Coronavirus isolation, updates, and a new project about mental health for PhDs
It’s been a very long time since I’ve written for this blog. Very quick update: It’s been a little over 2 years since I officially got my PhD and I’m now paid full-time to write! That was a big step in my life. I’m still in New York, and I’m still living with friends. I do have a cat now! (See above.) And in the post I’ll also get into why I’m thinking about mental health for PhD students.
Life updates
Now that I’ve been in isolation for nearly 4 weeks, I’ve had more time to think about what I want to write about here on my blog. I’ve written a coronavirus blog post on Medium about my thoughts on that.
I started as a health writer for Changing America, a new section of The Hill, in October 2019. Six months later, I do feel productive being able to write about coronavirus and the COVID-19 pandemic for work. But I think I need to do more.
But I’ve also been thinking about how I can help people. That leads me to a new project I’ve been thinking about on and off for a few years. I want to create a space for PhD students to share their stories anonymously.
PhD Woes: Mental Health for PhDs
I’ve be thinking back periodically about my time as a PhD student because I have a friend here in New York who is in the middle of a program. I remember the strife I went through, and try to be a good listener for her when she needs it. She’s recently decided to look for a job and quit the PhD, mostly because her supervisor is a jerk.
Talking to my friend week after week leading up to this decision, I can see that she’s struggled to come to this point. It is difficult to end something before it’s done. No one likes that feeling. But in some cases, it’s the best choice for the person, and others looking in from the outside should try not to judge them for it.
I think it’s important for people who are struggling in their PhD programs, because most are, to find stories from other people who are having similar struggles. No one will have the same exact problem, but we can all commiserate on how much doing a PhD can suck.
Graduate students have mental health issues in part because they don’t feel like they can talk about their problems. Or they don’t feel like they have anyone that would relate to them. They feel like they are suffering alone. Yes, part of doing a PhD is that you do suffer alone, but that should be suffering in the name of doing the work, not suffering because of a dick lab mate or abusive supervisor.
Mental health for PhD students is especially important because they often don’t know how long it’s going to take to complete their work and the work feels never-ending. There’s a lot of uncertainty and very little control in some cases.
So if you are reading this and concerned about your mental health for PhD life and would like to share your story anonymously, or if you’d like to share advice or a story about a specific incident, get in touch with me! I’m calling the project PhD Woes for now, but more details are to come.
6 months post PhD hand-in
Doing a PhD is often said to be one of the toughest things you can do. I don’t think it’s that tough compared to some really tough jobs like teaching at an inner city public school, but it is lonely. It’s a mental battle all the way through, and some people don’t make it through in one piece.
For a hot minute, I thought I was through with it. I guess I can’t fully recover from the whole PhD until I’m done with everything. Later this year, when I’m truly done, then I’ll find relief. Although that feels like a long time from now, I’m glad for this space away from it so that I can reconfigure my life and actually start moving on.
On doing what you came to do (~1 month post PhD hand-in)
The dust has settled on the submission of my PhD thesis, and now I can think back on this whole process. I left to travel 5 days after handing in my PhD, to give myself physical and mental distance from it all.
As I’m writing this in a hipster cafe in Phnom Penh, it feels a little surreal. Did I really do that?
Climbing hills: this one is the Lion Rock Fortress in Sigiriya, Sri Lanka (2.5 weeks post hand-in)
Advantages and disadvantages to doing a PhD abroad (Outside the USA)
Although American universities are some of the best in the world, there are plenty of good ones around the world too. I’ve had the benefit of doing my PhD jointly at 2 top universities on 2 different continents: National University of Singapore (NUS, ranked 24th) in Asia, and Imperial College London (ranked 8th) in Europe. I’ll go over some of the benefits of doing a PhD abroad in Europe or Asia based on my experiences.
I spent most of my first 2 years in Singapore, and the last 2 in London. It’s a long enough time in each place to get past the honeymoon period. You’ll be forced to adjust and learn about the culture in each place. It’s not a vacation, and it’s definitely not a semester abroad kind of experience. You become an “expat” of sorts, and have to figure out a lot on your own.
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How travel is helping me finish my PhD
No question, travel is awesome. Even though I’ve been a poor grad student with lots of deadlines, I’ve managed to travel during PhD things and wouldn’t want it any other way!
These are the last few months of my PhD before I have to hand in, and travel is helping me get there. How? Let me explain.
Any excuse to travel
While I’ve been lucky to have a major move between Singapore and London built into my PhD program, I’ve also taken opportunities to go to regional conferences while based in both places. When I didn’t have a PhD related reason to travel, I would try to go home to New York. Having a young nephew and niece, this was important for me so I wouldn’t feel like I was missing everything. Continue Reading
Leaving London, life and moving on
That’s it, I’m done with London! Although my student visa for the UK goes until May 2017, I’m leaving London in 2 months. Not that there is anything wrong with London. It’s just not working out for me at the moment given life and circumstances.
How I got here
I’m in a joint PhD program that allowed me to spend half the time in Singapore and half in London. I lived in Singapore for most of 2013 and 2014. In January 2015, I moved to London with the intention of staying through until I finished my PhD. I kept my mind open to the idea of staying in London, but wasn’t sure either way. Now a few short months from finishing, I had to decide how I would deal with my living and financial situation. Continue Reading
3 days in Copenhagen: walking tours
Copenhagen is a popular touristy harbour city, with quite a price tag on it despite some cheap flights from other parts of Europe. After my short trip to Warsaw, I couldn’t wait to plan my next 3 day trip and I picked this Nordic city to spend another few days struggling with my thesis. This is a Copenhagen short trip!
On this trip in May, I went on 2 walking tours and spent the rest of my time working in the hostel or in cafes. These walking tours were run by Copenhagen free walking tours, which works on a donation basis. Continue Reading
PhD: the final six months
This month marks the start of the half year of my PhD that I have left before my submission deadline. Since it’s pretty much a hard deadline, I have to take this time seriously. This is where I scream and pull my hair out.
Actually, no! I’m not going to do that.
Instead I’m going to tell you about what I’ve been thinking about lately about the whole PhD thing and how I’m going to tackle the last bit of it! I don’t know if all will go according to plan, but it never does anyway! The important thing here is that I’ve kinda figured out how to deal with it and I haven’t been freaking out about it.
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3 days in Warsaw: My first shot at a self imposed writing retreat
I haven’t traveled as much this year as I was hoping to, unless you count the short trip home to New York to meet my niece. One of my biggest regrets after finishing this PhD would be not traveling more around Europe while I had the chance. To remedy this, I’ve been planning short, 2 night trips. Last month, I went to Warsaw, Poland, with my laptop and some writing targets!
About Warsaw
The Nazis destroyed about 80% of Warsaw in World War II. There are only a few areas that were left relatively untouched (~30% destroyed), some of which I saw on a walking tour of Praga:
2015 #AnnualReview Part 5: Lessons learned as a PhD student
This year was an eye opener for me regarding my research and the PhD process. I feel like I’ve overcome a few hurdles, and that’s prepared me to really punch it in during this final year of my PhD. Here’s some PhD advice and lessons learned for those interested.
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Hey, I'm Chewy! I'm a science journalist currently living in New York. I'm an introvert who likes to see new things and learn. Here I write about my travels and musings about food, places and cultures. Check out my photos, reviews, and random thoughts!