Ok, so last night I managed to do a bit of reading and write a couple hundred words. Tonight I have written about 600! :) done some interesting reading, sorted out some papers and have a pile of 6 papers in varying key discussion areas to read over (starting point!).

back is killing me and i'm off to find some tablets, and a cuddly partner and duvet! Keep waking up at 4am so fingers crossed get a better nights sleep tonight!
Hope you've all had successful days, :-)

I had two last night with Nutella - YUM YUM! not managed any tonight though, bit of horrid stressed tummy today :( maybe the mix will be ok tomorrow....?

Hey Wally, do not worry, tbh looking at it I think that's quite feasible, 9 months is still plenty time really...! Like Poppy said lots of it only comes together in last year, mine is lab work based but all my results except for first chapter came together in last 9 months of lab work.  and then apart from bit of intro and materials and methods hadn't written anything! so here's what i've done and still left to do by May/June (would be ace!)

Chapter 1 - Introduction - 2nd draft just sent to sup for final rewrite
Chapter 2 - intro - 90% complete
              M&M - done
                Results - done (but sup may want extra analysis when he see's it - i'm praying not!)
Discussion - just started this week - looking rubbish so far - maybe 5% done!
Chapter 3 - intro - 20% complete
M&M - done
Results - done (but again sup may want extra analysis when he see's it - i'm praying not!)
Discussion - 0%
Chapter 4 - intro - 0%
M&M - 90% done
Results - got half of them, mostly unanalysed and can't get half the data cos machine broken and no money in lab! Discussion - 0%
Chapter 5 - intro - 0%
M&M - 80% done
Results - most of analysis done but all needs putting into document and tidying up, possibly further analysis
Discussion - 0%
Chapter 6 - final discussion - 0%

Ok, seeing it like this is even scarier!!! :(
i'm just waiting to be picked up from work - and i'm going home to work!!!

you'll be fine Wal, just keep plugging away and we'll get there!

Good luck! as others have said, this is just natural panic, and it would probably be un natural not to feel this way! i'm sure it will come to all of us!
Just relax and enjoy - i've heard many a Dr say that once their in the viva they've enjoyed it! it's your time to shine and speak to people in depth about your research - possibly the last time you will do this. If you're anything like me and not really had anyone to talk to about your research much, or be that interested in it, then it is nice to sit down and talk in depth to people who ARE interested and can discuss it as in depth as you can! You will know lots more than you realise right now, just relax, you're almost there.

Enjoy, we'll all be thinking of you, and let us know how you got on! *hugs*

That sounds like a nice relief Chrisrolinski - enjoy (up)
I've just done about 2 hours work and managed to do some paper searching, and write 300 words :) After a 14 hour day of work (unfortunately little of it thesis), i'm off to bed to prepare for another day of it tomorrow!

Good luck wally and angelofthenorth!

Thanks Bilbo, problem is I don't know what i've found! Think maybe I need to step back from it and have a more objective look. Sue - I know the feeling, i've been rubbish with mine too, again not bitchy or anything (or at least no more than usual :$), just not very "present", or passionate, or anything really! I guess if we can get through this we can get through anything, that's what keeps me going anyway, and he's still bringing me cups of tea, so that's a good sign! :)

Thanks Sue, I might look it out! If you're anything like me then I find "mum's" in other places! as in, mothering figures who look after me, care about me and have a mothering nature! I had two of them at my old labs and they kept me going on a daily basis!

AL x

hmmm, apologies all for my random outburst of personal information! I guess just the mention of the word mum set me off today, and having a place where I can anonymously talk is good as i don't often divulge information about my mother to anyone but those close to me.
i'm sure you all feel the same sometimes, but when PhD stress starts getting to me, other things in my life upset me more and get me more worked up or depressed (depending on what they are). There always seems to be a direct correlation between me being anxious about the thesis, and random thoughts about my mum.

Anyway, not worth worrying about, she's gone and that's that!
Really not getting much work done tonight, just staring at the discussion, and unsuccessfully searching for relevant papers online! (is there a known effective way of going about the discussion?)

Hi Sue, no worries, I need to keep the fire under my a** burning strong so the odd fright is good!! :p
Yep, we'll just do the best we can, and get there as fast as possible! I wish I could wave a magic wand and have it done for me!
Sometimes, I wish my mum was still around to tell me nice things, and comfort and support me! unfortunately, she changed somewhat a few years ago, now lives hundreds of miles away and the last thing she said about my phd was "you'll probably give it up anyway!" (sorry, you guys don't need to know all that!) but sometimes I wonder if i'm only doing all this to prove the woman wrong!! what an influence our mothers can have on us! she haunts my dreams and my days sometimes, and I miss my old mum, what i'd give to hear and feel the comfort she used to deliver me 10 years ago!

ah well, enough of upsetting myself, i'm going to go and make a cup of tea and start my pancake day celebrations early, then try and do an hours work and chill before bed! hmmm, pancakes and nutella...yum yum! ;-)

Hi all,

arghhh, don't scare me Sue, I know I should really be working every night, or most nights, but I feel I can't work round the clock every single day or i'll burn out and have a nervous breakdown (i'm not the strongest of people!). Therefore, after discussions with sup I was left with two thoughts, I either do evenings/nights during week and then on the weekend probably only manage a day at most cos i'm so worn out mentally, or I don't stress and feel guilty if I don't do things in the week but make sure I get 1.5-2 days full productive work done on the weekend. I feel you can only be so productive and my day job is quite mentally demanding, therefore i'm never going to be able to work 7days a week at full pelt and produce good quality work!

