Perfecting the Magic had the pleasure of sitting down with Rozy of Rozy’s Magical World to talk about everything from Disneybounds to mental health and the healing power of revisiting childhood dreams. Join PTM as we feature this talented creator who is dedicated to revealing the realities of life both inside and outside of the Disney influencer bubble.  

Can you describe your perfect Disney day? 

A day with a temperature that doesn’t make me sweat just from walking from my car to security, a day with low crowds at the park, and a day when I can just interact with all the characters that I love, because that is something that means a lot to me. I’m not a huge ride person at Disney. Really, it’s about the atmosphere for me. Just being there, listening to the music on Main Street, and going to the parks without worrying about making content. Just getting to experience it with my husband, doing all the things we love. That’s the perfect Disney day for us.  

Can you share more about the style of Rozy’s Magical World? 

It’s so crazy because I never thought I would get into anything involving fashion, styling, or anything like that. When I first discovered Disneybounding, I was like, holy crap, this is incredible. But, I started to realize the pressure I put on myself, because I try to make each Disney bound better than the last, and that’s stressful.  

I always try to think of the reasoning behind why I’m doing the bound in the first place. Is it because I want to meet a character? Is it because I’m trying to get specific content? Am I trying to do something comfy? I try to focus on the reasons behind why I’m doing it and that helps me.  

A lot of the time it is for a character interaction, because that’s something that brings me so much joy. When a character sees that you’ve tried so hard and they just give that love back to you. It makes it worth all the pressure and stress I put on myself.  

What a lot of people don’t realize is that all of my outfit stuff is normally from Amazon. People think I’m sewing this stuff, putting it together, and making dresses, but I’m not. I get stuff from Amazon, and I just add a belt between a top and a skirt, and then it looks like a dress. Add on a petticoat underneath and it looks fancy. That’s really how I do it. I have this formula I’ve been using. I know I need a top, I know I need a skirt, and I know I need a petticoat. That’s the base of my outfit. Then the details come in through the accessories. The ears, the bag, jewelry, sunglasses, whatever it may be, to really add that extra unique style to it.  

I would definitely say my favorite look so far was my Powerline bound that I just did recently. I had the most epic moment with Powerline Max. I’m still trying to process it. It really reached my inner child. I hadn’t experienced something that touched my inner child so hard before. It had me emotional for days, because I was still trying to process what it had done for me.  

Also, my Goofy outfit—I had an amazing interaction with Goofy in it. If I’m rounding out a top three, my third would be my Tiana look that I did for Dapper Day. Those are my three favorite looks, and a lot of that is because of the character interactions I had. 

Your willingness to show yourself being vulnerable is commendable. What has the support meant to you? 

With my platform, I have been struggling with what I want to do with it. Yes, Disney content, but I felt that I wanted to do more, and I’ve struggled with my mental health ever since I was a teenager. There’s always been this idea that mental health is something you stay quiet about, that people get embarrassed about. If you’re on medication you’re scared to talk about it, and with my platform I realized that no, that’s not okay. Mental health is something that should be talked about more and normalized.  

So many more people who struggle with their mental health will be willing to speak up about it if it’s normalized. There are so many people that suffer in silence because they’re afraid to speak up about it due to either judgment or people thinking they’re doing it for attention, which are things I have experienced personally. Even with people super close to me. Even with family.  

I really love to be open about my mental health because I always tell myself that if my video (or my content) can reach one person and bring a little bit of light to their darkness, then that’s what success is for me. Yes, dressing up in Disney clothes and going to the parks—that’s fun, that’s amazing, people like that, but what really warms my heart and feeds my soul is knowing that I can help. 

I’m not going to lie. It’s really tough to be vulnerable. Every time I post something about my mental health, it takes me a good 20-30 minutes before I hit post. Because I’m hesitating, and I’m second-guessing myself. I’m worrying people are going to think I’m doing it for sympathy or attention, but really, it is to educate others and let people know that just because a creator makes content doesn’t mean that they’re showing you everything. As creators, we show you what we want you to see. So, having that vulnerable side is tough. I’m not going to say it’s easy to go online and share personal things, but again, for me, if I can help people then that’s just what I want to do.   

I don’t like to give myself credit or say I’m good at something, but I will say that masking [my emotions] is something I’ve completely nailed. So many people had no idea what I had been struggling with in silence. I can just put on that smile and act like nothing is happening, but then once I’m alone by myself everything comes out, and I can enter a dark hole that I can’t get myself out of.  

