like that. Wow, that's really cool. That's really really fun. Every family has one. All those families that come from Bedouin tribes.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 19:25

They all have Falcons until today, which means it goes through all social classes, from the royal family up to very, very normal people. And it's also a kind of social bonding, because you know, when you're sitting around the fireplace it doesn't matter what kind of social class you come from, you're just all together. You're a Falconer with your Falcon. That's the beauty of it. This is really a kind of social get-together. It's so nice to see that all these different classes they are just not existing in Falconry. That's so amazing. How long does a Falcon leave Now? Because we do all these preventive examinations nowadays they live between 15 to 18 or 20 years, so it's much more. When I came here, maximum 12 to 15, but life expectancy has increased a lot because we check them routinely, at least once or twice a year or sometimes even more often, so we can detect problems in a very early stage.

Daniela: 20:17

People have to wear something on the arm. Is it not dangerous to Like people are a?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 20:21

bit scared of them. I love this question. No, it's a very good question because a lot of people think this. Now, it's not like you have those chokers in the park where the crows jump on them and they attack. No, it's not like this. A Falcon will never attack a human, because they do not regard humans as a predator or as an enemy. So they would never attack them. The only exception would be, let's say, a mother that's sitting on the eggs or taking care of the chicks, because she needs to defend. That's her job, that's what she has to do. But normally a Falcon will never, let's say, jump in your face or attack you or bite you, because they don't look at you in this way. What you said is correct. You have a glove on your left hand, on your left arm, because the talons of the Falcons are very sharp. So if you just hold them like this on your arm, it can be quite painful. So that's why we have this leather glove, just to protect ourselves.

Daniela: 21:14

But then you're saying that some people sleep with them, so am I having socks with it for the Falcons?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 21:21

I love that. No, they are sitting on a perch next to the bed, so the Falcon sleeps in his bed, and then there is this little perch direct next to the bed and the Falcon sits on this and sleeps. So they are together, but not in the same bed.

Daniela: 21:35

The Falcons fly or walk in, like if he's from the living room to the dining room or something in the house will be walking or flying.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 21:42

No, usually the owner will take him from one room to another. Oh, okay, yes, so they are always with the owner. Wherever the owner goes, he will take him on his arm and they go.

Daniela: 21:52

So you're constantly having that protector in your arm Quite a lot of the times. Yes, exactly, wow, interesting, wow, what a different thing that I had no idea of. How fascinating.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 22:04

It's a different world, that's true.

Daniela: 22:06

Yes, different world, for sure. Wow, all right. When did they started to change the staff? When did they start to realize, oh, this is good, she's wonderful, we should support her more than not what happened?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 22:19

Well, actually I started changing the staff quite in the beginning because it was clear that they cannot live up to my expectations, and then I trained the new staff according to the level I wanted to have them. It's a brilliant team. I mean, most of my people are with me for about 20 years now and it's like a family, which is nice to see. As a team, we have built this hospital together to become the largest hospital for Falcons in the world. It's also not just the largest Falcon hospital in the world, it is also an international institution. Now we have even a training program for veterinary students and veterinarians who come from all over the world to us. We had trainees from more than 42 countries now. So it's quite a lot.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 22:59

It's nice to see how it has grown, but it has not just only grown in this direction. It has also grown that we are one of the main tourism attractions in the Abu Dhabi Emirate. Now we have opened it for guests, for tourists, to understand the world of Falcons and Falconry. We even had a lot of VIPs coming, like Queen Camilla came to us before and President George W Bush, because it is so unique, it is so special actually.

Daniela: 23:24

But you must have a big team because you came up with all these ideas. It was a hospital that maybe was going to close in a year if you didn't bring it up.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 23:32

Yes, now it's a team of about 140 staff. Wow, yeah, it has grown a lot, and before when you started, when we started, we had around 18 staff all together. Wow, we became quite big over the years.

