A couple of friends have posted this article in The Guardian about mental health issues in academia on their Facebook pages. I thought it worth sharing and have also shared some of my thoughts...
Wow, this article is all about how PhDs can go severely wrong. I know that since I started my PhD I have changed, I am less confident somehow (having not started out with a wealth of confidence this is a problem) and have become a little more cynical and defensive. I know it has affected my health (and bank balance - doctors are expensive - particularly specialists) and I have recently been accused of being negative which is something I would never have thought myself capable of before. I know I preferred my rose-tinted, optimistic view of the world, and that my shades are a little darker than before (actually, I don't have shades at the moment because the ones I won in 2007 are too scratched to wear now and my PhD had definitely affected my bank balance to the point of not being able to buy new ones). This is why this blog is about rediscovering the "bubbles and whimsy" in life and looking for the positive in things. I know that while I haven't slept under my desk there are people close to me that have, and I have definitely pulled all-nighters. I know that I feel guilty for NOT working EVERY weekend, and when I am socialising I don't enjoy it as much as I used to because I feel like I should be working. And, funny thing, I like to think that I am quite well balanced, love life (mostly) and am lucky in my supervisors... I have definitely not had it as bad as many people and certainly not as bad as the people in the article.
So read the article and see what you think. Maybe we can encourage similar programs in other universities. (UCT does offer student counselling as part of their student wellness services).
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