It’s so important for people to know that we don’t know what’s going on for people behind closed doors. I always tell people not to compare themselves to people on social media. You don’t know what’s going on. Just because it looks perfect doesn’t mean it is. I feel like more creators are open to showing raw, vulnerable sides now, but we still have this idea where we see these influencers and creators and think, ‘oh my god, they have such a perfect life. Why can’t my life be like that?’  

I get comments like, “Oh, I wish I had your life. I wish I could live a life like you’re living”. I don’t want people to compare their lives to my life. I want them to get joy from my videos and feel happy when they’re having a bad day or are stressed at work. I want to make them laugh a little bit. That’s what I hope they get from my videos. I hope they understand that we don’t know everything that someone is going through. Even if we’re close to them. 

What’s your best advice for someone who struggles to feel fully engaged? 

I’m properly managing my mental health now, but I was putting off seeing a psychiatrist and a therapist for the longest time. It would overwhelm me with anxiety to think about booking an appointment and trying to find the right person. Now that I’ve gone, I’ve found the [proper] medication, which has been life-changing. I was being prescribed antidepressants, all sorts of antidepressants, for most of my early 20s, and nothing was working. I kept thinking, ‘what’s wrong with me? Why isn’t this medication working?’ Well, it’s because I was being prescribed antidepressants when I needed bipolar medication.  

So, now that I have the right medication, just seeing life differently has been life-changing. It’s crazy to think about how much life has changed. Before, we weren’t going to the parks as much, because I would have a lot of off days, but now I want to get out more, I want to be social, I want to do all these things, and a lot of that is because I got the right medication.  

But, I tell people that just because something works for one person doesn’t mean it’s going to work for you. A medication might work for someone, and therapy might work for someone else, so I really think it’s about doing trial and error while making it a priority to put yourself first. That’s the hard part. Putting yourself first and making sure you’re prioritizing your mental health. It’s easier said than done, but you have to get into that mindset. Once you can grasp that mindset, you can start going into that trial and error phase to find out what’s right for you and what you can do to properly manage your mental health.  

What do you wish people understood about mental health, especially for creatives?  

I wish that people understood that just because someone is battling with their mental health doesn’t mean they’re sad all the time, and it doesn’t mean they don’t want to do anything. Recently on one of my [livesteams] I was at Hollywood Studios and became completely overwhelmed by the crowds and got overstimulated. I started to cry. People were shocked. They wondered what was wrong; they didn’t understand that while I love Disney, I can get overwhelmed. It’s impossible to always be happy, even at our ‘happy place.’ I just wish people understood that.  

People who deal with depression are not lying on their couch all day. People have this idea of what depression, anxiety, and bipolar are, but it’s not true. Just because I have bipolar doesn’t mean I am literally yelling one minute and then crying the next. I think people expect mental health to look one way. They don’t understand that people can still look like they have it together and [yet] they’re battling their mental health. Someone can be a CEO of a company and literally be dealing with any kind of mental health disorder.  

So many people have their own ideas about what mental health struggles look like, and I feel like people don’t understand that even though you may have family and followers that support you, you can still feel alone. People think, ‘oh, you have a family. Why can’t you go to family?’ or ‘you must not be depressed because you’re at Disney all the time’. I’ve gotten those comments. 

Recently I posted something about my struggles, and someone said, “well, at least you don’t have cancer, and you’re at Disney all the time.” Usually, I don’t respond to things like that, but I had to, because they had no idea. To compare mental health to cancer? People can be so naive. It’s sad. Sharing my journey has been a rollercoaster, but I think it’s important to normalize talking about it. I don’t want people to feel like they have to hide or they can’t share. I think the more we talk about it, the more we can educate others to understand that mental health doesn’t look one way.  

We’d love to know more about your love story. How did you meet your husband and what are some of your favorite memories together? 

We actually met on Match.com. We moved pretty fast. We moved in together two weeks after meeting. Both of our families were wondering what the heck was going on. But, we knew.  

Ryan has always been into Star Wars, but never the rest of Disney. Star Wars was always his thing. I made my love of Disney very clear from the beginning. Disney music was all I would listen to. People always ask me how to help get their boyfriend or husband into Disney, and I don’t really know what to suggest. I feel like he kind of had no choice. He’s just been around it so much, and we started going often. Especially once social media blew up for me. Once we started going to Disney World, I think that’s what changed it for him. Being able to show him the different shows, entertainment, and character interactions. He started enjoying Disney, too.  