Daniela: 23:47

Incredible. So all these ideas about okay, let's do a training session or let's open it to the public came from people meeting together and say why don't we do this? Or it was your suggestion. How did that happen?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 23:58

We were gathering ideas and then in the end, it was mainly my idea and of my deputy. We worked together also since the beginning and we discussed how we can implement it, how we can do it. Then we started to implementing these ideas and then we started to refine those ideas over the years to improve it, to change it. We were listening to what our customers said. Then we changed it in a way to make them happier and to include more. Yeah, this is how it has changed over the years and how it has grown in a good way.

Daniela: 24:29

But this is because you wanted to make more profit, or is this because you thought there was more potential?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 24:36

It was because I knew there is much more potential. And then, of course, with the potential came also the profit. But people don't know so much about Falcons and Falconry and once they see it and they experience it, it is changing their mindset. Not just to experience it, but when they go back to their home countries, for example, they will understand Falconry in a completely different way, because it opens up their mind and they are not having those prejudices against Falconry as a blood sport and all these things, because they understand what it really means.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 25:08

So it's a kind of you're spreading the word, not just here, but you do it on an international level, and that's what I have always liked. And in the same time, I also believe it's good to share your knowledge. I mean we have such an incredible knowledge here. Nobody else has this kind of knowledge because we have so many Falcons here. I mean we treat more than 11,000 Falcons a year. This means it's such a huge pool of knowledge that I think it's good to share it with those trainees from other countries, to spread this knowledge and to help Falcons in other countries as well. I mean that's why I've written a book about Falcon Medicine as well to spread the knowledge, because the more we spread the knowledge, the more we can help and save Falcons in other countries as well.

Daniela: 25:48

But how is it that Saudi or other Arab countries that also have Falcons, how come they don't have a facility like yours or as good as yours?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 25:57

They're having now some Falcon hospitals there and Falcon clinics. But you need to have a kind of intuition for the Falcon it's not just you treat it like a cow or a horse or a cat or a dog. You need to feel, you need to sense what's the problem. And this is definitely an intuition that I have. And sometimes I look at a Falcon and I say, oh sure, there is a problem. We need to start checking this bird and we do an X-ray and we do blood tests and in the end we always find something. And then my team asks how did you know that she has a problem? And she looked good and she was big and she was fat and there was no sign. I cannot even describe it. I just know that she had a problem. So I have a very good intuition and this definitely helped to diagnose a lot of Falcons and to really go to the root cause of the problem.

Daniela: 26:47

Well, that makes you indispensable, Yet that makes you always have to be there, and then you have no life for other things, right?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 26:57

I think nobody is indispensable in this life. I believe it is something special. It is something very, very unique. I'm a kind of lifelong learner. I always believe there is still so much more out there what we can do. That's why, you know, I can never stand still, because I know there is still so much more what I can do. And that's how I went into this coaching field and why I'm going to do this coaching with animals as well. So I believe there is so much more that we can do, not just only for Falcons or animals in general, even for people. Even they can benefit from this connection that we have with animals. And that's how I went into the coaching field, especially also with my own experience with my mother and my rabbit and my dog, because I saw how much animals can help us.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 27:46

That's where I went into this coaching field, and I think it's also very important to look at things from a different point of view than what we are usually doing. So, yeah, I think it's important not just to stand still and to say, okay, I have achieved all of this, and that's where I stop, because the moment we stop, yeah, then that's the end. You know, I think we can always improve ourselves. We can always strive for new things where we can help others. I think that is extremely important in my eyes. That's also what I have learned when my mother was ill. It's not just that you say you have reached to a certain level and you stop there and that's it. There is always so much more what you can do to help others or to serve others, and that's something very important, and that's definitely one of the drivers that's pushing me forward, I see.

