Fit2BTide S12.E05: Alcohol Awareness Week

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Wvuafm tuscaloosa. [00:00:09] Speaker B: Happy Sunday, y'. [00:00:10] Speaker A: All. [00:00:10] Speaker B: You are listening to fit to be tied with Sheena And Nika on 90.7 the capstone in. Hi. [00:00:16] Speaker C: Can you believe we are in October? [00:00:19] Speaker B: As you are gracefully taking your glasses off. [00:00:23] Speaker C: Not so graceful. [00:00:24] Speaker B: You know, it's okay. [00:00:25] Speaker C: I got stuck in my headphones, but, you know, what can you say, dude? [00:00:28] Speaker B: Well, it's October. You know it. We are. [00:00:31] Speaker C: It's candy corn corn season. [00:00:32] Speaker B: Candy corn pumpkin spice season. I'm trying to remember. Are you a pumpkin spice person? [00:00:36] Speaker C: No, I'm a candy corn person. [00:00:38] Speaker B: Okay. [00:00:38] Speaker C: Apple. I like, pump pumpkin. Like actual pumpkin food stuff, but not pumpkin spice. Sure. What about you? [00:00:46] Speaker B: I do. [00:00:47] Speaker A: I. [00:00:47] Speaker B: You know, I'm not as obsessed with it as it is commercialized, but I like that it is an option during this season, if that makes sense. Now, I have to tell you, you know, we usually talk about some very random things in this first segment. Guess who I got to see in person last week? Who? Our good old buddy Phil Holmes. [00:01:10] Speaker C: What up, Phil? I am sporting the backpack you brought us. The governor's physical fitness commission swag. I carry all my graded papers in it so they don't fly away into the wind. [00:01:21] Speaker B: Well, dude, I was telling him. I was like, thank you for hooking na and I up with all of the swag. I was like, she gave me the shirts. And I was like, we're rocking this stuff. So. But he says, hey, and then I. I'll just. I'll just do it on. He was saying that. I don't know if he's attempted to text you, but he was like, I'm trying to get in touch with her, but I don't know if he was just saying that. [00:01:43] Speaker A: He did. [00:01:44] Speaker C: He texted me a picture of Prince. Okay, you've listened to the show before. You know that Phil and I both love Prince. And when we were working together at St. Vincent's I was past my first trimester, pregnant with my youngest when Prince died, and I was hormonal and pregnant, and it just hit me the wrong way and I squalled and had to go home and cried all the way home. And I've never done that over like a celebrity. Now I love Dolly Parton. I didn't. I mean, I was so sad when she died. I didn't cry. I didn't cry when Michael Jackson died. But, I mean, I think it was because I was pregnant. Sure. I boohooed. And to bring this full circle, our children go to the same school, and it's homecoming Week. [00:02:31] Speaker B: Yes. [00:02:32] Speaker C: And it is rock star day. And that youngest that I squalled about Prince dying when I was pregnant with her wore my prince shirt today to Rockstar day. And she doesn't under. I mean I didn't tell her yes story but isn't that full circle? [00:02:48] Speaker B: Dude, that is so full circle. I love that. Well, you know, he anyways, he says hey, you know, all the good things. But it was interesting because he and his other team member, they were talking about all of the different things that his organization organizes. Like the, the senior Olympics. [00:03:09] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:03:10] Speaker B: And so he was talking about how the qualifying age was at 50 and you know, so I'm thinking like man, in eight years I could qualify to be an Olympian and like maybe dabble in the Alabama Senior Olympics. [00:03:24] Speaker C: What would your sport be? [00:03:27] Speaker B: I'm trying to decide because I can't remember if it was that one or the Alabama Masters Games that had power walking. I feel like you. Power. I know I was thinking about that. But people were blown away when he was Talking about the 80 and 90 year old pole vaulters. [00:03:44] Speaker C: Oh yeah, there were lots of questions. So I went by and saw the, the tennis match the last time they had it. [00:03:53] Speaker B: Oh, did you? [00:03:54] Speaker C: And it was, it was fierce. Oh yeah. Like it's not, it's, it's not something you would think, oh this is light hearted, this is just for fun. No, it, it was like high school level in your prom, getting it competitive, fierce. [00:04:15] Speaker B: Well, you know what was interesting is he was telling us that it's not necessarily these people who are just trying to dabble in a sport for the first time, but it's people who are previous college athletes or high school athletes who are just biting at the bit [00:04:30] Speaker C: to just simply just aged. Yes, yes, that's exactly what. [00:04:33] Speaker B: So then I'm like, well maybe this is not going to be my Olympian journey. But it was nice to think that. So I don't know, I'm not throwing [00:04:42] Speaker C: any shade on the power walkers, but I feel like I could maybe train in time. [00:04:47] Speaker B: I really think you could to be [00:04:49] Speaker C: a, you know, a potential candidate. [00:04:51] Speaker B: I, I think you could. [00:04:53] Speaker C: I, I mean, you know Whitney, our former co host, Whitney, she and I used to walk over five miles in one hour and just think about the [00:05:01] Speaker B: conversation that was had. [00:05:03] Speaker C: Just walk and talk the entire time. Yeah, that was our prime now I'm not going to lie. We, we were you know, training at the rec center, we were teaching boot camps and so we would just get out to clear our minds and walk. But we are just Naturally