He is now a Disney adult. He is actually more of a Disney parks adult, though. He’s always reading the news and catching up on the latest. It’s crazy. Sometimes he talks more about it than I do. Now he’s getting into bounding. He’s been creating his own bounds. I’ve been shocked. Before I was sort of forcing him to do it. But, he started creating his own bounds on his own, which has been incredible. It kind of gets that passion kicked up for me when he does. It’s like, ‘ooooh, okay babe, you’re making these awesome outfits!’.  

We’re trying to be more open about the struggles we’ve had with my mental health and how it impacted him. We’ve been together for thirteen years. It’s taken him several years to figure out how to deal with me when I do get in those dark places because it can be very challenging and overwhelming for a significant other to see someone they love go through. It can feel so hopeless. It wasn’t easy. It’s still not easy. We still have our moments. Especially when you throw content creation into the mix. The world and pressure of social media can be a lot.  

Ryan sometimes takes my phone away because I can get so wrapped up in analytics and views and start comparing myself to other people. That’s when he comes over, grabs my phone, and says, “we need to take a break. Let’s go swimming. Let’s go to the beach. Let’s do something to get your head out of this.”. I’m very, very, very grateful to have found my soulmate. Without him, none of this would have happened. Not without his support.   

What do you wish people understood about creator burnout? 

I wish people understood that what people show on social media isn’t all that it seems. Even as a creator now, even as someone who tells people all the time not to compare themselves to other creators, I am still guilty of doing it sometimes. Since I have so many creator friends and I see what they post, I think to myself, wait, we just had a conversation about how this was hard for you, and now you’re making a post to make it look like nothing happened? That’s why I always say; you don’t know what’s going on behind closed doors.  

You don’t understand that a lot of creators have to create a brand, they have to dress a certain way, they have to act a certain way, and they have to post specific content because of a brand deal they have or because of who could be watching. You’re not always getting people who are being 100% authentically themselves on social media. I’m not going to lie, even with me, I am in this Disney bubble. It’s expected of me to do more family-friendly content. I’m getting to a point where I don’t want to be controlled by anyone. I want to create whatever I’m going to create without feeling like someone is watching how I do it. I just want to create what I want to create because that’s what brings me joy and opens up my creative outlets. I can’t be held back or constrained while constantly thinking about what I post. That isn’t fair to me.  

Even the biggest creators struggle with creative burnout and being under the pressure of social media. People don’t understand. It’s not just the pressure from trends that are going on, and keeping up with the trends. There’s pressure to feel like you’re still connecting with your audience. I also don’t think people understand the work that goes into a 15-second video. There are a lot of creators that spend hours on a 15-second TikTok. That’s just how it is.  

That was the hard part for me. I was doing a lot of my mug videos, throwing my mugs in the air, and doing those transitions videos, and I haven’t done those as much lately. Those were six to eight-hour videos I would film and for some to just flop? That kills your soul. People don’t understand the pain of that. You’re struggling with an algorithm you can’t control. There’s so much that goes on behind the scenes.  

Also, it used to be that if you had a million followers two years ago, you would have made it big. You were a celebrity. I’m not trying to talk anybody down, I have over a million followers myself. It’s just different now. People can get a million followers overnight from just one video. It’s definitely important for people not to compare themselves.  

Right now, there are a lot of people saying, ‘quit your job and become a creator. You can make all this money in a month’. And while I believe anyone can do this if they’re willing to dedicate themselves to it, I don’t think people understand how much work it is. People think I get paid to go to Disney. That’s not the case. Disney doesn’t pay me to go there. Yes, you get collaborations, and you can get free stuff, but you’re still putting a lot of money into the videos you make. I hate to see people quitting their nine-to-five jobs and expecting to make 10k in a month. I’ve been doing this for over two years and still struggle to make money consistently. People really need to make sure they’re ready to take that leap. They need to make sure they have savings, and just know that there are a lot of things that go into everything we do that will take them time.  

You recently went to Disney with your Dad. You remarked how important days like that have been for healing your inner child. Can you share more about your trip?  

