The journey of obtaining a doctoral degree often involves immense pressure, long hours of research and study, navigating academic politics, facing rejection, and dealing with the uncertainty of the future. These experiences can take a toll on one’s mental well-being and emotional stability.
From my personal experience, therapy can make one’s transition experience much smoother and help you make better decisions.
Getting a PhD Is Extremely Stressful
Getting a PhD is extremely stressful and can affect your overall well-being. Years are spent towards a goal that may or may not pan out on top of low wages for stipends, high course loads, and demanding advisors.
Speaking from personal experience I recall several sleepless nights. During the writing process of my dissertation, I was drinking red bulls at night to keep myself awake. I frankly had serious anxiety during much of the process, but I just thought that’s what PhDs were supposed to feel writing their dissertation.
Outside of my personal experience. Cassie M Hazell and her colleagues found that over a third of the participants reported experiencing symptoms of anxiety and depression and that many reported feeling isolated and unsupported. The article suggests that the intense pressure to succeed, coupled with a lack of support, may be contributing factors to the poor mental health of doctoral researchers.
What Therapy Offers That Informational Interviews Don’t
Leaving academia can be a challenging and demanding process, and seeking therapy can be a helpful way to cope with the stress and pressures that may arise during your transition. Often times PhDs don’t have the full support of their advisors or even the university itself.
I’m very supportive of informational interviews, but the person you are interviewing is not your therapist. Therapists can help you unpack a lot of mental baggage that was gained before, during, and after your PhD. An informational interview can give you clarity, but not resolve trauma or loss of identity.
Therapy is meant to help with the transition of emotional and traumatic experiences you may have had in the past to heal and move forward to the next steps in life.
A Loss of Identity
For many of us, we were academics. We chose academia and the path to becoming a professor because it was a part of who we were. When you decide that you don’t want to pursue a path that you thought of for years, it can be damaging to your self-esteem and your sense of self.
Trying to navigate the job market while dealing with this loss can make the transition even more overwhelming.
In 2021, I wrote a Medium post about my experiences of losing my academic identity and a book that helped me find my way. I wrote the Medium post around the time that I was job searching, interning, finishing my dissertation, and being a father of two kids.
Ask Questions To Help Yourself
Low-Cost Therapy Options
There are some affordable therapy options available in the US, however, our healthcare system has a long way to go to be affordable for all folks. Look into the following options:
- Community health centers: These centers provide low-cost or free mental health services to individuals in need.
- Employee assistance programs (EAPs): Many employers offer EAPs as a benefit to their employees, which provide a limited number of therapy sessions at no cost.
- Sliding fee scale: Some therapists offer a sliding fee scale, which adjusts the cost of therapy based on the individual’s income and ability to pay.
- Online therapy: There are several online therapy providers that offer affordable therapy services via video or phone call.
- Teletherapy: Some insurance companies cover teletherapy, which is therapy conducted over the phone or video call.
- University counseling centers: Many universities have counseling centers that offer low-cost therapy services to students and sometimes to the community. If you haven’t left the university just yet, use their mental health services.
It is worth noting that some people may be eligible for free or low-cost therapy through Medicaid, Medicare, or other government-funded programs.
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Ryan Collins PhD is an SEO Strategist at Go Fish Digital. Ryan completed his PhD in Media Arts and Sciences at Indiana University Bloomington in 2021. During his time at Indiana University, Ryan eventually pivoted into a career in SEO and Digital Marketing after having informational interviews with working professionals in SEO, working on side projects, and gaining industry experience.