Taylor Muhl

Taylor Alexis Muhl (born November 5, 1983 in Hollywood, California) is an American singer-songwriter, model, dancer, and awareness advocate. Muhl is the only child of Eric and Sandra (Alex) Muhl, regardless when Muhl was in the womb (before birth) she was joined by a fraternal twin sister. Ever since she was born, Muhl's body has been distinguished by the fact that the left and right sides of her torso are two conspicuously different colors, with the interface running right down the midline on the front and back of her torso. For many years, Muhl, her family, and doctors believed the darker coloration on the left side of her torso was simply a very large birthmark. When Muhl was a young adult, it was finally discovered that she was a rare example of human chimerism.

When Alex was pregnant with Muhl, she didn't know (she had no ultrasound) that she was also pregnant with Muhl's fraternal twin sister. While the twins were in the womb (in the earlier stages of pregnancy), their eggs fused together, which left Muhl carrying her twin sister's genes in her own body. As a result, it caused Muhl to be born with a genetic condition called human chimerism. Not all cases of chimerism can be seen or detected from outside the body, but in Muhl's case it can be observed from her unusual physical trait. The coloration of Muhl's torso is split down the center by two clearly different colors of skin pigmentation, the darker color being Muhl's twin sister's DNA/cells. This technically makes Muhl "Her Own Twin."

As a teen and young adult Muhl kept enduring autoimmune health challenges and continued to go undiagnosed by every doctor she saw. She was told by doctors that the physical trait on her torso was just a birthmark. Chimerism in humans is known to be rare with only 30–100 cases documented in the world as of today. This was the reason Muhl went undiagnosed for so long. Finally, in 2009, she was diagnosed by a doctor who had previous experiences in genetics and medical rarities.

Muhl started performing at age three. Initially, Muhl was scared that her chimerism could have a negative impact on her career opportunities; thus, she kept it a secret outside of friends and family upon being diagnosed. In 2016, Muhl had a change of heart and decided to go public, making her the first person in the entertainment business to go public with being a human chimera. She hopes to inform, help, and inspire anyone experiencing differences or health challenges.

Muhl's first public appearance in spreading chimera awareness was in 2017 on the talk show, The Doctors. After appearing on the show Muhl's segment went viral resulting in millions of views on YouTube and hundreds of shares online. That happening is what made Muhl a public awareness advocate for chimerism, body positivity, and autoimmune deficiencies.

Muhl has now done countless interviews, TV, and documentaries for top companies. She's been reported on by The New York Times, and many others. In 2018, Muhl was a featured guest on Megyn Kelly Today and she shared with the audience how her particular case of chimerism is linked to her autoimmune deficiencies from her two sets of genes not being fully compatible.

Muhl is the granddaughter of Hollywood mogul Edward Muhl who was VP in charge of production at Universal Studios from the 1950s–1970s. The elder Muhl oversaw movies such as, Psycho, The Birds, To Kill A Mockingbird, Pillow Talk, Spartacus, and others.