I think I just have to take each week as it comes, my job is quite variable, both its content and the hours, so last few weeks i've been working late and therefore was not able to come home and work. However, in the next few weeks I am basically 9-5 and hope to get a few hours done at least 2-3 evenings of the week and 1-2 days at the weekend. I have just booked a week off in April to get some full pelt writing done, and possibly a day or two in the lab tidying things up too!!!

ARGHHH, I just want this over!
Yesterday, I sat down late morning and decided to do a couple of hours, that turned into me working til 7pm!! made dinner and watched movie with partner, but that was it! Therefore I did actually get 2 full days of work done, slow progress but what I did was ok, so maybe I can do it this way and not have to stress too much during week! who knows, i'll get there in the end (hopefully!)
Hope you've all had good days, AL

:p

Dear Sue, Rick and others,

Rick, I would agree with Sue, if it's integral then get it in, if there are parts of it than can be put in appendix and won't affect the readability and understanding then i'd get them in the appendix. You can always put it all in and then see if your sup wants any put into appendix?

Sue, well done on your massive re-write this week! its scary that we want to be finished around same time and that gives us approx 10 weeks, but i;m getting very little done with job on top (must work in evenings I think, or at least a couple a week!) You'll get there though, you're so determined and working really well, just keep pushing and then pin prick might be a needle point by the end of the month :)

Really sorry about job let downs etc, but you never know what the future brings, if you have the civil service job then at least you've got some security and who knows what doors might open when you have the Dr Sue title! Have you looked at fellowships you can apply for yourself?

Well, i dont know what to do today, really want to spend some time with partner, so might try get a couple hours done, sort out some papers ready and a plan for the next week or two and then ditch it and go see some disney at the cinema! :)

have a good day all! (up)

Well, its taken a week but i've managed to sit down today and edit intro, sort out some styles, sentence structure and referencing etc! It's taken me six hours, and i don't think i've really moved cos my back is in agony, but just sent a nice 12,000 words to supervisor :)

Everything seems to be happening so slow - like a week to just get back round to opening the doc and editing! and then six hours just to do a read through, check all references and readability etc, and i've not even been procrastinating!!
Best start doing some more nocturnal week night working I think if i'm going to meet any deadlines! Really hoping sup is basically happy with intro redraft and don't need to do much (if anything to it).

Maybe going to do a bit of work to chapter 2 tomorrow, but it's Valentines and would be lovely to manage a day off with partner to go for a walk and nice lunch or something, we'll see.....

Right, time for some accountability - next tasks for fortnight:

Chapter 2 Introduction - one section to write (800-1000 words)
Results - tidy up and sort legends into style etc
DISCUSSION!!! :(

Is it just me or are discussions horrible, or am I just dreading the getting started and once i'm into it it will be ok? I seem to have a fear of it! (might have to start a thread on this).

signing off for the night, good luck if you're still working.
AL x :p

aww, you've made a tired girl very happy! :) Happy Valentines Day to you Wally, thank you for your lovely poem! Have a present too (gift)

ooh, also, I have passed this on to my partner, I can't wait for him to do it! he's a statistician and computer geek so i'm sure he'll be rated high! :) will post his score for interest!

I've always classed myself as bit of a geek - my family tell me I am, and others occasionally too! luckily most of my friends are also geeks so i'm in good company!

I just took the test and i'm 14% geek, I agree with others that its a bit biased, but i'm a scientist and wouldn't say it is weighed towards much except maths and computing! I think if you gave me a science geek test i'd be in the upper realms of geekness! :$

just for laughs - i'm writing this right now with one completely green hand as I was dying cornflour today for kids experiments and didn't even think about putting a glove on til too late I was just enjoying making cornflour slime - very cool stuff! :) but i'm now going to have a green hand for a while! Maybe this classes me more of a geek?

I must say though, i'm proud to be one!!

Natassia - I hope you got essay finished soon, and can enjoy your day - Happy Birthday for tomorrow (gift)

Keep going Chrisrolinski, like Sue said, you're so close, so wish I was there!

I'm just finishing up for the night, had a productive weekend at last! :) Chapter 1 almost ready for draft 2 submission, it's starting to really look good! :) and i've just put some of my main data together for chapter 5 (thanks Superman for help with this if you read this thread!). So now it's time for bed! Working 12-9 tomorrow :( so going to lab in morning to print off some stuff and hopefully get chapter 1 stuff finished! Unfortunately need to go to Docs so lets hope can get decent appt otherwise it will mess up all my plans!

Good luck with the nocturnal working (up)