Daniela: 28:42

And definitely I understand that. You can really only imagine how hard it must have been with your mom. A question for you just is she in bed now? She just got the episodes and there were. She moved away from that.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 28:53

No, she was suffering for more than 40 years and she spent a lot of time in clinics in and out. Then, 10 years ago, they developed a new medicine for schizophrenia and injection. She got this injection and now she's able to live a really good life. She's completely under control now and she didn't have to go back to the hospital anymore in those last 10 years. So it's really good to see that she has a real quality of life now and she deserves it so much. When I look at her and she has been so strong over all those years because it was so hard for her Now she's a place where she has a lot of peace, where she's as healthy as she can be because of that new medication. It also shows us that we should never give up hope, because that's a newly developed medicine that didn't exist in 23 years ago.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 29:49

She had to go through very, very difficult times we with her, but we never let her down. We had been always a very, very strong family. We had always supported her and I believe nobody wants to be ill in such a way. Nobody wants to have a schizophrenia or any kind of mental disease. It's not our fault if we have it. This makes it even more important that the family stands together. Doesn't let a patient down, because you need to have a strong hold, a real strong bond, also inside the family, because it's so hard for the patient itself to have this disease and to change so much, like in the case of schizophrenia. I mean, it's a different world, she's a different person, but in the same time, we never let her down because it's not her fault. Everybody can get such a kind of disease. Nobody wishes it, but each one of us can get something like this. We need to be much more tolerant and much more understanding and much more compassionate with patients with mental illness.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 30:57

After I've seen, like in her case, she suffered for so many years and she really suffered a lot, but she never gave up hope. She always had hope for a better life and because of that new medicine that she's getting now she has a better life, a much better life, and she deserves it so much. You cannot imagine how much she cherishes each single day where she's okay and we with her as a family. That's why I really want also to share my story with your audience, because it shows that even if you are so much down and you are in such a difficult situation, like my mother, or we with her as a family, because it's so painful to see how somebody suffers with this kind of disease, with mental illness. In the end it really breaks your heart and there is only so much you can do. But when you see that, for example, like in her case, a new medicine gets developed and now she has a new lease of life and she can live a worse life, a dignified life, I think that is so beautiful to see and that's what I want to share.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 32:02

We should never give up hope, Need to change our mindset with regard to mental illness and we should always think about ourselves. Each one of us can get it. How would we like to be treated if we would get it? That's the way how we should treat those patients. They need much more acceptance in our society. It slowly starts, but it's still not enough. Yet. It's still not enough.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 32:29

That's why I went into this mental health coaching actually because I've experienced this for so many years and I have seen how deep a trauma is, and I have been traumatized myself because I've seen so many attacks that my mother had and I wasn't able to process this. So in the end it went into my subconscious mind. I just kept going and going over the years but I never really went down to process those experiences, to free myself from those experiences, and actually I only did it when I started my coaching education and I went into this mental health coaching, started to apply those different coaching tools to myself, and this was the time when I realized how deeply traumatized I was myself as a relative of a mentally ill person, and how I have been. I kept going for so many years without really taking care of myself because I could never reach to my subconscious mind. And when I did it and I healed it step by step. Even for me now it gives me a completely different quality of life To start to process traumatic experiences and that's why I'm so yeah, I'm so much stressing the point to go down to the root cause.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 33:54

Only when we are able to access the root cause and to process those experiences of this root cause, Only then we can free ourselves and it's a liberation. It's incredible when you are able to do that. That's why I think especially like mental health coaching is so helpful, not for people who are mentally ill as a diagnosed patient, but for those people who are having non-clinical mental problems and concerns. It's so helpful, because this help is it is immeasurable. When you are able to heal the root cause, then only you can live a life that's worth living. It changes everything for you.

