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Waiting to Get Your Dissertation Accepted?
Last Updated on: 23rd May 2024, 05:40 am
The process of earning a doctorate can be long and stressful – and for some people, it can even be traumatic. This may be hard for those who haven’t been through a doctoral program to understand, but anyone who has will likely nod in understanding. Some people are beginning to talk about the idea of “post dissertation stress disorder.” This is a variation on “post-traumatic stress disorder,” or PTSD. Post-dissertation stress disorder is not a condition listed in the DSM, but it is real in the sense that many people experience it.
Just browse a few Reddit threads on the subject. It’s not uncommon for people to experience prolonged, debilitating stress and anxiety after completing their doctorate. Here are some excerpts:
“I finished my PhD last year, and it has taken me 8 months to get my head together. The mental and emotional demands affected every aspect of my life.”
“It’s been almost two years and I still feel I am in that post-partum phase where nothing interests me and everything frightens me. I’ve heard it’s not unusual… It get better very slowly, but I feel it’s going to be a long journey.”
“Yes it’s unfortunately way too common. My lab had two suicide attempts and it took those students around a year to be able to start a job. Not because of a long job search but because of their trauma. They were on disability payments due to bad mental health for that time.”
If you’re experiencing anything like this, know first of all that you’re not alone. It’s extremely common for people to go into a “post dissertation slump.” Also know that it is likely to get better. I also highly recommend reaching out to a qualified therapist – they are trained to help with these kinds of challenges.
I’ll talk about overcoming post dissertation stress disorder in a moment. But first, let’s look at some of its causes.
The Causes of Post Dissertation Stress Disorder
People Problems
When we’re dealing with people (and committee members are people, hard as it may seem to believe at times), there may be times when they don’t act in a rational manner. When people act in an irrational manner, it can be traumatic to others.
Often it’s not so much the dissertation process itself that’s traumatic, but the people you work with and their reactions. This is why I always encourage people to find committee members who have a track record of helping people to finish, and committee members who actually work well together. Because if your committee members don’t like each other, your dissertation can become a battleground.
Confronting Prejudice
Another reason why a doctoral program may be traumatic is a series of isms: racism, sexism, ableism, etc. It’s ideal when you’re able to mitigate this by working with people who have actions and attitudes that are supportive to you rather than reductive. But many people are unaware of their committee members’ biases from the beginning, or may be aware of them and not have any other viable options. It’s a sad truth that such biases still make it harder for people of marginalized identities to succeed in doctoral programs.
Student Loans
It can be stressful to get close to finishing and realize “now I have to pay these student loans”. In some disciplines you can work in jobs that can help eliminate student loans a lot more quickly. I encourage you to explore all options related to the burden of debt and how you can pay it off. There are programs to help graduates pay off their student loans, and even employers now who are helping employees by paying some of their student debt.
Life Balance
The concept of “work-life balance” seems to be a joke to many doctoral students. Unfortunately, the demands from family and work and other commitments that may not get as much attention as they need or deserve. That can be stressful as well. When you finish, you can start paying more attention there. Once you’re complete, thank the people who were helpful and patient along the way.
The Post Dissertation Slump
One thing I’ve seen a number of times is when people finish their dissertation, they don’t know what to do. They’ve put so much time and effort in for so long that the reaction is “now what?” they become a little lost. I want to caution you from just jumping into the whole pile of things that have built po while you were working on it. “Now I can catch up on all the projects I wanted to do, etc.” My advice is to pause for several weeks or months to 1) relax and 2) understand that the process of completing a dissertation will most likely change you. If you realize that you’re different and recognize that you have different desires, move forward on those and that’s going to feed you more than an old to-do list.
Over 50% of doctoral candidates don’t finish their dissertations.
Overcoming Post Dissertation Stress Disorder
Here are some ways of overcoming the post-dissertation slump.
Seek Out a Therapist
A qualified therapist can be your greatest ally in navigating this transitional time. They are trained to work with conditions like anxiety, depression, and PTSD. I recommend finding a good therapist who practices EMDR.
Practice Self Care
Go to those activities that have supported you in the past in any sort of stressful situation. Whether it’s taking time for yourself, working out, creating art, spending time with family, whatever it is that helps you eliminate stress, this may be a time where those activities become more important. For you to be able to move forward.
Honor the Transition
It’s easy to feel bad for struggling after getting your doctorate. “I just completed one of the biggest achievements of my life, why am I struggling?” is something I’ve heard from a number of post-doctoral clients when they first reached out. It’s important to recognize that big life transitions are naturally challenging. Just like the death of a loved one, the birth of a child, the end of a career, or a move to a new state, big changes shake us up. This is natural, and it’s nothing to be ashamed of.
I recommend taking some time off to honor the weight of this transition. Before trying to “do” anything (like applying for jobs or publishing a paper), take a few weeks or months to just “be.” Remember who you are apart from your doctoral program. Remember what you like to do. Reconnect with your purpose. Ask yourself why you entered into the doctoral program, and whether your purpose has changed in the time since you began.
Just as we have ceremonies to honor other transitions in our lives (such as weddings, funerals, and baby showers), consider creating a ceremony for yourself to celebrate your achievement, let go of the past, and enter into a new stage.
Find Community
Getting a doctorate can be an isolating experience. Take time to reconnect with your friends and family. You may also wish to seek out those who have been through similar experiences. Perhaps there is a professor or a fellow student you connected with during your doctoral program. People are usually grateful to have an old acquaintance reach out.
Practice Letting Go
It’s not uncommon to have lived with a project for a year or longer where it’s become almost part of every waking moment of your life, to be told that it’s over and believe that there’s still more you could have done.
One way to think of this is that your dissertation is like a test, and your committee are the gatekeepers who allow you to get into the club. When your committee says it is sufficient, there’s nothing more needed to get into the club. You are a full member of the union.
This gets to the old phrase, “the only good dissertation is a done dissertation.” There is no adage that says “the only good dissertation is a perfect dissertation.” One thing that slows people down all along the process is striving for perfection – especially when they aren’t the deciders of perfection.
It’s the committee that determines what’s “good enough” to move forward. So when they have said it’s good enough, you’re a member of the club. Choose to accept that what’s done is done, and move forward with no regret.