fast walkers. And we would have a route and it. We would sometimes come in right under an hour, sometimes. Right on it. [00:05:24] Speaker B: Dude. I would see y' all go up that hill by the rec center as I was on the tennis court playing with one of my co workers. So I know y' all got it. [00:05:31] Speaker C: Oh, yeah. [00:05:32] Speaker B: But y', all, as much as I honestly do want to talk about the Senior Olympics today, that's actually not what we're going to be talking about. But we're going to take a quick break before we introduce our topic and guest for the day. You guys are listening to Fit to Be Tied, which Sheena and Nika on 90.7 the capstone, [00:05:54] Speaker A: Wvua fm tuscaloosa. [00:06:03] Speaker C: Welcome back, listeners. You are listening to Fit to Be Tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7 the capstone. [00:06:09] Speaker B: That's right. And if you are just now joining us, as we always say, that's probably a good thing because we tend to talk about some very random things. As we opened the show earlier, we were talking about the Senior Olympics. We also talked about the artists formerly known as Prince passing away, because you know that that's just where our minds go. Yeah, but. But you guys, our listeners, that is not what we are talking about today. Today we are actually talking about Alcohol Awareness Week, which is happening this week. And so we wanted to make sure that we could bring a gu. Really speak some value into this topic. And so we are so delighted to have Daisy Jackson, who is a health promotion specialist in the department of Health Promotion and Wellness here at the University of Alabama, Dasia, welcome on the show. [00:07:04] Speaker C: Hello. [00:07:04] Speaker A: Thank you all so much for having me. It's such an honor. [00:07:07] Speaker C: Oh, we're so excited to have you. Thanks for taking the time to come and talk to us about a very important topic. [00:07:12] Speaker B: Yes. And I mean, I may or well, I wouldn't say that. I didn't force you to be on the show, did I? I'll just acknowledge. So Dej and I work in the same department together, and so I. I don't want. I. Full disclosure. And I don't want anybody to think that I coerced you into being on the show. [00:07:29] Speaker A: No, absolutely not. When you asked me to be on the show, I was honored and I was looking forward to it. I will admit I am so nervous because I've never been on a podcast before. I mean, I think that's an opportunity that presents itself at. At random. Like you just never know. But I'm really happy to be here and I look Forward to chatting with y'. [00:07:46] Speaker C: All. Oh, you will be wonderful. You will be wonderful. So to kind of ease you into the show, you, Deja, tell the listeners a little bit about, you know, yourself, including what is your educational background and what was life like prior to coming here to ua? [00:08:01] Speaker A: Yeah, of course. So my name is Deja. I've already mentioned I'm from the good, good old Texas, where things are bigger and better, they say. But I'm specifically from Arlington, Texas, which is in the Dallas Fort Worth area. And so I got my bachelor's degree in kinesiology from Texas Woman's University. And then I went forward to get my master's degree at Texas A and M in health education. And so during that time is really where I discovered my passion for public health. I had a lot of opportunities to work as a grad assistant, a research assistant, and really just tap into like learning about different health topics. So I had a great time there. After graduating with my master's, I thought all the doors were going to open up. I'm like, oh yeah, the money's about to just fall into my pocket, you know. But that wasn't the case. And so I kind of had like a two year hiatus where I was just applying to jobs and was looking for something full time. But in the meantime I had like two part time roles. So I was a. I can't even remember my job title, but I was working at the Boys and Girls Club. And then my other part time role was helping this. Oh, gosh, like this. Not another nonprofit that was virtual. And they kind of did. They supported a lot of health agencies and other nonprofits when it came to like consulting. So I was doing that. And then I knew Vanessa, who also works in our department with me and Sheena, and so she got promoted to be the associate director. So the current role of health promotion specialist opened up and I thought to myself, Alabama, I don't know, I don't know about that. But, you know, I put my application in and now we're here and it's been an amazing time, honestly, just working with the team and getting to meet people that work on campus and interact with the students. So. [00:09:53] Speaker C: So how long have you been in your role here at Alabama? [00:09:56] Speaker A: A little over a year. So I hit a year in August. [00:09:59] Speaker C: Congratulations. [00:10:00] Speaker A: Yeah, thank you. [00:10:01] Speaker C: Alabama, as. As you thought it was before you got here. [00:10:05] Speaker A: I will say I really love the people. Like the people is what makes it feel so welcoming and just like genuine. So I really appreciate the genuine interactions. [00:10:16] Speaker C: Yeah. And we're A little bit like Texas in that, you know, it's hot and human. We don't really have snow. [00:10:21] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:10:21] Speaker C: So not too much of a change in that, you know. [00:10:24] Speaker A: I agree. [00:10:25] Speaker C: But yeah. Well, we are happy to have you here. [00:10:27] Speaker A: Thank you. [00:10:27] Speaker B: Well, Deja, you know, I really