Daniela: 34:34

And I'm glad that you mentioned this. It's true that people always think about the person who has a mental illness, but they forget about the person who lived with the mental illness, which is the same as a caregiver. We always think about the person who is sick and we forget about the caregivers. I think that everybody needs to be educated in one way or another. The stigma would take too many years. We were the right path, but I think we're still very behind about this.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 34:58

Yes, I think we are still in the beginning of this path. And what you said about stigma, I completely agree with you, because when I started with my coaching education and I started to process those experiences I couldn't even mention before that my mother suffered from schizophrenia. I couldn't even say the word because I was so traumatized. And then when I started, people said to me don't mention this. Oh, this is such a horrible disease. People will look down at you and it will damage your career.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 35:27

And you see how much stigma is still in all this mental illness issue and I think this stigma has to be broken. It needs to change, but it needs a lot of time. It needs people who have the courage to stand up and to say, yes, I have the disease, or I am a relative of somebody who has a mental illness, because it's nothing wrong, it's not your fault, it's not my fault, it's nobody's fault, and it can affect everyone and that's what people need to understand. If it is a physical disease, like a broken leg or a cancer, people have much more compassion as if it is a mental illness, and that is sad and this definitely has to change.

Daniela: 36:10

I was hoping in many, many aspects of our life that all generation, which is the X generation, will be better and we are tiny better, and so I have no idea when we are going to move forward even more. But I hope that I am alive to see the time, because I want to be with the movements of openness, accepting more and integrating people rather than pushing or secretive or not saying things how it's supposed to be. So I hope I can be alive to see that.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 36:44

I totally agree with you, daniela. What I found really shocking when I started with all this mental health coaching and I really went deep into it and I have now developed this it's a program called Deep Inner Transformation within 30 days to go down to the root cause of trauma. When I started doing all this, I found it shocking how many people have traumatic experiences or are really suffering, not in a clinical way, but in a. They have mental health concerns but they don't dare to speak out. They are ashamed because the stigma is there. They cannot talk to anybody, they cannot even process this trauma. Sometimes they don't even understand how much they're traumatized, because it is not something that people talk about. It is not something that society likes to talk about, because it's not an easy subject and it can have so many reasons. It can be child to trauma, it can be something that you have seen. But in the end, when you live with this kind of trauma, no matter from where it comes, you have to treat the root cause, because we all deserve to live a dignified life, a life without pain, without hurt, without all these buried emotions.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 37:54

What is wrong in speaking out to say that I'm not 100% okay? Yes, when somebody is asking you how are you? Oh, I'm okay, I'm fine. No, we are not always fine, so why do we not say that we are not always fine? We have a right to do that. That's what people need to understand. We have a right to say we are not okay and to look for help, to look for support, because only then we can live a life that's free of these buried emotions, of this pain, of this hurt that we are having, to relieve the burdens that we carry.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 38:29

Think about it. How many times people say you know, I have these heavy burdens on my shoulders. That's the correct word. Because the burden that's deep, deep inside of them, in their subconscious mind. It creates those problems in their shoulders because it is too heavy for them to carry. They need to relieve it. I have recorded a meditation how to access those deeply buried feelings, and it's actually on my website, wwwcoachformentalhealth. Because so many people cannot even connect with their inner feelings. They cannot even connect with those emotions that are so deep inside of them. And once you are able to connect, everything changes. It's like everything gets transformed. It's so powerful when you see how it's changing people. It's so beautiful to see Daniela and it makes such a positive impact, and that's what I mean. You know there is so much more that we can do, but we have to bring the topics out there. As you say, we need to tackle the stigma problem, because only then people can live life's worst living.

