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Rebels, tune in to 'Let's Talk UNLV' with Dr. Sammie Scales. Your express pass to everything UNLV — campus highlights, programs, and the latest buzz. Join us weekly as we chat with student leaders, administrators, and faculty, diving into the core of what makes us Rebels.
The program brings guests from different areas of UNLV every week to discuss campus highlights, programs and services, research interests that are essential to being a Rebel. Let’s Talk UNLV places its emphasis on connecting with student leaders who represent the voice of students on our campus. Guests also include administrators, faculty and staff responsible for upholding the mission of the university, which is teaching, research and scholarship.
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Unknown Speaker 0:00
This is a k u and v studios original program. The content of this program does not reflect the views or opinions of 91.5 Jazz and more the University of Nevada, Las Vegas or the Board of Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education.
Unknown Speaker 0:20
Hello, hello, hello and welcome to another episode of Let's Talk to you now the kick at 91.5k. Und This is Dr. Tanya crab and I'm here with my co host.
Unknown Speaker 0:30
I'm Dr. Sadler scales, and it's a pleasure being with you again. UNLV.
Unknown Speaker 0:35
And we are joined today by Dr. Day. So Dr. Day, would you care to tell us your origin. So actually, first, let's start with your full name. And then your origin story.
Unknown Speaker 0:45
Thank you for having me here. My name is Jalen die. And as you know, did I mispronounce your name? Perfect. And as you know, in Mandarin, we pronounce our last name family name in the front. So my name in Mandarin is digelar Young, but in here is challenging die. But I found a nickname in you know, English Leo. So I go by Leo, or you can call me Chalian.
Unknown Speaker 1:11
Oh, that is one of our answers. Doctor die. Okay, doctor. Okay. Fantastic. Want to call you about your correct name. And I
Unknown Speaker 1:18
was born and raised in Taiwan, and came to the United States in 2011. Okay,
Unknown Speaker 1:27
well tell us about your journey. How did you end up back here at UNLV? What, you know, where did you work? Where your school teacher at one point? And where? And how did you end up here at UNLV.
Unknown Speaker 1:38
I went to Indiana University for my data study. And then I went to University of Cincinnati found the major I love in public health, with the concentration in health promotion and education. And, you know, I before I came to the University family, I taught for UC for a year and taught for Miami University for another year, before I found, you know, a job match my career and patient here. And this is my six years here and I just promoted to the associate professor recently. So look forward to you know, keep working with the amazing community here and people are young.
Unknown Speaker 2:25
Congratulations on your promotion. Congratulations. So, you know, as I was reading through your sort of informal bio, I saw that you were a mental health counselor, a military mental health counselor and a former school psychologist. So what was that about?
Unknown Speaker 2:42
I was, you know, before I came to the United States, I was an elementary school teacher. And where, you know, I was put in whatever task the principal told me to do. Maybe sometimes I'm being a sports coach or coaching the soccer team. Sometimes I'm the social studies teachers, computer teachers, English teachers, because I have my training, not only in elementary teacher education, but also a school psychologist. So I did a lot of, you know, individual counseling, group counseling, suicide prevention, family engagement activity with the children I serve. And then I was able to learn, you know, work with those kids to learn. We are so different. And thinking about the cultural background, family background, influence the behavior, they show up. And then I try to use different activity to work with them. Science of observation, sometimes we try to find a different kind of box on campus. Sometimes I play basketball with them, I took them to the field trip. But oh, what I was doing, I try to build up the relationship with them. So we can work on the behavior, you know, that's presented in the classroom. And, you know, then I found out I really like to work with people and know about people's cultural family, and how that influenced the behavior, the human behavior. So I want to, because I'd read a lot of textbook from the United States. And one day I thought, oh, I want to go to, you know, the origin place to, you know, expose myself to the broader field of knowledge. So I chose to come abroad, to be the first one in my family to go abroad to study and finally decide to stay here with a major in health promotion. I think that's because I want to work with people. I know I'm introverted, but I like to work with people. So I learned that that can be you know, co exist. So I find a major you know, I have to work with community members. A scores, students, their family member, and work with hospital church or nonprofit organization.
