Let’s have a heart to heart… | PHD VLOG | My PhD and Me

TL;DR

A PhD student shares her struggles with anxiety and overwhelm in her final months of writing her thesis, but finds clarity by creating a detailed plan for her chapters and subheadings.

Transcript

hello my youtube friends and welcome back to another phd vlog so if you're new here my name is jessica and i am a final year phd student at the university of aberdeen and my phd is in the area of natural products chemistry but also kind of biology but also kind of marine science and also kind of microbiology and all sorts of things so i got back fr... Read More

Key Insights

• 🈷️ Writing a PhD thesis can be mentally challenging, particularly during the final months of the program.
• ✍️ Creating a detailed plan and structure for the thesis can help alleviate anxiety and provide a clearer direction for writing.
• 💦 Balancing writing with lab work can be a difficult task, and finding the right environment for focused work is crucial.
• 🧑‍🎓 Seeking support and advice from supervisors, colleagues, and fellow PhD students is beneficial in overcoming challenges and understanding the shared experiences in academia.
• 💦 Overcoming guilt associated with not being physically present in the lab is important, as productivity and work quality can be achieved from home as well.
• 👻 Allowing yourself to write imperfectly initially and then revising and polishing later can help overcome writer's block and promote progress.
• 🔨 Utilizing reference management tools can streamline the process of organizing citations and references for a thesis.

Questions & Answers

Q: How has the PhD student been feeling since returning from holiday?

The student has been struggling with anxiety and feeling overwhelmed by the amount of work she needs to complete within the next six months.

Q: What is the student's current focus in terms of her PhD work?

The student is trying to balance her time between writing and completing lab work, with a goal of finishing her thesis by the end of February.

Q: Why does the student feel overwhelmed when sitting down to write?

The student feels overwhelmed because she is unsure of the exact structure and format of her thesis, making it challenging to write with confidence.

Q: How did the student find inspiration for structuring her thesis?

The student looked at previous PhD theses from her academic lab for inspiration and guidance on how to structure her own document.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The PhD student has been feeling anxious and overwhelmed since returning from holiday, making it difficult to focus on writing her thesis.

• She has six months left to complete her PhD, with the majority of her lab work already done.

• To overcome her writing challenges, she spent time creating a table of contents for her entire thesis, giving her a clearer direction and reducing overwhelm.