I'm sure this is a frequent topic, but I've come to the point where I'm seriously thinking of quitting.
I've spent the last few weeks (months...) drifting along desperately trying to find my mojo and I just can't seem to do it. I feel completely overwhelmed with it all, and it just seems like such an easy way out to quit and find myself a 'proper' job. But I'm certain I'd regret it... so now I'm in a state of limbo where I'm achieving nothing and getting more panicked by the day with the lack of progress :-(
I'm not sure if there are words of wisdom that can help, or if I'm just venting to people I hope will understand! I've no idea if I should speak to my supervisor about this, but I don't think I'd feel comfortable doing so - I don't feel that our relationship is great and I don't want her to know how much I'm struggling, which is probably pride winning out over sense :$
What to do... any insight would be welcome!

Hi Docmartini,

I think I'm in a similar situation to yours - really struggling to find motivation at the moment and am reluctant to discuss how I'm feeling with my supervisor for the same reason. I'm afraid I don't really have any useful advice, but is there anyone other than your supervisor you can talk to about how you're feeling? At my university, we also have an advisor in addition to supervisors, who is not directly involved in the project, but who you are supposed to be able to go to with non-academic concerns or things you don't feel you can discuss with your supervisor. Or how about other PhD students or postdocs in your group? I would suggest though that if you are seriously thinking of quitting, you should talk things over with your supervisor at some point, even if just out of courtesy. If she realises that you are feeling that way, she may be able to offer some advice or more support for you to continue.

Hope things get better for you, whatever you decide!

Hi,

I'm not sure what to say, other than I think everyone goes through this.

No magic insights, but lots of other people seem to pull everything together in the end.

Hope this helps...

Hi Docmartini,

For what it's worth here is my opinion - don't quit!!! You obviously want to see it through, so hang in there. I felt how you're feeling for about a year, I also couldn't talk to my supervisor as he just pacified me and fobbed me off. I did however also try speaking to other people, this gave me some perspective and allowed me to make progress. Try not to get so scared you're stuck. Perhaps try to set yourself little goals each day? When I was struggling I often took a piece of paper, wrote my thesis statement at the top and wrote down everything I'd done work wise. This allowed me to see how what I'd done matched my statement, and what I still needed to do to achieve it. From there I could split up the remaining work into manageable chunks and get moving again.

Hope this helps