Daniela: 39:32

Yes. So let's go back to you. I mean, we're talking about you, but more about the stories. You were working really hard, but there is a moment where you decided to write a book. Oh yes, I wrote a book.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 39:43

Actually, I wrote four books in total, but one is a special one. That's called your Pat, your Pill 101 inspirational stories about how pets lead you to a happy, healthy and successful life. Because through my own experiences with my rabbit when I was young, my dog and all the other animals I had, I saw the amazing impact pets have on our lives, and it's all supported by science. It's not just that we feel better when we play with our dog or we pet our cat. It is supported by science. It's not just dogs and cats that help us. There are so many other animals. Even fish can help us, for example, for people that are suffering from dementia or Alzheimer's, just to look at a fish tank is improving their cognitive function. This is just amazing.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 40:29

So I wrote this book because I love animals, but I also want to help people. So this brought it all together where I thought, yes, I want to show people how yeah, how animals can help us and how they can heal us physically, but also mentally, even our soul. That's so beautiful to see, and it's lovely to see that this book got many awards in America, because I think it is an important topic. We need to look at animals, all kinds of animals, from a different point of view. It's not just nice to have a dog because you go for a walk, or you have a cat so you're not lonely. They are like our pill. That's why I called it your pet, your pill, because they are like the best medicine that we can find. That's really amazing when you see what they can really do for us, when we open our minds and look at them not just as a pet but as somebody who can change our life to the better.

Daniela: 41:20

It's interesting that you bring that topic depending on the culture. Like in South America, where I grew up, dogs were just outside, also, the weather helps, but you don't bring them inside, you don't buy them clothes, you don't buy them special food. Also, they were eating more raw meat and stuff and they're usually in the streets. While you come to North America and it's totally the opposite, they have birthdays for the dogs and they take the dogs like their children and they have bakeries for dogs or they're extreme. But beyond that you're saying that it has also another significance that perhaps in both cultures we are missing it a little bit.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 41:54

Yes, absolutely, and I mean there had been even studies. For example, if somebody has a heart attack after one year, for example, only 3% of them pass away when they have a dog, compared to more than 20% if they don't have. So even they can prolong our life and that's scientifically proven. They can reduce our blood sugar. They help us to reduce the stress hormones, they increase our happy hormones. It's not just that we believe it, it is changing even our hormonal system, our immune system. It helps really to support when we have diseases. That is so amazing because that's what we don't think usually. Who will think that a fish in a fish tank can help improve cognitive function of Alzheimer's patients? Nobody will believe that if you just say it. But it's science. Science has proven it. So it shows how even a tiny little fish can help us. It doesn't even have to be a dog or a cat, it can be a small bird, it can be a fish.

Daniela: 42:53

Well, yeah, that's super interesting. I had no idea of that. How do you have time to manage a hospital and with all these different branches that the hospital does, and also write four books and then get into coaching and studying and getting to more courses? Usually people have to always learn, but when you have the time, I know you said you can stay still. However, tell me more.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 43:20

Well, my day has 24 hours and I use them wisely.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 43:27

But for me, yes, I always have to strive. When I started with coaching and actually the main reason why I came into this Dr Wendaya came to the hospital. The famous author and motivation is speaking. He came to the hospital and I showed him around and we had a nice talk and then he said you have so much love to give. You are the love. You can do so much more and you can give so much more.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 43:52

This was the beginning, when I started thinking it's not just animal, it is the connection between animals and humans, and humans are also suffering, not just the animals. That's how I went into this coaching in the end. It inspired me so much and until today I always have these words in my mind. Then I started with coaching. I started with live coaching, but it wasn't really 100% for me until I went into this mental health coaching and this was like bang, it was just perfect for me. Then I always had the feeling still something is missing. It's like a puzzle and there is always a small piece of the puzzle missing. I continued with NLP and meditation, mindfulness. Then I went into hypnotherapy, past life regression therapy, and then it all came together. Plus, I'm also doing course guided empowerment and special equine assisted learning. It all comes together now it's this mental health part plus the animal part. That's what I want to do also more in the future, because I have horses. I want to work with them much more, to work in this kind of drama, coaching with the horses, because there is so much more what we can do and people need to become much more aware of the benefits the animals can have.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 45:09

