I’m starting a new series on my blog. Interviews with people who start over and begin again. People who started over in a new career, a new city, a new country, etc. We all have so many different reasons for why we want to try something new or start over. We also have a lot of automatic fear built in, starting with the big one: What if I fail? I hope these interviews will help by first showing you why and how someone started over. We’ll also look at any challenges along the way and any advice they have for someone who wants to begin again. We kick off this series with the lovely Margaretha Montagu. She started out as an MD and now runs retreats on a beautiful farm with six horses. With too much stress exacerbating a debilitating eye condition, she found stress reduction by finding a new career in the South of France. Who didn’t dream of owning horses in a beautiful country setting as a child…maybe an adult too?
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Can you please introduce yourself, tell us what you do and where you do it?
My name is Margaretha Montagu. I am a medical doctor, although I no longer practice medicine. Nearly 10 years ago I retrained as an equine-assisted psychotherapist and I now work in the field of personal development in the south of France, where I host equine-facilitated residential and non-residential retreats.
Your first career was as a medical doctor, was that something you always wanted to do as a child? If not, how did you decide on the medical field?
I wanted to be a vet when I was a little girl. I especially wanted to work with horses. As a teenager, I did a couple of work placements at veterinary surgeries as well as at medical practices. During the latter, I became fascinated by the workings of the human mind and decided to become a medical doctor instead.
In my blog, I write a lot about trying new things and people who start over. First, why did you change your career and second, how did you decide on Equine Assisted Therapy? Were there other things that you thought about first?
I changed my career for two reasons. Firstly, because I developed a debilitating eye disease, partly stress-induced by the demands of my work, that limited my ability to work in the medical field. Secondly, because I developed an interest in the prevention of stress-induced conditions. At the time, the medical profession was focused more on the management of stress-induced disease than on prevention of said conditions. I looked at a variety of career options that would enable me to help my patients manage stress – I trained in hypnotherapy and NLP – but eventually settled on equine-assisted psychotherapy as it enabled me to combine my medical knowledge and experience with my love for horses.
Did you previously own horses before you made your decision?
No. Regretfully, there was never any time for horses, neither during my studies nor during my medical career. I had no idea how time, money, and energy consuming horse ownership would be. It was a steep learning curve during which I learned as much about myself, my strengths and my weaknesses, as I learned about horses. Now, with a herd of six, I cannot envision a life without horses.
I see that you have other types of retreats at your farm, like Meditation retreats. Did you envision all of this from the start or did you start with the Equine Assisted Therapy first?
I started with equine-assisted psychotherapy, but I soon realized that I was once again working in a field that focused on cure rather than on prevention. So I switched equine-assisted experiential learning, teaching people how to manage stress and so prevent diseases like heart attacks, strokes, stomach ulcers etc. with the help of horses. Right from the start, the plan was to host retreats. Our most popular retreats today are the equine-guided meditation retreats that enable participants to practice stress management strategies, aided by our horses, in a relaxed setting, but we also host Camino de Santiago de Compostella walking and wine tasting weekends.
Just to clarify it sounds like you’ve moved away from Equine Assisted Therapy into your current workshops. Or do you still do the Therapy, but the other workshops are more popular?
Equine-assisted psychotherapy (for people with mental health problems) felt too much like working to cure patients instead of preventing disease in the first place. So what I do now, is equine-assisted experiential learning (for personal empowerment) and equine-guided meditation (for stress management.) I still do the odd equine-assisted psychotherapy session, but I more or less gave it up a good while ago.
Can you tell me what the equine-guided meditation retreats entail? What do participants do and how do the horses assist and how long is the class?
During the retreats, we focus on stress management strategies like mindfulness and a variety of different meditation methods, like walking, working, writing and equine-guided meditation. The horses are involved in most of the classes, for example, when we introduce participants to working meditation, they do it by grooming the horses and when we do walking meditation, the participants walk with the horses. Equine-guided meditation is basically meditation in the presence of the horses.
I’ve been seeing and reading a lot about the Camino de Santiago lately. What’s involved in your retreat? We live a few hundred meters from the Camino, it literally passes not far from our back door. We wanted to offer people the opportunity to walk part of the Camino while at the same time showcasing one of the products of our region, our exceptional wines, so the idea of a walking and wine tasting weekend was born. This short break – Friday evening to Monday morning – has been very popular. Guests walk from Eauze to Nogaro on Saturday, attend a tutored wine tasting at the Saint Mont cellars on Saturday afternoon and walk from Nogaro to Aire-sur-Adour on Sunday. (See below for more information on workshops and retreats.)
What do you love most about your new career and lifestyle and what do you miss about your old career?
I love everything about my new career. I love living here in the south of France, I love working daily with people and with horses and I love the feeling that I am making a difference in people’s lives. I am convinced that I made the right decision because our current low-stress lifestyle has arrested the progression of my eye disease. What I miss most about my old career is the regular interaction and exchange of information with colleagues. If it wasn’t for the Internet I would have felt professionally very isolated here in deepest rural France.
On top of everything else that you already do, you’ve also written several books. This includes You ARE Good Enough and French Women’s Confidence Secrets. My question is, which do you prefer? Running retreats or writing the books?
The two go hand in hand. During the summer months, I host retreats and during the winter months, I write. Each book has been inspired by problems that retreat participants struggled with. For example, You ARE Good Enough was inspired by the impostor syndrome and Secure Your Promising, Purposeful and Prosperous Future (this book will be available soon,) was inspired by the insecurity generated by the recent terrorist attacks and presidential elections. Mindfulness and Meditation in the South of France I wrote as a companion workbook for our Connect with Horses meditation retreats. I couldn’t choose between writing and hosting the retreats, I love doing both in equal measure.