Unknown Speaker 5:10
Excellent, excellent. Now, as an editorial board member of a prestigious journals in health and education, how do you perceive the current landscape of mental health research and diverse cultural settings, just like here on the campus of UNLV? And also, part B of that question is, have you seen a rise in students loss faculty and staff have that's a that's common to seek mental health treatments? Since? You know, back in December?
Unknown Speaker 5:36
That's a great question. I think, from what I've seen, personally, professionally, I think, in the field of health promotion, mental health, I think there are some good news and some areas that we can improve. Good news is there are more and more people they realize, we cannot neglect the cultural background of our clients or the community member we serve. We, you know, see more and more manuscript they submit for publication or research that's been published, there are a lot of cultural components. That's great. People are aware of that. But I think the challenge is that, for example, one, we need to have more diverse workforce. You know, as a researcher, as an educator, as health professionals, I think, you know, think about when your clients seen the professional, they are from this, they share the same culture, they feel more comfortable. So, I think, another thing for the future, I think, to, you know, promote the field as academia and practice, I think we need to provide more resources for cultural competence training for the, you know, educator, health professionals. Oh, in the research,
Unknown Speaker 7:06
yeah, you know, I think it's important that when a when a person is going into a doctor's office, or counselor's office, or whatever it is, when you walk into that office, and if you see someone that looked like you working in an office, you're more apt to go back into continue to treatment, I would definitely because Doctor crap is a counselor as well. So I don't feel comfortable walking into a room, you know, going to seek those treatments. If I see someone that looked like me can actually understand my background and know my cultural background and know you know, the things that I deal with on a daily basis that I can relate, relate to. So the unfortunate thing about being an African American, and I am an African American, as you can say, the one thing in our community is that there's a stereotype where if you're going to get mental health treatment, oh, you got to be crazy to do that. But mental health is a real thing, just like alcoholism, just like drug addiction, mental health is a real thing. And we need to pay attention to it and take it more serious.
Unknown Speaker 8:03
There's so much of what you said that resonates with my soul, starting with, you know, the conversations about relationships and how important it is to have those relationships if you're going to help someone deal with their mental health, not just showing up and saying I know who you are, but actually taking the time to learn who they are, so that you can appropriately help them and that cultural piece to your point is exceptionally important. Because when you show up in a space where someone has a shared history and a shared culture, you feel seen in a very different way. You know, you feel understood in a very different way. And then granted, you know, there are clinicians who are not clinicians of color who do excellent jobs. There's also something to be said about recognizing that someone from your culture prioritizes mental health to your poor at that point, Dr. Scales, it's not just that I'm being seen by a person of color, but this person of color, actually also believes that mental health is a worthy conversation to be had. Which brings me to my next question for you. Can you share a little bit about your mental health research that I'm focusing on cultural and family factors among Asian Pacific Islanders, Indian and Middle Eastern communities? How did you come to that work?
Unknown Speaker 9:14
You know, as I mentioned earlier, I have the, you know, big long trend in Public Health and Counseling Psychology, and also teacher education. And I work with population from, you know, first grade, maybe even younger to older people, adults, in our community. And I have seen, you know, people they are immigrant, or even in Taiwan, there are many children. They are the second generation of we say their parents are from South Asia or mainland China, and I grew up in Taiwan. And I remember I lead a group counseling group for this group of kids and they feel you know, they are excluded because their classmates will think they are foreigner, because of maybe the accent, or they're one of their parents look differently. And then when I come here, I think, Oh, this is even a bigger issue, right? A race, ethnicity, and I just, you know, reflect as myself as an educator, what I can do to prepare future generation. So I just try to have my, you know, future teachers K to 12k, to 16, of future health professionals in our community to incorporate this cultural, you know, sensitive approach in their services. For example, in my assignment, I require my students to incorporate, you know, social emotional learning, or cultural differences, you know, piece to consider in their lesson plan. And I think, you know, as you mentioned, when the students see teachers, they put an effort, you know, to have this example, you know, best related at that I can relate to, maybe my parents or grandparents they mentioned about that. So they feel they are included, instead of they are learning some knowledge that's far away from them. So, that's what I'm doing practically.
Unknown Speaker 11:24
What would you say are some important learnings from the research that you've done? What what would it be important for people to understand about that population in terms of mental health?