appreciate your candor with your journey because I think that that's something important for our listeners to hear because we've had so many guests who have talked about having a very non linear path to the roles that they currently have when they're on the show. Because I that that really brings a helpful reality to our students to not be discouraged if it's like, hey, I thought I had this, you know, I thought this plan was going to pan out of look, this formula of I go to undergrad, I go to grad school, I graduate, I automatically go into dream job like, and it's lined up like. And I started, you know, a week or two after I graduate. But to hear you say, like, hey, you know, there was a purpose in me having kind of this like hiatus moment where I was, you know, experimenting in other industries. Until you were able to transition to a role that felt like the right fit for you is really incredible. [00:11:27] Speaker A: Yeah, no, I would say that my story actually seems to be a lot more common than I thought. And like you said, everything isn't linear, it's not black and white. And sometimes when you are put in those positions, you kind of have to have an open mind, expand your horizon and see like what things can lead to when it comes to like your career and goals overall. [00:11:47] Speaker C: Yeah, I like that. So I always tell my students, say yes to opportunities because you never know what it could lead to. [00:11:54] Speaker B: Hashtag transferable skills. Man, you just never know. You never know. But thinking about your role here at UA as a health promotion specialist, tell our listeners what is involved in what you do. [00:12:07] Speaker A: Yeah, so I am one out of the two health promotion specialists. So my role current I over oversee alcohol and drug education. And so I do that through the presentations that students or staff can request and then also my programs. I have really enjoyed the flexibility that my role has because I'm able to bring in my creativity when it comes to creating programs. Something that I'm super excited about. And it's. I launched it this fall is mocktail Mondays and so students can come up to the table. This happens every Monday for the first six weeks of school. They come up to the table, get a mocktail, but they also get to learn about active bystander strategies. And so just getting those Strategies understanding how to respond to alcohol, drug related situations if they're ever in one, hopefully that they're not. But just being able to have that information and know that they can be prepared for that. [00:13:03] Speaker B: Nika, what do you think about that? Just as the, like, health studies faculty that you are just thinking about the fact of we're teaching these students about bystander intervention when it comes to alcohol and other drug situations and other questionable social situations? [00:13:21] Speaker C: Well, you know, I love it because I'm prevention. Yes, girl, I love. Have a plan. [00:13:26] Speaker B: That is your love language. [00:13:27] Speaker C: It's my love language. Have a plan. Hopefully we never have to implement that plan, but we're not left standing there stunned like a deer in the headlights, not knowing what do I do and then having the grit afterwards going, I wish I had better prepared myself. So I love that you were, you know, boots on the ground teaching students, hey, you may never have to use this, but in the off chance that you do, no regrets, like, you are [00:13:53] Speaker A: ready to go, you have the information and. Yeah, yeah. The confidence to apply it to. [00:13:58] Speaker C: Yeah. So how do you see, how do students usually respond to the bystander training when you are educating them? Yeah. [00:14:06] Speaker A: So with Mocktail Mondays, it's more of like a come and go interaction, with it being just like a table out on campus. And I've enjoyed it because it has been success. And I didn't expect it to be as many students to come up and interact with the table, but I'm glad that it's going that way. And so they've been very receptive of it. The primary activity that I have is they come up, they spin the wheel, and that wheel will land on a number. Then that number will be a scenario that I give them. And so it would be something like, you know, if you were walking towards the football game and you seen someone passed out or someone throwing up and nobody was helping them, how would you intervene as an active bystander? And so I, before diving into the strategies, I want to get their initial response just to see kind of what they know, how they will respond without the information. They give me their response and then after that I tell them, okay, that's awesome. Like, just so you know, here is some bystander strategies. So you could be direct, you can distract, delegate, and then they're like, oh, okay, thank you. And they'll take, you know, the information on the table. But they've been pretty receptive to it. And so I appreciate that. And it's been fun. Honestly, I've been getting Some feedback so far, like, about the mocktails, the education. [00:15:15] Speaker C: So. Yeah. Yeah, I love that because you are, you know, your population. [00:15:19] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:15:19] Speaker C: And you are meeting them where they are, and that's where people truly learn. [00:15:25] Speaker B: Yeah, it really is. And, you know, when we think about working in the area of public health and health promotion, what got you interested in pursuing that Deja, academically, especially transitioning from an undergraduate degree in kinesiology to going the health promotion route for your