Most people don’t go through 19 breakups in six years, but one UA student went through that many in only six weeks.

Devin Grissom, a junior from Cordova, Tenn., came from a true southern family. Her parents have been married for 34 years, an example she would like to follow.

Grissom intended on spending her summer relaxing and enrolling in summer classes until she received a Facebook message from a casting agency in Los Angeles asking her if she would be interested in being on a bachelorette-type show called “Sweet Home Alabama” airing on CMT.

“I thought it was a spam message,” Grissom said.

After sending Grissom a second message, she agreed. She flew out to Los Angeles for an interview and began filming. The filming started in early May and ended in early July.

Grissom went into filming with an open mind.

“I realized how once in a lifetime the opportunity was, and I’d never get another chance,” Grissom said.

She was thrown into a new reality and forced to adjust quickly to very little outside communication and a completely new environment.

For people curious to know how authentic the reality show was, Grissom said there was no preparation. They were not told the day before what was going to happen, and she was not able to talk with the cast once the cameras stopped rolling.

She kept everything that happened on the show a secret.

Her roommate Megan Dempsey, also a junior and Phi Mu at the University of Alabama, discovered her best friend was going to be on “Sweet Home Alabama” via television.

“I was watching the CMA awards with my dad and her commercial popped up,” Dempsey said. “I just started losing my mind, I went crazy.”

Not only was Dempsey very excited for her friend, but she was also worried the media would portray her in a negative light.

“It was surreal…I couldn’t grasp that others were watching it too…I didn’t know how they were going to portray me,” Grissom said.

She said she wanted to stick to her morals throughout the show and be a role model. Overall, both she and Dempsey believed CMT did a good job at depicting her.

“It’s not always the same Devin I see, but they did a really good job,” Dempsey said.

Grissom picked Adam Moyer, a 26-year-old from Tennessee, and the two are still dating. Between the time the show finished filming and the time it aired on CMT, Grissom and Moyer went on a few dates in secret. Since the show aired, she has not seen him.

Their first couple of dates fell through, but they have more planned for the near future. She said the long distance relationship is hard, but they are happy together and trying not to let the distance hinder their relationship.

Dempsey has not met any of the guys from the show but hopes to spend some time in person with Moyer soon.

Grissom said the show helped her become more social. “I’ve always been a good communicator, but being on this show taught me to open up to people more quickly [and] to communicate my feelings better,” she said. “I feel like I matured 10 years.”

The hardest part for Grissom was breaking up with the 19 less lucky bachelors face-to-face.

Season 2 of “Sweet Home Alabama” is expected to air in October and will feature the runner-up from this season, Tribble Reese. When asked if she would watch it, she said she wasn’t sure.

Back at the University, Grissom is adjusting back to her original life. She is excited to pursue her relationship with Adam and to apply all she’s learned through the experience.