In this case also, the horses can have for us. It is just amazing how they can sense what's wrong with us, how they can help us to open up, because a lot of people cannot even talk about the experiences, but when they are with the horses, the horses help them to open up in a way that is almost impossible for humans. The horses are really stunning, I mean because they are fear and flight. They have this special kind of hypervigilance which means they can really sense what's going on inside of us. They have an amazing intuition. They can even sense things that are happening inside of us that we cannot even understand or we cannot detect Highly sensitive animals.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 45:49

It is amazing how they can even detect if there is something wrong with us. I mean, for example, some people have really deep seated drama and really deeply buried emotions. For example, the horse might touch them somewhere in the tummy area or in the chest or heart area because they can connect with it. That's amazing to see because we always look at such a big animal and it's a very impressive animal, a horse I mean. But when you imagine how sensitive they are and they can really feel what's going on inside of us and they can even connect through a kind of energetic field. Even if we are not touching them, even if they are just a bit away in front of us, there is an energetic field. They can still feel our heartbeat, they can feel our energy and it's connecting with them. That's why horses are really, really special and they are very much unique in this kind of trauma healing. That's what I want to do much more in the future to bring it all together.

Daniela: 46:50

But you didn't know these about the horses before because you were concentrating on the falcons. When did you discover that the horses were also important?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 46:58

I had always been a horse lover actually I have horses on my own but when I went into coaching actually, then somehow I went into this kind of equine assisted coaching, horse coaching, trauma coaching. The more I learned, the more amazing I found. I mean, it's just stunning when you think about it. So I find it totally fascinating, and it's not just because I love horses, it's just because there is really a kind of special connection between horses and humans. I have, for example, one special mare and she's so sensitive it is amazing.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 47:32

One time I was out with her in the field and a huge thunderstorm came just out of the blue within one second. I mean when we left we didn't know. So actually she could sense that a branch of a tree would fall down in front of me. So she stopped me actually on moving forward. If I would have walked ahead, the branch would hit me directly. So she really protected me because she could sense the danger. So that's what I mean. They are just amazing. So they can sense things that we are not even able to imagine, to understand or to detect.

Daniela: 48:03

Wow, that's beautiful, and something that I forgot to ask is the difference between falcons and eagles.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 48:10

That's a great question.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 48:11

I'm sure many of your listeners are asking the same question Now. Eagles and falcons are both word of prey species, but there is a huge difference. First of all, eagles are much, much bigger. Usually when you see eagles, like the average, they are about, yeah, between 2 to 5 or 6 kilogram as a weight, which is around 2, 10, 12 pounds. Falcons usually weigh between 1 to 1.5, maximum 2 kilograms, so 3 to 4 pounds.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 48:43

And the main difference is actually that falcons are the only birds of prey that are killing with the beak. All other birds of prey, like eagles, hogs, buzzards, are killing with their claws, with their feet. So that's the huge difference. And because of this, falcons have a completely different anatomy. They have a special kind of hook inside their beak. We call it falcon tooth, like our teeth. So it's not true that birds don't have teeth. Falcons have two, a left one and the right one, because they are actually killing the prey through yes, you can say the power that they can exert through the beak, and that's the huge difference between them. So whenever you see a bird of prey lying somewhere on a road and you take it to a vet and you see, this has a little hook on the beak, then it's a falcon or a falcon species. If it doesn't have it, it's going to be some other kind of bird of prey. They are powerful, but as a weight they are much smaller than an eagle, for example.

Daniela: 49:42

If the claws are not that strong, then why do we need the protection on your arm?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 49:47

Because the tip of the talons is very sharp. If you just hold them and they go around your arm, they can still puncture your arm, so it could be quite painful actually. Okay great.

