Roo Betty Writes

What jewellery means to Roo Betty

Bracelets, they’ve been around for years.  Over 7000 years to be sort of precise.  We just love this concise history written by Overstock.com here   But what Ruth of Roo Betty loves doing the most is going to museums and having a actual in real life look at the history that is jewellery.  From the ancient Greeks to more modern Victorians, jewellery has been really important to many many people. And somewhat important to me, Ruth, throughout my life.

So what is it that I love about bracelets and jewellery?  Well I’ve had a fascination with anything that sparkles since I was a young girl.  Magpieish in my nature I’m attracted to the shiny and glittery.  I’ve worn all the rings and all the bracelets for as long as I can remember, I’ve even had the broken ones melted down and made into bangles and new rings.  Kinda recycling but also embracing that they are part of my history and I don’t want to let them go. I have life bangles and life rings, that are part of ancestors and memories that I don’t wish to let go of.  They are dear to my heart and are memories of a moment in time.  I even did a project for Horsham Museum styling their Victorian Death Jewellery, which I absolutely loved doing.  The past holds pain, as well as fascination for me.

You may be wondering just this?, or perhaps you’ve heard all the sensationalised success stories of “how Yoga has changed my life”.  Yeah I know it all sounds a bit….well...you know….REALLY?  As a Yoga teacher battling a mental health disorder and lifelong depressive illness I may just well be the right person to ask, if indeed Yoga will change your life because I’ve been there, done that ….and got the t-shirt to prove it. (if you taken a look at the Roo Betty store you will in fact already know that)

So let’s start at the very beginning what makes me qualified to answer this question. Well...I’ve suffered from depression my whole life from my early teens to mid forties.  I’ve been on medication which at times has helped a bit.  I’ve chatted to health professionals and I’ve been diagnosed Bi Polar II. I’ve been suicidal and numb, I’ve cried for days and not wanted to leave my house, and I’ve painted on the smile and talked myself into leaving the front door.  I’ve coped and managed at work, whilst having a family and  I have a million and one coping strategies.  Sometimes they work and sometimes they don’t.  I’m now off my medication and surfing through life's highs and lows.  But how did I get to this point and how did yoga help?

How sleep affects your Mental Health

I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say something headliney “That sleep cures EVERYTHING!” Yeah, OK, for those wishing to get pedantic, maybe not the cancers and other illnesses of that nature.  But it sure goes some way to making you feel a darn sight better.  From a personal point of view I know that a few hours sleep can make you feel on top of the world.  That 20 minute cat nap does work wonders on your little grey brain cells.  Have you ever had a “Disco Nap” - Oh maybe I shouldn’t be talking about that right now? Because it makes me yearn for a damn good night out.  Anyway, Sleep is like ambrosia, the nectar of the gods and having a decent 8 hours, it’s seen as the gold star of “winning at life”  But if like me your sleep pattern has been one of concern then read on.

Oh my god, I used to just love this song ( you can listen here if you’re a noob to it) As I listen back to the words and melody, I am immediately transported to my art college days.  Where, in order to get over my shyness and the fact that I was surrounded by people, I used to  listen to music constantly.  My favourite at the time was anything Motown.  I just loved the beat. It kept me calm and the lyrics were always so heart-bracingly, beautiful and catchy too. At the time I had a boyfriend, and being a teenager, the affair was tumultuous.  The trials and tribulations of my love life, could be written as a screenplay and I may just get round to that at some point (although I could really do with a ghost writer so I can recall and they can do the writing, lazy I know? - putting it into the universe just for laters sake) 

Anyway, I digress. My heart, at the time, belonged to my first ever “proper” boyfriend. He was sultry, moody and a musical type.  My parents hated him, and as you can imagine, this made me love him more.  But he wasn’t the cause of my broken heart.  The relationship I had with him drove me into the arms of the first real love of my life.