amen! I am also in a very similar situation, though still agonising on whether to downgrade from PhD to Mphil as my supervisor is very much against this due to the results of my PhD being wanted for his work and his other new students. But I am really reaching a crisis point in my mental health which was plummeted to severe levels during the course of the strain of the PhD, family illnesses and my own mental and physical illnesses.

I am afraid as someone who is less along the process of conversion than you, I don't know the answers, but I can assure you you are not alone in this sort of dilemma.

Okay so I had the meeting, and it was a bit of a failure, or at least felt that way. I tried very hard to explain how the 2nd experiment is reeeally not working (with more oomph than last time), and how much the road ahead feels harder because of all my personal problems. I think because I was trying very hard not to cry, I wasn't able to go the whole way into details as much as I would've liked to, such as mentioning changing to MPhil if necessary, but it also just didn't really end in much of a solution or feeling I'd got all the facts across. Sup now wants me to write up a document specifying what has been done so far for the experiment and what's exactly the problem and possible solutions. They also ended it with telling me the immortal words "cheer up!"...which I can't say helped. I guess knowing the severity of anyone's depression is hard, and of course as my boss I feel very awkward having to say such things.

Thanks a lot Dunham, that is very kind to say, and believe me when I say I've been trying to keep going as well as I can, but I do feel like I've hit some kind of limit.

I am indeed on a 4-year programme (initial year involved broad training and choosing the project) but due to the suspensions I am not as near the end of the tunnel as it may seem. I think it would take at least a year of painful further perseverance to try to get something together to make a thesis, with a lot more labs to try and make an experiment work. But that's also complicated by running out of funding this summer and not having time to use the day for the analysis,in addition to the fact that with all of the extenuating circumstances I may don't think I would make it through that.

Sorry for the pessimistic response, I am indeed going to have that honest conversation with my supervisor though and how some sort of thesis work a chance of passing may be possible and if not whether making an mphil may be possible.

sb0070, newlease36, thanks to both of you, as those are very wise words regarding writing up the failed experiments alongside being honest with my supervisor about the need to finish up in a way to try and get the project finished, not necessarily to take it as far as they would ideally want.

I get on quite well with my supervisor and so I guess this has added to my feelings of being a let-down and a bit of a rubbish PhD, but even more so than that I have indeed been demotivated and made incredibly anxious by having no clear idea of the way ahead or how to address these problems. I have a supervisor meeting coming up and so I will broach these issues come what may. I had in fact attempted to tell of the failed 2nd experiment once already, but it was somehow written off as that the method just needs more refining, but this is from a supervisor from a completely different field. Talking to those in this field (a field I also did my masters in), they have all agreed that it is really not working. So I guess I need to argue my case a bit more, but to say I feel unconvincing and ignorant is an understatement given all my psychological weights I've previously mentioned. I just feel like I have been running on depleting strength for over 3 years, and just can't seem to get it back.

Thanks for the advice tough guys. I keep hearing such encouraging sensible words, but my mind goes off and does/tells me something else!

Hi everyone, sorry that this is yet another "I want to quit" post. However I hope some of you may still be willing to have a read and maybe offer advice.

I am now towards the later stage of a funded science PhD at as well-respected University, but in terms of the work I have done or sense of accomplishment, I am no where near. I have one published paper, and so I guess that would make one chapter, with most of my day to day work having been towards other chapters. Here is where the problems start. The nature of my project is very much experimental, in the sense that the techniques were novel, and so were never guaranteed to work. So far two methods have not worked at my attempts, but both could be possibly investigated further. However, this of course means I've lost years to the method development of these two experiments, and so feel like I have nothing to show for 3 and a bit years of work. To compound this, my family's health has been a rollercoaster; my father has a terminal illness, and mother was briefly hospitalised following a mental health crisis. I suffer from long term clinical depression myself, that waxes and wane,s but when in the depths of it I just can't cope with the pressure of the PhD along with my grim personal life and feel that there is no let up. As such I have had two extensions (without extra money), due to basically falling apart. Before Christmas I was struggling to cope, but then received further bad news about a medical problem, meaning I now need tests and possibly surgery in the coming weeks/months. All in all, I feel like I don't have the energy to complete the PhD if it's even possible, given the dead ends, but will be in a very difficult position whether I stay or go, given that I will be jobless and homeless. Sorry for the ill-structured wall of text, but any advice?