master's? [00:15:44] Speaker A: Yeah. So it's funny because for the longest, like, more than half of my life, I wanted to be a physical therapist. Like, that was my dream job, which is why I was pursuing kinesiology. But I also had another little, like, hiatus moment for about a year, and, you know, I realized, like, I didn't want to do pt, so I had to go back to the drawing board and figure it out. And so while I was doing that, I worked at an elementary school as a special education paraprofessional. And that's when I realized, okay, I really love education. I like this a lot, but I don't necessarily want to be in a school setting. So I discovered health education, which is what led me to go to Texas A and M and start the program there. And so I think taking that path is really what opened up everything for me to learn more about public health health promotion. Like, I. I don't know if I mentioned this already, but I was a graduate assistant in the health promotion office there, and I had, you know, the opportunities to work alcohol education workshops and educate students when it came to a variety of health topics. So, like, healthy relationships, pretty similar to what we do here at UA Financial. Well, I'm sorry they didn't do financial wellness there, but it was like mental health stress time management, teaching students how to be resilient when they're going through stressful periods of their lives. So I really appreciated that. And then alongside with that, I did. I'm so sorry. No, maybe talking too fast. But alongside that, I also did research, and so just kind of like pairing those things together. When it came to the health promotion side, the. The program planning, the being able to collect the feedback and do all of those things, I. I loved it. So that's what. What kind of got me here. [00:17:32] Speaker B: Dude. I. I think all of us at the table can geek out about that. [00:17:35] Speaker C: Yeah, I can. [00:17:38] Speaker B: So, you guys, we. We're having such a great conversation with Deja, but we've got to take a break. So go grab a drink of water, run to the restroom, do what you gotta do. You are listening to Fit to Be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7. [00:17:56] Speaker A: Wvuafm Tuscaloosa. [00:18:05] Speaker C: Welcome back, listeners. You are listening to Fit to be tied with Sheena and Neeka on 90.7 the capstone. And today we are joined by our guest Daisia Jackson, who is a health promotion specialist here at the university in the department of health promotion and wellness. [00:18:19] Speaker B: That's right. And earlier on Deja was mentioning that her primary programming topic is alcohol and other drugs. And so now we're going to talk about some alcohol use on college campuses. So, you know, I think first and foremost, Deja, why do you think alcohol and other drug education is such an important health topic on college campuses? [00:18:42] Speaker A: Yeah, I think it's important because oftentimes when students come in to college, right, they have this perception of, okay, fun, looks like partying, drinking, using drugs, and that's it, that's all. But honestly, it's not like you can do so many other things on and off campus to have a good time. And so I think it's important to bring that awareness to the, to the students so that they know what their resources are, what other social events are happening, and then also how those substances impact the mind and body if they do make the decision to use that. And so that is why that topic is important. [00:19:21] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:19:22] Speaker C: So that you led me to my next question. You know, how can substance abuse or substance use actually doesn't have to be. Well, we know that the definition of abuse is just using it, like not in moderation, you know, at this point. But when it comes to alcohol, how do you see using it affecting a student's academic success, the relationships with others and just really overall well being. [00:19:50] Speaker A: Yeah. So when I give my presentations on alcohol misuse or substance use, I typically show the students two brain scans. And this is just a visual to, so that they can see what's happening in the brain. One side of it is a brain scan where an individual is misusing alcohol or any substance and there's very, very little brain activity. So the brain scan look very dull, it's gray, it's kind of black. The other side of it, if somebody is not using and they have just like a great health and wellness journey, it's green, like brain activity is very high. I don't want to, I can't get all, you know, science heavy. But there's like the chemical synapses are happening and everything is running well. And so those are good visual representations for people to see, like what is happening when it comes to misusing and just kind of, you know, thinking about their academic success, it may be hard for somebody who is using to have a good performance in the classroom, getting proper sleep or just being able to focus overall, because that can lead to just a lot of things when it comes to the. The chemical synapses and not being able to focus. [00:21:01] Speaker C: Right. Yeah. And then how about their relationships? Especially like, you know, living with a roommate, maybe that is up all hours of the night, coming in intoxicated, you've got to get up for an 8 o' clock class. You know, just. I. Maybe students don't think about those things until they're living them. [00:21:23] Speaker A: Yeah, I agree with that. So it's like, you know, if they do start to build like a. Not a relationship, but a reliance on alcohol or other drugs, that can definitely impact