Well done Charls! I am sure that the approval is only a formality and you will soon be Dr Charls. This is fantastic. I wish I was at that stage, although I understand that you might want to get on with your life and focus on something different.
I try to think that I can only eat the elephant with really small bites, so I am trying to finalise this revised version in the hope that is going to be the last!
:$

Hello! I had a baby in year 2 of my PhD. Since then I didn't attend a single seminar, and meeting with my supervisor have been about twice in a semester, whereas we used to meet every fortnight. I presented papers at several conferences before, but only once afterwards - that means in two years. It is doable, but it is very difficult if you don't have any help from family, etc.
I am close to submission now (or at least I hope so!), and I was lucky to be able to do all research before maternity leave. It also depends on the child. Everyone is different. Mine never sleeps, so all my plans for working in the evenings were pretty much disappointed, as my husband is often away on business.

Hi Olivia, thank you! We do not have a copy of that book in the University library, but I ordered it through Amazon. So, hopefully it will arrive soon.
Back to work in the meantime!

Hi Charls, thank you. I am going through the whole thesis just now and I only remove repetitions or things that are going against my original argument, but i will wait to hear my supervisor's comments to do anything more drastic.
Did you already submit your thesis? I wish I was at that stage, but hopefully this will happen soon - I am so tired of it!
I am trying to finalise the bibliography and it is taking ages!

Hello, thanks for this. I was slightly overworded in my Masters thesis too, but now unfortunately, I have to submit a digital copy for the PhD. So I suppose that the word count can be checked from that if they want to. On the positive side, I have two Appendices with tables, so the way I understand the University guidelines, those should not be included in the word count.
At this stage I probably prefer to be overworded than to be here struggling to reach the requirements anyway, but obviously this may also mean more work after my supervisor's comments, and I am fully aware that quantity does not always equate to quality. 

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Thanks Bilbo. Your comments are always spotted on and very helpful. I have a great admiration for you and all you have achieved in spite of the problems. Your determination is a great example for everyone here (I know, it's not related to the thread, but I wanted to say it).

I think that you are right. It makes sense to see what my sup thinks of it, before I make major amendments. Some days I feel very positive and others I feel that it is a pile of rubbish and that I will be awarded an MRub at best (Master of Rubbish).;-)

Hello and thanks everyone! Your suggestions will be definitely put into place. I am just concerned about the deadline, but at the end of the day I can only do my best in the time that I have.
Ailicec the word limit is 100,000, so I aim to reduced it to 95,000 at least. Appendices are included unfortunately, and I have already cut them to death, so that's not an option. Dunni73 and Ady, what you say is very true. I fear that there will be also  stuff that is not that relevant, and when you start to cut pieces here and there the result may not be that coherent. I will post again if another panic attack occur anyway.
Thank you all!
(up)

I just assembled all the chapters, appendices, conclusion together and the word-count went up to 110,000!
Now I have a week left to read it and cut the extras before I submit it to my supervisor.
Is it feasible at all? I would appreciate suggestions on how to deal with this. I am panicking a bit! Thanks! :-(

Ehmm, yes. I know the feeling.
I am in the same shape. I must say that I didn't find the perfect solution. It's a constant compromise. I used to have an office at Uni, but as soon as you start your writing-up period (that is when you most need of it!) you must leave your space to a new student.
So I am working from home. I had to resolve and send the child to nursery three mornings a week, and then I work after dinner, early in the morning, weekends, and literally any spare (!) five minutes that I have. It's very stressful (and noisy), but I should submit in a couple of months, so I keep thinking that it is only for a short period of time.
:p

Hi Cornflower,

yes I remember your previous post. You have all my sympathy.

It's not an easy situation to be in. Obviously the close deadline makes things more difficult. Is there any way to postpone your fieldwork trip? Or in the worst case-scenario -could you suspend your studies for six months or the necessary time to stand back on your feet? You don't need to let everyone know in your department, but you need to speak clearly to the right people. They can certainly do something if they want to. Couldn't  your Uni advance you the next installment? If I were you I would speak soon and very clearly with your supervisor and Head of Graduate Studies.