Daniela: 49:56

Thank you for answering that. I wanted to also go back to something that you said before that you said Wayne Dyer went to see you, right? Some people may know that he was a spiritual teacher and he wrote many books. So how was that visit? Tell me a little bit about that, oh my god, it was such an incredible visit.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 50:14

He came to visit the Abu Dhabi falcon hospital and, of course, because I'm the executive director, I was guiding the tour. I met him the evening before he did a speech here in Abu Dhabi and I went to greet him and I told him he's coming to me next day and he said I'm so much waiting to see this falcon hospital. It's just amazing, I must see it. So he came on the next day. His entourage told me he has one hour because he has another appointment later and I said okay, no problem, I can arrange it. It was amazing. We hit off immediately. We had such an amazing connection. It was like we know each other for a very, very long time and we couldn't stop chatting. We chatted for three hours. We finished the two in one hour and then we sat in front of the hospital on a little bench and we chatted another two hours about everything. And that's when he said to me that you know I'll never forget those words.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 51:05

So incredible, how he said, so inspiring. He said you are the love. I can feel this love everywhere in this place, but it doesn't matter. Wherever you go, you will always take this love with you, and there is so much more that you can do and you can do so much more with this love. It was like an inspiration for me.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 51:23

This actually opened the way to my coaching journey, because it was like there had been something sleeping inside of me and he brought it out with those words and I understood there is so much more that I can do. It's not just that I can treat and heal Falcons. I should also go beyond and try to use my intuition, and definitely also this sensibility that I got from my mother's disease, to use it for the benefit of people, to help them heal, to help them recover, to help them process their own trauma. This was the start of all of this, actually, and I still vividly remember the situation and those words, like it was just yesterday. It was so amazing and, yeah, it changed everything for me. It opened up a completely new path, and that's where I am now.

Daniela: 52:12

Yes, that sounds wonderful and we had the same connection, so it must be something really special about you, because I am not way in dire. However, we connected immediately and we have technological issues which I think it was meant to the universe. So we get to see you two days in a row, which is super cool.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 52:32

No, no, but it's right. From the beginning, you and me we had such a strong connection, like we know each other for a very, very long time, and I think that's something very beautiful and very rare as well, because you can meet a lot of people and you never have this kind of deep emotion, deep connection, like we have it all, like I had it with Dr Wendair. It's just amazing somehow, and it's a gift. It's, I find, for me, it is a gift. I'm very grateful for that, because it's not something common actually.

Daniela: 53:03

Yes, that's true, me too. Going back to the present, so you are doing the coaching and you are taking all these modalities, including the regression, which sounds fascinating, yes and then, but you are also working with horses. What is next? What else is there?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 53:20

Well, I have developed a special program. It's called deep inner transformation in 30 days. It is to help people access their trauma or this emptiness feeling, whatever they have, those deeply buried emotions, and through different kind of modalities, like a parts work, which is similar like internal family systems work, like inner child work, nlp, as well as hypnotherapy and regression work, to help them to access the root cause of their problem and to start the healing process, to bring them really to point where they are able to process this trauma and then to live a better life. It is also accompanied with special kind of meditations. It's on my website, wwwcoachformentalhealthcom. It helps people to start their journey, actually to connect with their feelings, because nowadays many of us are so completely disconnected that we cannot access those deeply buried emotions anymore.

Daniela: 54:20

So that's what I'm doing, that's the new program I have developed, and I know living in North America that is very popular, these coachings and developing oneself. What about where you are? How is, in Abu Dhabi, the mentality? Are you helping people from there or your clients all over the world? How are you finding your clients?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 54:39

now the clients are coming from all over the world, because usually when people are looking to access their traumatic experiences they go like for one modality, for example, just inner child work, but it might not be going deep enough. Because that's the main problem. You cannot just stay on the surface. If you have really deeply buried emotions you have to go deep, deep down to the subconscious mind. The conscious mind is not enough, because mostly they are deeper, they lie much deeper in the subconscious mind or even earlier. Even I had clients where I did past life regression and the problem was not in this life, it was in a past life. Not all people might believe in this. The problem they carried over from their past life to this life was, in the end it disappeared after the past regression sessions. It's amazing what you can do, and because it can be done nowadays all virtual, via zoom it is very, very flexible.