Unknown Speaker 11:35
Yeah, I think I missed this part, I think we also need to consider how the cultural or non family, you know, expectation, influenced their health seeking behavior. That's one example. For example, in many of the Asian culture, people, they, you know, believe collective, Mystic beliefs, seeking mental health support is weak, you know, showing you weakness, right, something wrong in your mind. But as a practitioner, we know, that's just like a common code, just not physically, mentally, right, we can get it a treat, it is nothing about your personality. There are many factors, you know, influence this behavior. So that's one example. The mental health, you know, is a seeking behavior that's missing. And there's also something like, different communication style. So for example, in some cultures, they are not encouraged to say much, but in some cultures, they are encouraged to express folly, you know, emotionally, whatever you think. But in some culture, they think, Oh, I have to obey the Rankin, I couldn't say too much that my teachers, so you know, that also reflect on our teaching and research, you know, about how those cultural family behavior influence those human behaviors related to mental health.
Unknown Speaker 13:12
Now, clearly, you have a love for mental health. And you were just listening that you talk, I can hear your passion come through what actually inspired you, because early in the conversation, you say, No, I went to this particular school, and I found, you know, the area that I wanted to be in. So what actually inspired you to get into mental health versus becoming an English teacher versus becoming a mechanic or an engineer or nerves? So what is that particular thing that got you into mental health? That's
Unknown Speaker 13:44
a great question. I think that will make me bring up my, you know, elementary story, when I was an elementary school boy, I remember I was, you know, punished by a, you know, a teacher, or coordinate by, you know, slapped on my cheek, and he say, no dialect, because at that time, I speak Taiwanese instead of the official language. And then, that was a big shock for me, because in my family community, we speak dialects. And then I was crying. And then when, you know, I had this bad experience, you know, with me, I rarely have the someone to talk until I, you know, finished my high school, college entrance exam. And I had I had the chance to become a teacher. And I had to choose the different major, and I was thinking, counseling or guidance. That sounds pretty cool instead of administrative. Oh, you know, science, social studies. And because I think, you know, every case they deserve the opportunity to learn, and I want to use different approach to work with them, maybe work with, you know, the same boys and girls, you know, I was earlier. And then I stick to counseling field providing different kinds of services to to the community. And then when I come to the my terminal degree in health promotion and education, I still stick to, you know, promote whole person health, I couldn't, you know, live mental health, if I want to promote clinical disease, I have to touch you know, touch mental health. And I also started to use sports, physical activity. That also traced back to, you know, my experience when I was a little boy, remember, I kick the soccer, you know, to the wall, and back and forth, back and forth. I know, sports, oh, you know, physical activity or something that I can cope with the, you know, frustration in school. That's very powerful. So nowadays, I still, you know, promoting sports or physical activity, yoga, in my teaching, and to the community members of, you
Unknown Speaker 16:04
know, it's so interesting that you mentioned that. So some things that just kind of play over in my mind is that mental health concerns are not a moral failure, they're not a character failure, it doesn't mean that you are a bad human or broken human, it just means that you are human. And the part where you discussed, recognizing how culture shows up in the room, you know, meaning that even in something like an interaction with a counselor or someone in authority, that person's history, their, their cultural perspective affects how they show up for you. In that space, whether they talk a little more, they talk a lot, or they defer to your judgment, or they have their own opinions. And that collectivistic piece, so I want to go back to the yoga piece, because I am a an absolute fan of Holistic Health. Like, you know, we, when we talk about mental health, and we an emotional health, we don't often talk about the body. We talk about the conversations and the brain. So can you share a little bit about your foray into yoga? How did you get to the yoga space?
Unknown Speaker 17:08
That's a great question for me to reflect. Surely I want to give the credit to my wife, because I remember I used to play basketball, soccer, basketball, running around biking outside. And one time my wife when we were in Taiwan, and the time yoga became, you know, bigger and bigger. And then she say, she's going to a yoga class, and she has to pay, I said, you have to pay to a yoga class, I'm going to play basketball. And then she say, oh, there is a spot, you know, because you know, her friends cannot come? And do I want to join and say, Okay, maybe you start it's quality time. And I joined. And I found the inner peace that I couldn't find out when I play basketball. And then I found out oh, I can incorporate breath, when I hold in certain position. And I am challenging my, you know, resilience, my will and I have the, the goal in my mind, compared to other team sports I play. Mostly I release a lot of energy. I feel relaxed after that. But I think yoga or my for movement gives me something different. Maybe inner peace, maybe harmony, maybe help me, you know, find what is the purpose of the day of my life? So that's where I begin the yoga practice after that, almost daily, and then I started to teach yoga for community. Excellent.