My Mom and Dad separated when I was very young. I lived with my Mom, primarily. I would see my Dad on weekends. They had a really horrible, nasty custody battle over me. I struggled so much as a child because I felt like I had to choose. My parents spoke negatively about each other to me, which basically made me feel like I had to choose [between them]. That’s why I struggle so much with making decisions because it takes me back to when I was a child and felt like I had to choose. There was a lot of hurt that happened over the years because I decided to stay with my Mom.  

I watched my Brother, who lived with my Dad, get a lot of special treatment when I didn’t. There was a lot of ‘if you lived with us you would have a new car,’ ‘if you lived with us you would have name brand stuff’, that was hard. Because, my Mom was struggling, we didn’t have name-brand stuff. She was making it paycheck to paycheck while my Dad was pretty financially set. There’s a lot that I haven’t talked about regarding my childhood yet. Just because it’s a lot. People don’t understand how it affects you [as an adult]. Still, to this day, my biggest dream would be able to wake up on Christmas morning and have my Mom and Dad there because I have never had that. 

This trip with my Dad was a big deal. It had been planned before, but my Dad canceled it, which hurt me because I didn’t understand why he would cancel it. We planned it again, but I caught Covid, and we needed to reschedule again. So, when it finally happened I had a lot of anxiety because I had never had a one-on-one trip with my Dad, so it was a lot of feelings. But, it was amazing for him to see what I do because so much of my family doesn’t understand this world I’m in. It was great to go to the parks with him and have him see people recognize me and see me interact with my followers and cast members. He realized I was really doing something cool. I loved seeing him experience Disney World and finally get that quality time that my inner child was screaming to have. I feel it made our relationship stronger. Now I feel like he’s rooting for me in this social media space because he understands it. He was really impressed with Disney! Crazily enough, he now wants to move to Florida. Hopefully, by the end of the year he’ll be here! My Dad can be critical. I’ve always just wanted him to be proud of me, and that’s what I got this trip, and that’s why it meant so much to me.  

You’ve fallen in love with Disney cruising. What are your favorite things about them?  

I think Disney Cruises are so underrated. I don’t think Disney promotes them appropriately because my eyes were opened to a whole new world. The Disney Cruise Line is where it’s at. I love Disney World, don’t get me wrong, but it’s a lot of work. Your body aches. You’re hot. There’s a lot that goes into it. As for Disney Cruises, you’re comfortable, room service is 24/7, all-inclusive, and the character interactions are wonderful because you can really connect with them. They have different outfits than in the parks, and it’s just a completely different vibe.  

In the parks, you have people running you over with strollers and chaos all around you. It’s so chill on a Disney Cruise. Everyone is there to have a good time, and the staff are amazing. They go 150% above and beyond. I’ve never experienced service like I have on that cruise. I wish the adults-only area was larger and hard alcohol beverage packages were offered. But, they do have $5 drink specials. Oh, and Castaway Cay, Disney’s private island, is so amazing. It’s unlike anything else. The food is so good. It’s so amazing. Highly recommend! 

Favorite Walt Disney World foods: What are your favorite snacks and meals on property? 

My favorite snack is the fresh fruit waffle from Sleepy Hollow Refreshments in Magic Kingdom. I love that they’ve made it available all day because I’m not a morning person at all. My favorite sit-down restaurant is Yak and Yeti at Animal Kingdom, I think that’s delicious–and another underrated restaurant that people don’t think about is Nine Dragons in EPCOT. It’s so amazing. Oh, and I love the food at Skipper Canteen at Magic Kingdom.  

You aren’t afraid to show that Disney Adults are, in fact, adults. What has it meant to you to blend your love of Disney with your real life? 

People have this idea of Disney adults. They’ll say we’re weird or need to grow up, and I am a proud Disney adult. I’m an adult that has my struggles, and I can still have my love for Disney. It doesn’t make me weird or awkward. I believe that Disney is for all ages. That was Walt’s whole mission.  

I think it’s really important for people to remember that they shouldn’t worry about judgment. I want to help people realize that. It’s been so helpful to hear from all the people that say they aren’t afraid to Disneybound because of me. That makes everything worth it. I just decided one day that I wasn’t going to let people stop me from enjoying what I love, and to have that impact on other people, to inspire them to do the same, has been really amazing.  

Grateful for Rozy 

Perfecting the Magic would like to express our sincere gratitude to Rozy of Rozy’s Magical World. Her honesty and openness on mental health, expectations, life, and burnout will help the Disney creator community immensely. Please give Rozy a follow over on TikTok and Instagram. We think you’ll be happy you did.  

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