their relationships because they may start to prioritize that. Or maybe you have a friend that only wants to hang out and go to bars, but maybe you want to go. Go golfing or go bowling one day. So that can kind of like create that distance there. For sure. [00:21:47] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:21:48] Speaker B: You know, I think, you know, just thinking about this as this, like, roundtable discussion, I feel like anytime I've done presentations and I'm dabbling into the alcohol piece as it relates to other health behaviors or other health needs that we have. You know, I think the effect on sleep. Oh, my goodness. Because, you know, you have so many students that are like, oh, I'm gonna have a little nightcap this. [00:22:13] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:22:13] Speaker B: Alcohol makes me drowsy. It's actually going to help me fall asleep. But I don't think that students realize, unless they're educated on it, that alcohol is affecting our body's ability to get into those deeper stages of restorative sleep where cells can repair. And so, you know, so if somebody's like, oh, man, like, I fell asleep after drinking all that alcohol, but that was not restful sleep. It's. That's. That's why. And. And then also it prevents the body from making that natural melatonin that's needed. [00:22:45] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:22:45] Speaker B: To be able to fall asleep too. So I kind of think of it in that regard as well. [00:22:50] Speaker C: Yeah. And I love that you said that because that's also leading to. My next question is what are other myths? Kind of like what Sheena just said, that alcohol makes me sleep. Well, what are other myths that students believe about alcohol use? [00:23:03] Speaker A: Yeah. Yeah. So there is a few. I have three that I've feel like are most common when it comes to Myths is the liver being, like, the only organ that is affected when it comes to consuming alcohol. And it's so funny because when I was working at A and M, I also believed that I was like, oh, it's just the liver. Like, nothing else is, like, being impacted. But the truth is all organs are being impacted. And so when it comes to the absorption process, 20% is absorbed in the stomach, and then 80% is absorbed in the small intestine. And so the liver, it, like I said, is also impacted, but it mostly does the metabolizing, so it's breaking down the alcohol. So that's a myth. I think another one is consuming bread or food. So that person. So the alcohol can be absorbed and like, oh, it'll sober him up. I'm like, no, the alcohol is already, you know, in the bloodstream, so the only thing that can sober you up is time. And, yeah, I think. Think those two for sure. And then the last one, I would say, is the difference between tolerance and bac. I think those often get tied together and they're not correlated at all. So tolerance is more of your perception, like how you feel. And the BAC is, you know, the. The alcohol that's in the bloodstream. And so the more drinks you consume, that is going to progressively go up. So that's something that I try to, like, debunk in my presentations and just when I'm interacting with students overall. [00:24:37] Speaker C: And I. I don't know if your students have noticed or have talked about this, but women actually do lack an enzyme in our stomach that. Is it dehydrogenated? [00:24:48] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. [00:24:50] Speaker C: Sober up quicker. So you hear them that. You hear people say the quip, oh, you're a cheap date because you can get drunk quicker or stay drunk long. There is actually biologically a reason behind that. So, you know, the whole trying to drink somebody under the table or, oh, drink some coffee or take a. Take a jog around the quad and you'll sober up. I love that you pointed that out. That's not how the human body works. [00:25:20] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:25:20] Speaker B: Yes, well, and I know that. So just to give a preview of our next segment, you know, Daija, you're going to be talking a little bit about some of the different events that are happening during Alcohol Awareness Week. And I know that as we think about the different dimensions of wellness that are affecting. Affected by alcohol use, we had touched on, you know, social. That academic piece. But then also you have an event coming up that addresses the financial piece of alcohol use, too. Is that a big talking point? That you typically emphasize to students of, hey, alcohol misuse can. It can hit you in the wallet, too. [00:25:59] Speaker A: Yeah. So I'm super excited for that event that's coming up. And I'll be collaborating with Brendan, who is. Oversees our financial wellness program. But I would say it's not like a heavy topic that comes up and I think that's a reason why we're bringing it up because that's a wellness dimension that not a lot of people think of that's being impacted. You know, if you are going out every weekend, are you taking the time to look at your, your spending? Like, how much money did you actually spend on those drinks? Yeah, you had a good time, but are you going over budget? You know, are you actually staying within the goals that you set at the beginning of the year? [00:26:34] Speaker B: So, dude, so many different things. And I, this is just such great conversation because again, you know, I think that as our listeners are thinking about, like, oh, they're talking about alcohol use on a college campus. Of course they are. You know, we can make some general assumptions about correlating college and alcohol use, but I think a