Daniela: 55:30

So that's why it's really easy, I see. Yes, and about the regression, I did that myself after my dad passed away. I read the book many life, many masters from Dr Ryan Rice. I decided to try that when I was in Montreal. It was amazing, like I had things that I wanted to work on and I didn't think that you had relation. It was something to do with the past life and I never had to see or feel or experience that anymore. It is a powerful modality.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 55:58

Yes, yeah, it is a very powerful modality and some people don't believe in it, but once you experience it, it can be absolutely life-changing. When I studied this past life regression, it was just, it was just amazing because so many questions that existed they got answered through this past life regression and then everything became so clear that the clarity was amazing. There are no more questions left because everything made sense and it really yeah, it was the last missing piece of the puzzle actually for me, and that's why it's an extremely powerful modality and people sometimes are a bit afraid when you say hypnotherapy or past life regression because they think are not in control anymore when you do such a kind of therapy or they might be like sleeping, but you're still fully consciously aware. You go to the subconscious mind but still can hear everything, they understand everything, they remember everything that they have said and that you have said. It is just opening up their mind, the subconscious mind, and that's why it's absolutely amazing actually yes.

Daniela: 57:05

Another curiosity that I have is I know you mentioned before the day has 24 hours and you're very good at managing it. So if you're doing the coaching, you're also managing the hospital. Yes, you also working with the animals, yeah. So what is it the secret about using wisely the 24 hours that you have a day?

Dr. Margit G Muller: 57:27

well, I start my day with 20 to 30 minutes meditation in the morning. I try to incorporate also some kind of Tai Chi techniques, not always 100 doing it, but I try to improve myself as well and this gives me a good start in the day and it helps me to be grounded, to be relaxed, and that's how I go through my day and those mindfulness practices that I have incorporated in my daily life. It helps me a lot to stay focused, especially when I have a lot of stress, to calm down, to relax myself, to put the whole situation into perspective. And I have a good time management. So when I say okay, I use, for example, this amount of time to do, let's say, coaching or to educate myself, I set it as a time and I stick to it, so I can be very, very strict in my time plan. And when I say I do something, I do it and I think that's maybe the secret that I'm very, very much focused and I really I put my plan and I follow it through you are indestructible.

Daniela: 58:28

I was listening to near a young so he wrote a book of indestructible. So no social media. You don't waste time at all.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 58:36

You don't watch tv oh, actually I love to watch Korean dramas no way, I'm addicted to Korean dramas. For me it's a nice way to relax, actually, because they're pretty cute, nice actors and good storylines. So when I want to relax, I watch my Korean drama series true.

Daniela: 58:56

Thank you for sharing that. So you are going to stay in Abu Dhabi for forever.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 59:02

You think this is your home yeah, I'm here since more than 20 years. Yes, it has become my home actually. I feel very comfortable here and I certainly stay in the UAE yes, yes, wonderful, wonderful market.

Daniela: 59:14

Thank you so much for this amazing story. I really enjoy being with you and listening and learning thank you so much, daniela.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 59:22

It was a lovely interview and I'm so glad to share my story with your audience and I hope at least one of them will get an inspiration out of it then. Whatever I've done in my life, it's worth it. Thank you so much. You do a wonderful job with your podcast thank you.

Daniela: 59:36

Well, I guess you're gonna be two because I got inspired, so then you need another person wonderful.

Dr. Margit G Muller: 59:45

Thank you so much, thank you.

Daniela: 59:47

I hope you enjoyed today's episode I am Daniela and you were listening to, because everyone has a story. Please take five seconds right now and think of somebody in your life that may enjoy what you just heard, or someone that has a story to be shared and preserved. When you think of that person, shoot them a text with the link of this podcast. This will allow the ordinary magic to go further. Join me next time for another story conversation. Thank you for listening. Hasta pronto.