nessiemonster88 replied to your post ““finishing a PhD is hard and stressful for everyone” okay i know this...”
An alternative interpretation is that the grad school system is completely fucked to the point of pretty much being designed to give people worse/new mental health issues, and those with the power to change things aren't doing shit all
This is definitely true, especially since I have the best advisors of anyone I know and still it’s stressful.
While we’re at it, the fact that I have the best advisors is the only reason I didn’t quit years ago (well that and being insanely stubborn). The latest time I had to email them saying “I am behind again because my brain is being a dick” (not in so many words but not far from it either) they basically said “okay, let us know how we can help, you’ve done good work in the past and we’re sure you’ll do good work in the future.” Note to people who supervise other people: do it like this.
Further note to anyone considering a PhD: If you can do it in Europe instead of the USA, do it in Europe. My advisors both took 3-week holidays during which they did not check their email. At all. (They’re better than some but not outliers, at least in the Netherlands, so far as I can tell). People actually take their vacation days. Coming into the office on weekends is unusual, not required (unless you’ve got an experiment running or something). I’m not sure I can go back to the US academia grind after realizing it doesn’t have to be that way. And I don’t think that’s a bad thing.
