MIMI: I’M JUST TELLING MY STORY

Discover Germany, Austria & Switzerland met up with author and coach MIMI to talk about why she fell out of love with acting, her latest book release, her struggle with addiction, and more.

DISCOVER GERMANY: Why did you decide to give up acting?

MIMI: I haven’t been happy with this job for a long time. I didn’t like the outside judgement anymore, nor the lack of proactivity and I no longer wanted to make my life dependent on whether someone books me or not. At some point, I felt like being trapped in a marriage that ended a long time ago but I still don’t dare to file for divorce. My resentment was big, but finally my courage to change was bigger. So I publicly announced what everyone in my private circle has known for years: I am giving up acting and I’m following my true calling. Of course, like every breakup the beginning of my new path felt odd, but I made the absolute right desicion. With my partners Nadja Petranovskaja and Julia Eckl I founded my company – THE HOUSE OF LOVELIBELLE. We create beautiful things like manifestation cards, meditation audios, notebooks wrapped in vintage garments from all over the world, dresses, candles, jewellery and perfume – but we also offer beauty to the inside. In our online masterclassses, we help women to become the best version of themselves.

DISCOVER GERMANY: You were born in Croatia and have grown up in Germany. What does ‘home’ mean to you?

MIMI: My home is my family. My friends are home. Home is not a place outside, but inside. For a long time I felt homeless, but today I live in peace. I know where I belong and no longer have to search for home because I have found it: in myself.

DISCOVER GERMANY: What do you love about Croatia? And what about Germany?

MIMI: I come from Dalmatia and there is a Dalmatian word that actually describes everything. It’s called ‘Dišpet’, and means ‘Now more than ever!’. I love this attitude. Doing something anyway, not giving up, not letting anyone talk you out of it. I love that we’re singing all the time and that we’re very sociable. Sociable and stubborn. At the same time mostly. Croatians are a bunch of oddballs with a heart of gold, always ready to attack. That’s probably why we’re such good friends. I would really fight for my girlfriends, anytime! What I love about Germany is this incredibly well-balanced structure, the virtue, the language. German is one of the most beautiful languages in the world. I love the reliability and punctuality of the Germans and that you can rely on a German’s word. And I am head over heels in love with Bavaria. When seeing the Bavarian mountains and the Dalmatian coast, I sometimes think that God must have had a particularly good day when he created these beautiful parts of the world.

DISCOVER GERMANY: You’re about to release your new book, Trinkerbelle. What is the book about?

MIMI: I’ve been at war with alcohol for almost 30 years and was living in hell from day to day, but couldn’t tell anyone about it. I already was seriously addicted to alcohol as a teenager but, after a long and stony search for a way out, in 2018 I finally found the miracle of sobriety. I’m still addicted, addiction never goes away. But I don’t have to drink anymore and I’m not sick anymore. Alcoholic, yes, dry, yes. But no longer sick.

DISCOVER GERMANY: What do you want to achieve with your book? How do you want to help people with the same disease?

MIMI: My book is not a guide. I cannot provide anyone with a panacea because every addicted person has their own story and their own path. I’m just telling my own, a story that might show that like in my case, most alcoholics try to numb a mental pain. The bottle is often the only relief they know that helps them forget themselves. And I want to show that it is worth changing the perspective on this disease. Like Gabo Mate said: ‘Ask not why the addiction, but why the pain?’

DISCOVER GERMANY: What wishes and dreams do you have for the future?

MIMI: My wish is, that when I check out of this planet, it hopefully will bleed a little less because my existence could help to heal it.

DISCOVER GERMANY: What else is planned in 2023? What can we look forward to?

MIMI: I will continue to expand THE HOUSE OF LOVELIBELLE and of course I will keep on writing. In October 2023 the first part of the children’s book series Little Princess Guan will be released. I wrote it alongside my sister and I am very excited about that. And I will be continuing my work as an ambassador to help destigmatise alcoholism. It is very important for everyone to understand that alcoholics suffer from a severe disease and not from a weak personality.