big key point to put in here also is the fact that alcohol does not have to be part of someone's college journey. And, you know, and I feel like all of us at the table definitely have our roles and emphasis emphasizing that. But listeners, we're going to take a quick break and we're going to continue this conversation. You are listening to Fit to be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7 the capstone. [00:27:20] Speaker A: Wvuafm tuscaloosa. [00:27:30] Speaker C: Happy Sunday, y'. All. You are listening to Fit to be tied with Sheena And Nika on 90.7 the Capstone. [00:27:35] Speaker B: That's right. And if you are just now joining us, we encourage you to go back and listen to earlier parts of the show because today we have the pleasure of having Dasia Jackson, who is a health promotion specialist in the department of Health Promotional Wellness. And she has been talking about alcohol use on college campuses. And so we talked about some of the different dimensions of wellness that are affected by alcohol use, also dispelling some of the different myths, myths that are out there related to alcohol use in college. And now we're going to talk about some of the events that are happening during Alcohol Awareness Week and just some good harm reduction strategies. So with that said, my friend, tell us what are some practical strategies that students can use to stay safer during social events and, and even game days? [00:28:25] Speaker A: Yeah, of course. So for starters, you want to set A limit when you are going out, know what that amount of drink is. So when it. When you think about your blood alcohol concentration or bac, right. Say, for example, there is a female who is 140 pounds. It's going to take her two drinks before she exceeds that 0.08 BAC level, which is the legal limit. So knowing that number is really helpful when you're going out. So you want to stay below that. And then also alternate your drinks with water, so making sure that you're staying hydrated. Don't mix energy drinks with alcohol. As y' all know, energy drinks is caffeine, it's a stimulant, and then alcohol is a depressant. So just having the body overwork is, is not a good thing. And then lastly, just being an active bystander, I think that is definitely our theme for this fall season. If you see something, you want to make sure that you get that person the support that they need. You don't want to wait last minute. You see them throwing up, they have pale skin, stuff like that. So knowing your resources. [00:29:27] Speaker B: Yeah, well, okay, so based on that information and going back to you talking about your Mocktail Mondays activities, and you were saying that you would share a scenario with them based on the number that they spun on the wheel, did you ever have any students that would say they would just ignore the person that is throwing up and nobody is helping them or for the most part, did everybody seem like they wanted to be a good Samaritan, but maybe just didn't have the best answer? [00:29:54] Speaker A: I'm just kind of curious. No. Yeah. Thankfully nobody, nobody gave that type of response. Everybody was willing to help, if anything. We had people who probably didn't feel as confident to step in and be direct. So they would like go and get somebody or even if they didn't have the knowledge to help the person. So. Yeah. [00:30:12] Speaker C: Yeah, that's good to know. [00:30:13] Speaker A: Yes, yes, they're good, good friends all around. [00:30:16] Speaker B: So, you know, again, you know, within this vein, as we think about being a good bystander, how can students recognize signs of alcohol poisoning? You know, if they're out with friends, you know, how can a student discern distinguish between, oh, you know, she just had a little too much, she needs to sleep it off and wow, I need to call someone. [00:30:37] Speaker A: Yeah. So we have a really good acronym that we share with students. And yeah, they can, they can remember it. So it's called Tide Cares. It's a two part acronym to represent signs of alcohol poisoning and drug overdose. So the first Part represents the signs of alcohol poisoning. So TIDE stands for throwing up. I is irregular breathing, D is for drowsiness, and E is extreme cold body temperature. And then the second part is cares, which stands for the drug overdose, the signs of drug overdose. So C is confused. A is abnormal color. So if they have blue lips or blue fingertips, R is respiratory arrest. So if there's no breathing, E is extreme pinpoint pupils, and S stands for snoring or gurgling sounds. So this can also be located on our HPW website that's kind of listed out, and we have handouts as well for students to remember the acronym. [00:31:34] Speaker B: I love a good acronym. Again, Nika, you know, thinking about. You know, you've taught courses on this topic related to. To drugs. I. I don't know. Do you feel like that would be something helpful for your students too, just like, thinking about, like, their awareness? [00:31:49] Speaker C: Yes, absolutely. There was always a question on every test about how you know when it relates to a drug overdose, whether your pupils are enlarged or they're small and they would get confused. And I would always say they're. They're small because it's like the light is going out. [00:32:07] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. [00:32:08] Speaker C: You know, they're getting dimmer. [00:32:10] Speaker A: Yes. [00:32:10] Speaker C: You know, you can see the. Like, you don't want that to happen. You want the peoples to be bigger. And so I think an acronym like that would be so helpful because then they could write it