Help needed with PhD Problems

[Colorwind]

Hello everybody,

I've been reading some posts and I realized that some other people here were also diagnosed with ADHD halfway through their PhDs.

I guess PhD wasn't really a good idea for me because it is really hard to sit down and do anything. I need to run tests, perform long experiments where learning the results might take a day or two, and I find myself always procrastinating. (Actually, my extreme procrastination was the reason why my PhD advisor told me to see a good psychiatrist who can diagnose ADHD)

I am doing bioinformatics/molecular biology but I am sure the most other departments that a PhD can be done are also very ADHD unfriendly unless you really *really* love your subject. For me, I liked the subject but I guess I liked it better when it was just a hobby, or a high school student's dream to cure cancer or find a solution to all the world's diseases. Of course, in real life, that is not as fun as it is in our dreams

As I *need* to finish this PhD (otherwise I will have to pay back a lot of scholarship money) I need advice from those who are experienced with the ADHD/PhD issues.

How did you all cope with it?? Especially with the sitting down and writing the results part???

Even Ritalin doesn't help me much with my procrastination. It is almost like I'm waiting for its effects to pass so that I can *act like* I'm doing something.

I also have to add, I'm a full-time internet addict, and maybe the only reason why I'm doing "informatics" is that the computer is the only thing that can keep my focus longer than 5-10 minutes, and internet surfing is a major cause of my procrastination problem too.

[eweber]

ColorWind, good luck with you PhD. I have my B.S. in biology, and M.S. in Forensic Science so I can understand your "pain". I had/have the exact same problems you have. I hope, soon, to go for my PhD, if I can find one that is schedule friendly with my crazy hours as a forensic tech/death investigator. I will be following this post. Let me know how things go with you.

[fatefm]

Hi Colorwind, I am an ABD (all but dissertation) student who has been trying to write up my thesis for the last four years. I have thought about quitting more so now than ever before and the stress is starting to get to me and my family. For the moment I am going to hang in there and hopefully things will change soon. So, keep in mind that I haven't quite found the trick but I certainly have some ideas that have helped.

First, increasing or changing your meds may help. When my meds are working well I procrastinate far less (today they are not working so well, hence my responding to our thread ). It is amazing, 30 minutes after downing the meds (Adderall xr) I just don't want to surf the web any more and I am happy to start working.

A few things that have been incredibly useful:

1. Location, location, location.
Going to a library with a single book or journal article to read or a particular chapter to write helps lessen my instinct to procrastinate and get distracted. Finding quiet study areas of a library are better for me than the ones with a lot of traffic. Going with a computer without internet access or that has been turned off increases my productivity ten-fold.

2. A study buddy.
Every Tuesday I get together with a friend (also diagnosed with ADHD) and we study/work together. The rules are strict: no talking to each other, no distracting each other and we are NOT there to police each other (this is just another distraction). Just each others presence is enough to keep us on the task at hand. I usually get more done on a Tuesday than I do the rest of the week.

3. Supervisor support
This is key. Ask your supervisor if they are willing to read stuff that is unfinished, messy, unclear, etc. For me the need to hand in something perfect set me back years. I (with great effort and anxiety) started turning in stuff that I thought was horrible only to discover the world didn't end, my supervisors gave me useful feedback and I became more motivated to finish.

4. Music
I have a few CDs that I listen to that help me focus on my writing (Natural Concentration, various classical pieces). The headphones and music help me focus and act as a sort of trigger that play time is over and it is time to work.

What has NOT worked: setting deadlines, asking people to monitor my progress, being a perfectionist, taking myself too seriously !

Good luck, hang in there and maybe we will defend together...in the near distant future!

[Simulacro]

Same here with the getting diagnosed during a PhD. I did really bad last year, as in failing a class (something of a big no no during PhD studies). During this time I finally was diagnosed and started to factor in what I've learned about ADD into my attempts to improve.

Before I continue, I'd like to add I am of the sort that does see positive things in ADD. I hold no grudge against it, and I actually like it. My lack of focus on one thing makes studying a pain, but it allows me to write long stories and novels with ease. But I am aware it comes with many drawbacks that unfortunately are made worse in the school system. The system is just not ADD-friendly.

Being in the humanities might make things slightly different, but for me, what keeps me here is that I know that once I get the PhD, I can actually put the ADD to good use. What drew me into academia was the interaction of people and flowing and exchange of ideas.

In my classes, during discussions, I am very engaged and the professors seem to be impressed or interested in my contributions, yet when the final paper is turned in, they wonder what went wrong. It doesn't help that in my program that one paper is pretty much 100% of my grade.

So my course requirements require too much of things I'm just not good at, but what I want to do relies on those things I am. So I guess it's a matter of learning to play the game until I get the piece of paper that let me make the rules.

[Candlewax]

Simulacro, that's great, I know exactly what you're talking about. I want to be a doctor for Doctors Without Borders, and travel to Africa to run a clinic that's miles away from 'the civilised world', where nothing is predictable and everyday is an adventure. I think my personality type would fit right in there, but for now I just have to cram all that medical knowledge into my head.

[Megs]

Is Ritalin your first medication that you've tried? Maybe you need to consult your doctor about trying a different med.

I completed my M.Sc. In chemistry long before I was diagnosed with ADHD. It was painful to write my thesis. It was painful to put my data into charts that others could understand and read. Basically I could tell right away if my experiment worked or not just by reading right off my instruments...