There is little point in going away if you don't have all you need and you struggle to pay the bills. Having more time available a short-term job might have helped, but this is something that requires more than two weeks of commitment. Fieldwork is very important, and you cannot risk to waste this opportunity. Taking some time off would also take some pressure off you for a while.

Last, but not least, and I hope that you don't mind me asking, are you not entitled to alimony from your former husband?

I agree with Ady. You have so many positive and impressive things in your thesis, and is on these that you must focus. With all respect for your supervisor, his attitude is completely pointless. Did he give you clear directions on how to structure your thesis? Carry out your research? Improve your chapters? I think that saying that you are going to get major correction at this point is not a very professional statement.
My supervisor has a similar approach: I may pass the viva or I may not. What does this mean?! The reality is that he is not an expert in my field, and he wants to cover himself from possible problems. I would suggest you to focus on your strengths, list things that may be object of criticism and try to find solutions. The game is still open and is down to you how to play it. If you go there feeling defeated, you will be. It is very difficult, I know, I am close to submission and I feel very much like you, but you put a lot of work and energy into this and you cannot afford to be conditioned by your supervisor's negative comments.

Sunflower12, I can assure you that we all go through the same kind of feelings, no matter how old you are.
You need to be very focussed and when it's down to writing up all the excitement of doing a PhD wears off. Also, for how much you can plan and draft along the way, it takes some time to analyse all the material that you gathered in order to make the best use of it. If you have a supervisor that is not very supportive, it may become a daunting experience.
I had two wonderful years. I really enjoyed doing research, but it became very difficult to concentrate and pull things together after I returned from Maternity leave. It is only in the last few weeks that I had the feeling that the thesis was finally taking shape.
You need to look at your material - you and you only know whether what you have is good enough and how to play it. I re-drafted all the chapters at least three times and every time I find something that can be improved. Some days I feel totally demotivated, but there are also good days, and as I am not in my 20s I don't feel that I need to be extra competitive. I accept that there are researchers who are much more capable than me, but equally there are others who are there just because they were pushed by their supervisors or had the right opportunity at the right time. 
If I were you, I would try to draft the remaining chapters, read them all together and see if they answer your research questions, and where you need to improve them. Writing is a difficult task, and it is pretty impossible to expect a finalised thesis at the first attempt.

Thank you very much to you all, and especially Dunni73 - it worked!!!
You saved my day - and my thesis!

:-)

Hi all, I hope that you can help me! I just accidentally touched something in the keyboard (I don't know what), and now the chapter I am working on shows tracking changes. If I try to remove it from the Review option, I just delete all the text that I inserted later. What can I do to remove the track changes, but leaving all the text?
I suppose that it must sound a stupid question to you, but I had a panic attach when I realised that I deleted all the work I had done yesterday!
Many thanks! :-s

I had a baby at the beginning of my third year and I am due to submit by June. I think that you need to consider very carefully where are the sources that you need for your research. Do you need to travel to access libraries/ archives/ institutions? Having a baby is the most brilliant experience, but for what I could see among my colleagues, it is almost impossible to complete a PhD if you have a baby in your first year, with all the research to do.
I took a year off, and I am glad that I tried to work a bit during this time, because my baby is the "Idonotwanttosleep" type, and doing even the most simple task now that is growing is very difficult. I have very little help, and time is never enough. So it is doable, but it can be very stressful. Also, my Uni has recently changes the rules and with a very smart move they included the maternity leave as full time research period, literally leaving very little time should I need an extension. My advice would be: 1) do your research first; 2) consider the kind of help/ support that you would have; 3) take into account that it is going to be stressful for you, but also for the rest of the family. At 26 you are still young, and waiting for 2-3 years is not going to jeopardise your plans for a family.