How does a PhD *actually* feel? Reflections from the eye of the [current] storm, plus rabbit holes and alarm clocks.
I'm going to start by reiterating once again that the entire point of this blog is to capture elements of PhD life live, in the moment. Rather than relaying on looking back and trying to reconstruct past feelings from a future perspective, which in my experience is never as accurate (even if having some retrospective insight is very useful in other ways). Apologies that the blog will therefore almost inevitably be sparked by an emotional peak or trough - often trough - I still hope it's worth reading for someone, somewhere. It's not a cry for help, nor necessarily an invitation for management strategies... Just an honest reflection on how things feel, for those who are interested. I have spent the last couple of weeks testing new systems of PhD life; new ways to organise my time, personal life, work life, exercise etc, having recognised that the 9 - 5 (10 - 6) wasn't working for me. The first week consisted of doing whatever I needed to at any given point to remain ...