out on the side of the test and write it out, and then that would help them remember, you know, but then it would get to the actual ultimate goal, which is they learn it and learn how to apply the situation. [00:32:32] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. [00:32:34] Speaker A: That's awesome. [00:32:35] Speaker B: So, you know, thinking about that acronym, you know, thinking about people maybe being in spaces where alcohol is present. What do we. What do we tell students about opportunities to. To socialize and have a life without alcoh in college? What does that look like? Can you. How. How do they have fun and build community without alcohol? [00:32:59] Speaker A: Yeah, so I always tell people to join Collegiate Recovery. Like, I think that they are the coolest crew on campus. [00:33:07] Speaker C: Shout out. Shout out to our friends over at the crc. Yes. [00:33:10] Speaker A: Yes. I love them. I love interacting with them and like, collaborating with them on other events. But, yeah, that's something that I make sure to push for students who are interested in having a good time building community, but not necessarily want to engage in alcohol or drug. Other drug behaviors. And so, you know, the Collegiate Recovery, they get together pretty consistently and they have things off campus where they can go and Play laser tag, bowling. They do community service together and they're always hanging out on campus as well. So that would be my number one push there. And then if somebody is kind of hesitant to, you know, build community, they kind of want to just explore and do things by themselves. I would refer them to like visit Tuscaloosa, the website, to see what other social events are happening or even going on. My source, because there's literally something going on every day on campus. [00:34:04] Speaker C: So yeah, I mean, all you have to do is take a step on the quad. [00:34:07] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:34:08] Speaker C: Get on board day to see just how many things the universities got going on. [00:34:12] Speaker A: Yeah, absolutely. It's always something going on. [00:34:15] Speaker B: Yes. The amount of student orgs that are out there on the most random topics. I love, love it so much. You know, you, you walk by these tables and it's like, man, I wish I was in undergrad. [00:34:27] Speaker C: But where was that when I was this? [00:34:29] Speaker B: Yes. So all of the different things and you know, we alluded to this earlier and we've been teasing it throughout the show, talking about Alcohol Awareness Week. Tell us about some of the events that are happening this week so students can be on the lookout for them. [00:34:43] Speaker A: Yeah, of course. So we're starting off strong with Motto Mondays. We've got lavender lemonade on the menu and that's been pretty nice. People have been enjoying that. So I'm excited to start that out for our Monday during Alcohol Awareness Week. On Tuesday we have Red Watch band training. And so this is going to be our first time as a collective. So it's our department, Health promotion and wellness. We have student conduct and then collegiate recovery and intervention services coming together as well as as ems. So students will be able to learn how to identify signs of alcohol poisoning, drug overdose. They'll get CPR trained and we'll have a lot of promotional items, some free food potentially from Olive Garden. So, you know, hey, yeah, it's a, it's going to be very informative and yeah, we, we hope students can take a lot of things away from that training on Tuesday and on Wednesday we have Gut Check. I'll be partnering with Sheena. She'll be leading us their presentation just to learn how alcohol kind of impacts nutrition digestion and the, the microbiome. And Thursday will be my event with Brendan, who is our financial wellness expert. So that event is called Mind on your Money. And so it'll be more of a Jeopardy style tabling event. Students can come up and play our Jeopardy game and kind of answer some questions to see how, how alcohol impacts spending and their financial goals. And they'll also be able to get some free things from that tabling as well. So we have like some coupons for coffee shops that are local as well as tcby and then we'll have our department promotional items as well. And then to end it off, we have a world Mental Health day. So World Mental Health is actually on October 10, which is a Saturday, so we decided to get it started early. But students can stop by. That tabling will be on the student Center Plaza from 11am to 1pm and they can just come and put some positive affirmations on the table and talk about some mental health resources. [00:36:47] Speaker B: That's like, that is quite the like lineup of events, especially leading into the Georgia game. You know, just all of the different things. [00:36:55] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. [00:36:56] Speaker C: That's a stacked week. [00:36:57] Speaker B: Yes, it is. And Deja, it has been such a pleasure getting to talk to you on this topic today. And so Nika and I would love for you to stay for our closing segment that is probably not going to be alcohol related whatsoever. [00:37:11] Speaker A: Okay, I'm open for that. Let's get it. [00:37:14] Speaker B: Okay, you guys, we're going to take a quick break. You are listening to fit to be tied with Sheena and NA on 90.7, the capstone. [00:37:25] Speaker A: Wvuafm tuscaloosa. [00:37:34] Speaker C: Next roll is listening. You've been listening to fit to be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7, the Capstone. And we have been joined by a wonderful guest