Unknown Speaker 18:41
Well, could you speak talking to speaking about yoga? Could you speak to us about the event coming up in the SDP allowed here on campus on April 20, on April 24, and I'm doing a Senate this breakfast included with that. And could you tell us also what type of people should be doing yoga?
Unknown Speaker 18:58
I think yoga is really for everyone. And it can be you know, modified in, you know, any place without any equipment. Even on the chair, even we don't have a yoga mat. And I think something cool is based on my training, background in health promotion, physical activity, I start to see a lot of combination I can use, you know, incorporate yoga or tai chi, mindful movement, and traditional, you know, bodyweight fitness activity. So that just make the yoga practice. Oh, mindful movement more inclusive. And yeah, I don't know how to say more about that. But I would encourage everyone to experience that and hopefully you can like me, stick to it for the life.
Unknown Speaker 19:57
Okay, what's the theme of that? April 20. For the gathering of an SDP allowance is an estimate, which is Asian Pacific, Middle Eastern mental health matters. So is there anything in particular that you're going to be speaking about when speaking to that particular group, which everyone is invited, but particularly Asian Pacific Islanders, Middle Eastern students?
Unknown Speaker 20:20
Yeah, I think yoga, you know, it, it, it's very inclusive, and a kind of, I think it's a way to help those, you know, community found the, you mentioned Asian, Middle Eastern and Indian to think about, you know, how they can, you know, cherish the wisdom found their ancestor, and how they can find the root of their culture, they can start to practice again, many of them, maybe the immigrant here, they come here for study, they forgot to practice. And there's also an opportunity for, you know, other faculty, other community member from other cultural circles, they can come to learn about this and think about how they can incorporate in their daily life. So I think it's really, for everyone. Even the event is, you know, part of the component of the Asian, Pacific and Midwest.
Unknown Speaker 21:25
So, um, you know, as we're talking about this, first of all, I don't know that a lot of people realize there's different forms of meditation, and that movement is a form of meditation. And that the thing about yoga that makes it exceptional is a connection to yourself, that doesn't require any outside. And, sidenote, the military does yoga, like they've done studies. For those out there who like yoga, I don't know about yoga. Yeah, it's really good for your mental health, it can help with things like trauma, they've done a lot of studies around it. So if somebody wanted to, you know, connect with you and find out more about these things, and see what other types of offering that you have, how would be what would be the best way for them to reach you.
Unknown Speaker 22:04
I think I can be reached by the my UNLV email, that's a CH a hyphen, Li ng that the ai@unlv.edu. So for budget consideration, our Department took our office form. And that's the only official way that you can find me, but you can also find me on campus by you know, setting up an appointment. And I'm welcome for everyone for
Unknown Speaker 22:32
and they can also come hang out with you on April 24, at the SD PL from nine to 10am. And you'll be leading a row yoga session, I understand.
Unknown Speaker 22:44
As I mentioned, you know, we can modify in any way even you don't have a yoga mat, just bring water bottle shower, if you want.
Unknown Speaker 22:52
I'm certainly going to be coming. I was checking, Justin, just knowing that they're going to be providing breakfast, just enough to get me
Unknown Speaker 23:00
had me tarian breakfast. So it's pretty healthy. Oh, okay.
Unknown Speaker 23:06
That is wonderful. One of the things that I wanted to talk about was, you know, in addition to being someone who really values public policy, in addition to being someone who really promotes mental health and wellness, how do you? How do you impart these sort of things on your students? Like, what would what does it look like to sit in a room with you, in a classroom around these subject areas?
