Community Meeting about Sexual Violence Prevention & Response

YOU are invited to an open forum and community meeting regarding the state of sexual violence prevention and response at Wesleyan hosted by Alysha B. Warren, LPC, Therapist/Sexual Assault Resource Coordinator and Maggie Cohen, SART Intern. This meeting is an opportunity to reflect on existing activism, and to offer insights about how to address sexual violence on campus.  

 

Hope to see you there!  Remember to RSVP (awarren[at]Wesleyan[dot]edu) to help us ensure we have refreshments for everyone!

We Speak, We Stand, Community of Care bystander intervention program — reg. deadline 2/9

Dear Students,

 Registration for the WE Speak, We Stand, Community of Care bystander intervention program is now open!  Please forward the information below to students in your networks. Thanks for your support.

WE Speak, WE Stand, Wesleyan’s Community of Care program, aims to create a campus that is actively engaged in the prevention of sexual assault and advocates for the responsible use of alcohol. The goal of the program is to empower bystanders to intervene in high risk situations involving alcohol use and sexual assault. Empowered bystanders create a safer community by standing up and speaking out when they witness situations that could potentially harm the health and safety of others. Intervening with peers can be challenging for a number of reasons and training will provide you with the skills to move from inaction to action and intervene safely and effectively.  

The training features two distinct and separate tracks: sexual assault prevention and alcohol use. The sexual assault prevention track will provide you with an in-depth understanding of the dynamics of sexual assault, separate myths from facts and demonstrate and practice effective ways to intervene with friends, fellow students and community members.  The alcohol track will equip you with the tools you need to intervene in situations involving alcohol and empower you to use those tools.  Specifically, you will learn  how alcohol affects your physiology and behavior and how to recognize an alcohol related medical emergency.   We will demonstrate and practice appropriate ways to intervene when a fellow community member has a problem with alcohol use.

The training will be held on Sunday, February 12th  in Usdan 108 from 10am-4pm.  Participants must attend the full training.  Lunch will be provided. To register, visit https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dEFlTmpvTlQ0X01zWl9XcmR3bVBob2c6MQ

 

Registration closes on Thursday, February 9th.   Please contact Alysha Warren (awarren@wesleyan.edu) or Tanya Purdy (tpurdy@wesleyan.edu) with questions.

Bone Marrow Registry Drive — 12/2

The Wesleyan American Medical Student Association is hosting a Bone Marrow Registry drive this Friday, December 2nd, at USDAN 110 from 1:30-5 to find a match for Louis, a 6-yr old who has been diagnosed with leukemia. Participating only takes a few minutes so please stop by to potentially save a life.

Flu Shots Still Available

Dear Students:

The Davison Health Center has a limited supply of influenza vaccine available for students.  Please call for an appointment at 860-685-2470.  Cost is $30 and can be billed to your student account.   

Thanks, Joyce Walter, Director of Health Services

Fast-a-thon — Nov. 15

Quick correction on the date for Fast-a-thon: the banquet is tomorrow, November 15, and the last day to donate points is tomorrow. You may also donate meals and points on site tomorrow, at the banquet. 

Time is running out to donate your points to Fast-a-Thon! 

Tuesday is Wesleyan’s 5th Annual Fast-a-Thon Banquet. Participants are invited to join the rest of the campus in donating points, cash, or check to the Amazing Grace Soup Kitchen in Middletown. This event raises money to fight food insecurity in our local community, and demonstrates solidarity against poverty across all boundaries.

Don’t wait! Donate and RSVP now – you can do it online at www.wesleyan.edu/ocs/fastathon.html

All participants are invited to the Banquet this TUESDAY, 5:45PM in Beckham Hall, with FREE dinner from Haveli India and free t-shirts. Donate more than 15 points and enter a raffle for a $100 Best Buy Gift Card. Seats at the Banquet are limited, so come early!