today. If you've not listened to anything up until this point, I encourage you to please go back and listen to Ms. Deja Jackson, who is a health promotion specialist here at the university in the department of the health promotion and wellness for students. So there's the promotion side for faculty and staff and then that for the students. And she has been sharing with us about a very, very stacked alcohol awareness week that is coming up at the university this week. So, Deja, thank you so much for sharing that with us and for agreeing to stay on the last segment. [00:38:14] Speaker B: Yes. And you know, of course this is always where we kind of get a little rogue. Ask some, we'll ask our guests some strange questions, whether it's, you know, what is your favorite Thanksgiving food to who would play you in a movie. But Deja, I, you're probably going to kill me for asking. Why don't you tell our listeners about your love for being a dj? Homegirl is a dj. [00:38:41] Speaker C: Nika, are you scratching? Are you doing like, are you, are you like DJ Deja on The ones and twos. [00:38:47] Speaker A: Yeah. So that's my. [00:38:50] Speaker B: You're probably like, oh my gosh, I'm [00:38:51] Speaker A: going to kill you later. So funny. Yes. So it. Actually, it's all. All is well because I've been trying to market myself a little bit more this year. So, yeah, my dj DJ name is DJ Trinea, which is my middle name. [00:39:03] Speaker C: Okay. DJ Trinity. Yeah. On the ones and twos. Yeah. Okay. I mean, I'm. I'm kind of reaching back from like salt and pepper, you know, like Spinderella. Spin it up on time. But. Okay, tell. Tell me more about this. I'm so excited. [00:39:15] Speaker A: Yes. So my love for music has always been there, you know, and I never seen myself becoming a dj. I just love music. I love making playlists. This, I love using Shazam. And like, if I'm out and about, like, what song is this? You know, I have like that ear. And so I think this was back in 2022. I want to say maybe 2021, but it was during the time that I was in grad school. And so when I went home during a break, I had hung out with like one of my sorority sisters, and it was her boyfriend at the time, but now they're married, he was a dj. And so I jokingly was like, I want to learn. And they took me seriously. So we set up like a practice session and he said, you are. You're a quick learner. You should really dive into it. And I'm like, oh, like, hahaha, you're so funny. And then my birthday came around that year in August, and they actually got me my first DJ board. And so I started out practicing with that. And with me being like, unemployed for about a year or so, I kind of dived more into it. I hosted my first event, just invited family and friends, and everybody said I did a good job. They had a great time. I had food there and beverages and we had some games. So it was really nice. And it's pretty much been up since then. Since I've moved to Alabama, I've been sharing with my team, like, you know, some videos or I'll go out to the park and just DJ and invite them out. So. [00:40:49] Speaker C: So do you do events? [00:40:51] Speaker A: I'm trying to get into. [00:40:53] Speaker C: Why do you imagine. Are you imagining like, you know, [00:40:58] Speaker A: like weddings, birthday parties? [00:41:01] Speaker C: Are you thinking more like, you know, like Club Ibiza? [00:41:04] Speaker A: So I'm glad you asked that because there is a variety of DJs out there. And what I've learned about myself is I am not a club DJ at all. So I prefer more of, like, a coffee shop vibe. [00:41:16] Speaker C: Okay. [00:41:17] Speaker A: Or maybe a park. I could do birthday parties. Something more chill, social event. Nothing too chaotic. I can't do weddings either. That's way too much. [00:41:27] Speaker C: Is that. Yeah, you'll get there. Maybe. [00:41:29] Speaker A: We'll see there. [00:41:31] Speaker B: I know. So, yeah. Please forgive me later for asking, but I just. I don't know. I think that in the reason I had good intentions when asking that, because I think that it's fun for us to hear about all of the things that fill our cup as hosts and guests. So when you can learn the different dimensions of someone that, you know, you're not just a. A. A University of Alabama employee who does alcohol education. You have a passion for music, and you do that through. Through sharpening those skills as a dj. So, you know, I had some good intention there. [00:42:08] Speaker C: And the whole time I was sitting here thinking, and this is me being cheesy, I guess, but I'm like, that shows you how you can have fun. Like, you were talking about looking for ways to have fun that doesn't involve, you know, alcohol and, like, just getting into your state of flow where you just get lost in learning something. Always, you know, creating and just. It just makes you happy. I could just tell your face lit up with such joy when you talked about it. [00:42:31] Speaker B: Or surprise and shock. [00:42:33] Speaker A: A little bit of both. [00:42:35] Speaker B: Well, you guys, I think that that is a great note to end today's show on Again, Deja, thank you so much for speaking with us today, sharing your knowledge, sharing your passion for music. We're so grateful to you. [00:42:48] Speaker A: Yes, thank you both so much. Like I said, it's an honor to be here. So I appreciate y'. [00:42:52] Speaker C: All. Oh, you were a wonderful guest. [00:42:54] Speaker B: Yes. Well, listeners, it's that time, but we will catch you next week. You are listening to fit to be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7, the capstone. [00:43:08] Speaker A: Wvuafm tuscaloosa.