To make things worse, I had a baby in my last year of school, and was diagnosed with PPD. I probably WAS depressed, but the anti-depressants still weren't helping my ADHD traits. I felt stupid, I felt lazy and terrible. While I was coping fine before the baby, she just added that last straw to send my life into chaos.

Somehow I got the work done. I don't really know how, but I did. A full 2 years late, however.

I really wish that I was able to get the proper diagnoses during my education, it could have spared me a lot of grief. If not, at least I would have an understanding why I was all of a sudden so paralyzed from my work.

So I guess I don't have much to add as to how I got things done. I hope you are able to find a treatment that will get you on the right track to complete your PhD.

[QueensU_girl]

I think ADDers benefit form 1:1 support in academic tasks at times. I know I had this same problem when I got sick and had to do a HUGE pile of work from 4 courses of my 4th year BSc Nursing program. I just could not finish it.

If you can AFFORD it, hire a TUTOR/COACH to help you and be a Companion with you while you run tests and write papers, for several hours a week.

It can really help you with staying 'on task'.

[magiix]

fatefm is 100% on this. His recommendations are solid gold. If I need to get something done, reports, especially... find a nice quiet place, good lighting & all the rest, sometimes headphones with the music, and having a friend there (who is NOT to talk to me-- but somehow just knowing they are there REALLY helps keep me on track, otherwise I start on something and then diverge and get stuck on something else, like right now, I should be studying for GRE's i'm surfing addforums, i'm also alone at home >.< - the worse combination)... I don't particularly recommend choosing a friend who isn't in tuned with ADD personality -- they get annoying at times, because they can talk and then go right back to work like its nothing... I can't.

But really really key is the TYPE medication. Ritalin for me does nothing, and kinda seems like it makes things worse for me. Dexedrine or Adderal are much more suited (for you, i am assuming because...): I'm assuming you're ADD inattentively, rather than ADHD, hence being diagnosed so late... I was diagnosed Junior year of high school, with ADD not ADHD... and once I started taking meds, my life really changed, I was finally able to focus on writing reports and such.. I was finally able to follow my interests in science and mathematics (I am right now applying for Graduate School Physics, just finishing up my BS in physics), before then I was following a path in music and humanities.
-- A side note, I actually find it extremely enjoyable to write up very long and "dull" lab reports or research write-ups while on medication. (ahh fyI -- I started off on Dexedrine and have since switched to adderall, i personally prefer a mixture extended release and instant release)

My caution to you, especially since you are already in your PhD program is to be careful about meds when you are beginning to take them. Be aware of your interests and how they are swayed. As I said the medication for me was life changing. I have always loved science and math, but before medication was never really able to peruse it. Instead I was following a FAMILY TRADITION (one which I still hold dear) of going into the arts, namely performing arts -- music. That *really* was my track in life at the time. But once I took meds, it changed. (mind you for the better I do believe). I'm sure that as long as you know you are studying something you enjoy, or have enjoyed, you will be find that (a different) medication may actually rekindle your passion for the subject. --Sounds a bit strange, but medication does that, I'm sure others can back me up. If you are really iffy about the subject however, you may find yourself either doing what you gotta do to get it done (most likely scenario-- because after all that IS the point of the meds), or you may find yourself beginning to lean another direction.

[rd_wnc]

Colorwind,

There is already a bunch of great advice here so I will try (and will probably fail) to be brief.

A Ph.D. is tough because it's open ended. I did well in classes because they changed every semester and had concrete deadlines but once this passed everything was really up to me and it is not easy to pull all of those threads together.

A few suggestions.

I had to break things up into smaller pieces that I could focus on rather than trying to pull everything together at the same time. Set deadlines for yourself or see if your advisor will do this if that helps but take this in manageable pieces first.

Location is important. Find a place you do well and work there. Avoid the places that stress you. I'm am at my worst working at home. Before meds (and before diagnosis) I used to do the best at writing in a coffee shop. For some reason their was enough background noise and distraction to keep my restless mind occupied. After going on meds (during my Ph.D. program) I preferred my office.

Find the time of day at which you do best and make the most of that. Don't feel like you have to fill up every minute with work especially if you aren't getting anything done. If you can get 2 good hours out of a day then use those and do something else. Over time you can start to get 3 hours and so on. They don't have to be back to back hours so sitting in front of the computer looking productive is a bigger waste of time than working for 1/2 hour and taking a walk. I work best in the very early morning after I take my Adderall. I am worthless in the evenings so try to avoid working then.

Be sure you aren't having depression or anxiety issues too. My doctor recognized this in me before I did and dealing with both has made a huge difference in my productivity.

Keep it simple. I've wasted money on planners, calendars and wasted time on elaborate filing an organization systems only to go back to my simple system of piles.

Work in short bursts and find a way to reward yourself. Build a chart, take a walk. Write a paragraph, browse the web (but use an alarm or reminder to not get pulled into the internet trap).

Coaches, buddies and other things I didn't try but they seem to work for some folks. There are some good strategy books out there too.

Don't settle for the status quo. There is treatment and improvement out there so keep looking until you find the combination of things that work for you.

As always you can come here and find an understanding group of friends so don't be afraid to call on us to listen and offer moral support.

You are to be commended for pursuing a challenging degree given the added burden ADD can place.

Take care of yourself in this process...it can get a bit overwhelming if you don't forget to step away occasionally.