Looking back to when you made the career transition, is there anything that you wish you’d done differently? Or anything that you felt wasn’t working out and you dropped or changed along the way?
I wish that I had listened to my heart more and less to my head. Both my heart and my head lead me to the same outcome, but if I had listened to my heart more, I would have gotten there sooner. As for making changes, the content of the retreats evolves over time according to participants’ needs and to a certain extent, the content of each retreat is tailored to suit the individual participants.
Did you get any advice or help from others while embarking on your new career? What is the best advice or assistance that you got along the way?
I received a lot of advice and support from my friends, family and funnily enough, from my retreat participants. In the early days, nearly 10 years ago now, I was very much feeling my way with the retreats, not sure what would work best, what participants needed most and how to use the location to its full potential. It was the retreat participants themselves who time and again pointed me in the right direction and in fact, continue to do so.
What advice do you have for someone looking to make a career change during midlife or later?
Just do it, but do your research thoroughly and make your preparations carefully before you take the plunge. Listen to your head, by all means as it will keep you safe, but do not ignore your heart. At the start of my career, I chose my career with my head. In midlife, I chose my new career with my heart. I have never regretted either choice, but my heart’s choice has made me much happier.
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I hope you found this interview interesting and perhaps a bit inspiring? Below are links for all of Margaretha’s information and workshops. I encourage you to please check everything out. A meditation workshop with horses sounds heavenly right now.
Links for Margaretha:
Equine Guided Growth (website)
Equine-guided Personal Empowerment and Meditation Workshops
Friesan Fillies Club
Facebook
Pinterest
(All Pictures used in this post were provided by Margaretha’ Montagu and used with her permission.)
It’s always so interesting to hear other women’s journeys! The medical field is so stressful, so I can totally relate to Margaretha!!
What a great interview, Jennifer!
Thanks, Jodie. I’d love to interview you as well because you also went from the medical field to doing something completely different!
I love Margaretha’s story and all she’s achieved with her horses. One day (when I win Lotto) I’m heading over to France and hanging out with her for a while – I might even get on a horse for the first time in my life!
Can you pick me up on your way? It’s definitely on my bucket list to visit Margaretha.
I know exactly what she means about the interplay between heart and head when starting a business. Her retreats hve been on my list for a while now. I really want to go.
There’s a group of us that all want to go. One day we should plan that.
Amazing post dear!
Have a nice day,
Emma
http://www.emmalovesfashion.com
Looking forward to this series of blogs. It is never too late to begin anew and these people are inspiring to all!
I know. I have a few people already lined up and I’m very excited for each person I interview. They all are doing such interesting things.
Margaretha’s story and life are so interesting. I love the walking and wine tasting retreat idea – it’s genius to get people to walk with the promise of wine at the end!
My sister and I were just laughing about it today. I told her about the Camino because I’m fascinated by it and she wondered why anyone would call all that walking a retreat….then I told her about the wine and she understood. 🙂
What a brilliant interview and such an inspiring story! Horses are such beautiful animals…
They are beautiful animals. I’m glad you liked the interview, Margaretha is inspiring.
Thank you. This was super inspiring. I really enjoyed reading this piece and look forward to more of them. I myself am beginning something new and would love to share in a few months when I get more organized. 🙂
Thanks for the feedback. Please reach out to me when you’re interested in being featured.
Wonderful interview – Margaretha is an inspiration. And I agree, choices made with the heart make us happier.
So interesting! We all have our own reasons for pushing the reset button!
Yes. I find it amazing that her career change also had a positive impact on her health.
great idea for a series.
Thanks. I have several more in the works.
This is so cool! How inspiring! I really love this series idea, it’s fascinating to read about choices like these and how they pan out for people. It is inspirational! Thank you
Thanks. In a couple of weeks, my next interview will post. It’s about a former spreadsheet geek turned wedding planner. I am loving finding out about everyone’s previous life and seeing how they turned it around into something completely different.
I look forward to reading it!
Jennifer, thanks so much for sharing this interview. I too have retired from a career as a medical doctor (surgeon), and it was heartening to see another brave person who would branch out into an associated field that allows her to continue to provide care, but on alternative tracts.
I’ve never heard of EAP, but based on what I’m seeing in these images and her words, sounds like an incredibly rewarding and promising approach for select patient populations, particularly as a preventative and empowering measure.
I never heard of it either, but she tells me it originated in the US. And anytime you’d like to be interviewed, just let me know.
I’m honored that you’d consider me as well. I’m heading for a long hiking trip in a less than 2 weeks, but if you are still looking for volunteers when I return, I’ll be happy to participate.
This is a brilliant series.
Yes. I have a couple of people already lined up so when you come back from your hike it would be perfect. Where are you going this time?
Wonderful post! Horses have been a passion of mine since I was very young, well, for as long as I can remember. Margaretha has a “dream job” in my eyes. 🙂 Just wonderful!
Yes. Though caring for horses can be hard work, combining her live of horses with her career has worked out well for her.
What an inspiring post!
I would love to go to one of Margarethe’s retreats Jennifer. Alas, Australia is so far away. Inspiring post proving we are never to old to start a new career. x
It sounds like an idyllic life. How wonderful that she has followed her heart and is doing what she loves.
It’s wonderful to connect with people who are finding new careers that they love after already having had one.