Thank you, and we hope to see you there!
Fast-a-Thon Planning Committee

Please email hjafri@wesleyan.edu with any questions. 
Sponsored by: Interfaith Justice League, Muslim Student Association, Haveli India, Bon Appetit, Office of Residential Life, Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, Office of Community Service, SBC, SALD

SLEEP! Tips from Tanya Purdy, director of WesWell

Sleep Hygiene

Sleep hygiene is one of the most common problems among college students and Wes students are no exception.  Sleep is often the first thing neglected in order to focus on other areas of our lives.  However, poor sleep hygiene impacts all those areas in a negative way, and so the cycle begins.  You may stay up to get work done and then the quality of the work suffers, or the work is good, but you are irritable or cannot retain information in your classes the same way.  On the flip side of that, research suggests that getting adequate sleep helps learning and memory. A well rested person can optimally focus hir/her/his attention and therefore learn efficiently. Sleep plays a large role in the consolidation of memory, which is necessary for learning new information.

If you are concerned about your sleep, one of the first things I would suggest is taking the Epworth Sleepiness Scale.  You can easily find the scale online as many health education sites use it.  This scale will measure your daytime sleepiness which is a good indicator of whether you are getting enough sleep and thus predicts what your next course of action should be.  If your score is high I would encourage you to make an appointment with a provider at the Davison Health Center.  If you have a medium score then you can set up an appointment with me at WesWell and we can create a specific plan for you to improve your sleep hygiene.  If you have a low score then it is a good indicator that you are getting enough sleep.

Many of the best practices for sleep hygiene are simple, but are different for everyone.  I want to share a couple with you that you can try.  You should try a combination of the ones that you think might work for you for 7-10 days.  Then assess if they are working.  If they work, great!  If you don’t feel your sleep hygiene has improved, then eliminate the things you didn’t find helpful, add new techniques and try for another 7-10 days.

  • Create a good sleep environment – this could mean ensuring it is completely dark in your sleeping area, sleeping in a cool temperature or not falling asleep with the television or computer on.
  • Establish regular sleep hours – these hours and the length of them is different for everyone but it should be between 6-8 hours a night, and the time you go to sleep and wake up should be around the same time every day, even on weekends.  This will help regulate your circadian rhythm.
  • Create bedtime routines to help unwind – establish a routine pattern that will become an indicator to your body that it is time for sleep.  This could include reading for pleasure, dimming the lights, listening to relaxing music, guided relaxation exercises or anything you find relaxing.
  • Reduce and manage stress close to bedtime – you may want to keep a notebook next to your bed where you can write down the thoughts or ideas that pop into your mind so that your mind can rest.  You also should avoid doing stressful activities or doing anything that increases your heart rate  2 hours before bed.
  • Reduce water and food intake two hours before bedtime –research suggest that eating or drinking before sleeping can  cause  a bit of reflux.   Your digestive system is working at full speed when your body should be relaxed, calm.
  • Limit caffeine and alcohol intake – caffeine is found in coffee, tea, soda and chocolate.  Be conscious of what you are consuming if trying to avoid caffeine.  While alcohol may help you fall asleep it will disrupt sleep later and interfere with restorative sleep.
  • Use your bed for sleeping & sex only – try not to use your bed as an office, workspace or hang out space.   This will allow your body to associate your bed with sleeping.

Please feel free to contact me for more information on sleep or stop by the WesWell resource room to gather some of our sleep resources.

Tanya Purdy, MPH Director of WesWell – Office of Health Education, 1st floor Davison Health Center, tpurdy@wesleyan.edu

CAPS–Sexual Assault Survivors Support Group

Sexual Assault Survivors Support Group

 Connect with other survivors of sexual assault.

Learn new skills and tools to move forward in your healing.

Healing is possible.

 Sexual assault is defined as any sexual act that occurs without choice and consent that may include sexual touching, rape and sexual exploitation.

Wednesdays beginning October 19th—December 7th  

6:30-7:45pm (Location to be announced)

Contact Alysha B. Warren, LCPC in Counseling and Psychological Services for more information at 860.685.2910, email awarren@wesleyan.edu (reference “Sass” in subject line) or visit http://www.wesleyan.edu/caps/services/group.html

Dealing with the aftermath of a sexual assault alone is difficult.

Support is available.