Unknown Speaker 23:29
So from the first day of the class, I begin with a short meditation with my students. Many of them, they freak out, I told them, This is the learning process, right? Many of you, you don't think meditation is for you. But if that's very interesting, when we change our term, breathwork, we're going to practice some relaxation, they will take it, but if we mentioned all meditation, they have this bias, right? They thought they have to cross their feet and sit very seriously. But actually, it's just finding time for us to think inside, about our intention, our purpose, and we just incorporate the breath work. Before that many of my students they say maybe they didn't realize, you know, their breath. Maybe they take the, you know, their life for granted. But when they look at those detail things, they realize that they can slow down, but they can find that their concentration and they feel relaxed. So at
Unknown Speaker 24:35
the end of each semester, usually, especially at the institution, where I come from, students get to do a survey. So what are students reporting about these particular type of classes that you're doing? What are you hearing back? What's the feedback? That's
Unknown Speaker 24:48
the message I learned from their a cost evaluation, they, most of them appreciate the time to, you know, take the time for them to self care. care of themselves, many of them, you know, full time, teacher, full time health professional, they are also parents, they didn't have time for themselves. So maybe in class that five minutes, that's the only time that they have for themselves. And they are doing it for credits. And it's a constructive way. They know what to expect. And, but they are also given the freedom if they don't want to participate, they can, you know, open their eyes, or they can do any other way they feel comfortable, maybe they bring their squeezable, instead of doing the short meditation, I do have some students, they really don't want to participate. But after a couple of weeks, they try. And then they had this big aha moment, they say, this is pretty cool, they're gonna keep practicing. So I think I will keep promoting. But I also respect people, they may have different feeling perceptions about,
Unknown Speaker 26:06
that's one of the things that I love about teaching when I was at San Diego State was those aha moment when students actually get it and understand the purpose of the class the goals, learning outcomes, when they actually get it. So definitely can appreciate that.
Unknown Speaker 26:19
And I just want to say also, I appreciate you because as I sit here listening to you, I'm reminded that we need to make time and space for ourselves. And I'm reminded also about how often we live outside of our bodies, you know, either in the future worrying about something or in the past, regretting something that we've done, and we don't really have those opportunities. So to have something that's built in, is quite a gift, you know, and it's a good practice to learn. So I'm glad that you do that with your students. And also, fun fact, I thought I was failing at meditation. Because because I had an idea of meditation that involve like some sort of Karate Kid pose with my fingers. Like imagine Rafiki, from The Lion King. But I didn't understand that it really wasn't about that it was about the process that takes place inside of you, not outside of you, that makes meditation worthwhile. So I want to give you the opportunity, is there anything that you would like to share any last words that you would like to leave our audience with before we close out?
Unknown Speaker 27:21
I think human behavior is very complex. You know, outcome of so many factors. We mentioned about those cultural, you know, family expectations, stigma, discrimination, cultural stressors, but I think it, it also takes time and whole village to work on it up when we talk about mental health, or, you know, whatever healthy weight promotion, substance abuse prevention, promote whole person health. So I think it just deserves a lot of attention. And people really spend time for themselves. I really want to see in our campus, we have this maybe approach 11 or 12 o'clock, every, you know, time we have some time to do short meditation or just do some push up. So I think
Unknown Speaker 28:21
yeah, excellent advice. You know, my my last thing in closing for this session would be many people's givers. put limitations on the amount that you give, because you have people that are takers and takers, never put a limit on how much they will take from you. So remember to take care of yourself your own mental health.
Unknown Speaker 28:40
Yeah. And I would say I'm, I'm exceptionally grateful for this conversation, because we forgot and I too, would love a world in which all classes started with some breathing and some downtime. And, you know, that's something that I'm pulling into practice with therapy is that before we get started, can we get centered? Can we get grounded, because when you're emotionally activated, your prefrontal cortex is offline anyway. And few of us really recognize the power of our breath.
Unknown Speaker 29:10
And also, when that grip mentioned about you are failing, that just makes me think that you are transforming instead of falling. Thank you.
Unknown Speaker 29:18
That is a wonderful way to look at it. Yeah, I'm appreciating and I feel like this moment was Kismet. I was meant to meet you today. We were meant to have this conversation. Your presence is so calming, by the way. Absolutely. I could. If I could go back, I'd go take your class. Well, and that will be a wrap. Thank you.
Dr. Renee Watson 29:43
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Transcribed by https://otter.ai