Hello Pz, any chance of taking some time out? Sounds like you've had an unreal time recently.

hello, typing from in bed after the most horrific stomach bug, it never rains...I will check out direct gov and anything else though it looked to me like only the access loan was available. I'm not sure whether I'm employed or not, it sounds not as though I have recommended 35 days holiday, I am not contractually obliged to stay within that. They pay my fees and give me a bursary of a grand a month, though I do a little teaching here and there which is under associate lecturship contract. My DOS suggested that a month might not need a suspension of studies, but I think for me, it does need to happen otherwise I'll end up working and worrying anyway. I can feel the clock ticking in terms of money and progress and I find it really scary. Referral letter came today, 12 weeks, what a joke.

hello again, having been passed from person to person at the uni I finally speak to someone who says the bursary would be stopped, there are no other funds available apart from some access to learning grant which isn't open yet and takes a while to sort out. I had a shitty doctors appointment with a different doctor, she didn't seem to understand the gist of my problems and just focussed on the death as something to 'get over', ignored impending work, marriage issues, breakdown. I feel like a real fraud. It's been a bad day, no work done, and it seems, little chance of taking any time off as I have bills and a mortgage to pay. Feeling a bit desperate really, time keeps ticking and I'm attaining nothing.

Hello there, well, I need your sage advice again. I went to see my DOS, we went to the cafe and had an off the record one-to-one, he was very understanding and helpful. He is suggesting I do get a doctors note (appointment tomorrow) and that I might consider suspending my study for 1-3 months or more. I'm frightened to do so but having read your experiences know it can be a good thing. What does a suspension of studies mean? Particularly as I am lucky to have a bursary from the university, does this mean a suspension of pay also? I'm unsure what to do really, it's hard to know how I'll feel tomorrow let alone next week.

I might ring the docs and ask for a note, just in case, she was happy to write one. Pea, I think I need to do a face-to-face as much as I'd prefer to write an email, my supevisor I think would want the opportunity to help and he can be quite useless on the phone/writing. I'm glad your friend is ok Seabird, funnily enough I've been thinking of taking up running since I kicked smoking recently. It might help to lift the brain malaise. I was talking to my husband last night, realised that aside from the events of recent that I've been pretty burned out for the past year, 3 years of undergraduate study stright into a further study has taken it's toll, on our relationship and the grey matter. Perhaps it was bound to happen anyway.

Hello again, you've all been lovely, thanks for your time. Verdy I'm glad you took the time and it clearly has paid off in nurturing your studies also, you did a brave thing. It's taken me far longer! I hope you don't mind but I used your idea for the email and have sent it, I'll ring the admin office and check he's not on holiday otherwise I may need to see the head of department who is fortunately very sweet to me anyway.

Well I understand that, hence my love/hate relationship with the social construction of technology

OK, I really like that and it's where I sit with research whereas one of my supervisors is very theoretically driven. All I'm trying to say is theory works in my research to understand and contextualise the findings, it's not driving things. I'll look further into Bourdieu, with the reading i've had to do, I've been a bit all over the place with theory

'I wrote 50,000 words in my first year, theoretical arguments and justifications' Hello Matt, can you expand on that? I dribble thoughts into Word but I find it so confusing going between my literature database full of quotes that my writing is very stilted. How did you fluidly write that much even if you didn't rate it?

I've written a journal article and been trying to write up my literature but I still feel in a jumble at the end of my first year. Mostly due to this theoretical approach thing. See separate post. So I sympethise with you SK.

However much I like my research, I'm beginning to think I'm not academically precise enough to do a PhD

See, in my heart, I would love to take an empricist approach, but when I said that to my supervisors they attacked any notion of using an empirical stance in humanities as being entirely discredited. In some senses the research did come from testing a theory, which I then analysed as problematic so have been looking for an adaption ever since. Problem being, with the questions I am asking realting to the research, it doesn't fit neatly into one theory.

Hmm, interesting, well in my field of research, to take a relativistic approach is running the risk of being uncritical which is a bit of a no-no, my supervisor would snort at both realtivist and positivist POV, so where does that leave me? I like your idea of working backwards since I've long had my objectives clearly laid out. It's difficult, my research marries ethnicity/identity, radio and technology, so there is little consistency in approaches. That said, the only way to study the technology as a non determinist thing I've found is to use the social construction of technology. Some derive that to mean Marxism, which I find inappropriate when used alongside ethncity. See what I mean? It's difficult, and I'm not sure I find being wed to an approach (aside from the use of a philosohpy) as being at all appropriate. That said, maybe there's one just begging to be used. Sometimes I find it hard to see an approach standing out from a text to be identified in the first place.

*Added so you can see I'm not just prickly about the subject*

I can see the positives, it stops the work being solely narrative and so lends it some lasting use as a contribution to new knowledge, it also shows up front where you're coming from....

Hello, so in the midst of falling apart, I am still trying to 'consider my theoretical approach' as my supervisors put it. Apparently, I have to declare one and it's up to me to work out what it is, positivist, relativist, structuralist, interpretivist, empiricist etc etc. This supposedly has baring on my methodology. At a conference recently I was discussing this and some quite senior academics who contested this notion of choosing a theoretical approach. I'd be interested to hear your views on this as anytime I get close to deciding, my supervisors seem to suck in through their teeth as if I have chosen the 'wrong' approach and quite frankly, I'm sick of it.

Hello verdy, it sounds like you had a positive experience with your DOS, that's good, are things better now and did you find it helpful to the progress of your study by breaking off a little?

I'm trying to word an email, I have no idea what to put. Critique welcome....'Dear xxxx, I hope you are well and rested. I'm not sure if we need a meeting. I have some issues affecting personal and study related progress at the moment; it's been suggsted that I talk to you about it. I'm not sure if you would prefer an email or I'm happy to come in. Yours xxxx

kronkodile we talked in the sense of stopping things degenerating any further, it had got to the point of a permanent split. We've been together for 11 years, and both know there's a big deal to be saved. The undergraduate degree was hard and going straight to further studies is difficult for us both though he is very supportive. I just hope it stays that way and improves, it means being honest and when you're trying to keep your head together, it's hard to be open for fear of falling apart, again.

verdy I would love to be able to talk face-to-face with my DOS, I'm frightened of doing so and crying which would be a bummer. I guess I'm all for the professional face. It's just not working right now. Has anyone else had such a personal conversation with their supervisor? How do you approach it?