Mindful Approaches to Navigating Stress, Anxiety and the Emotional Landscape of the PhD

Doctoral research can be intellectually rewarding, but can also give rise to stress, uncertainty and self-doubt. This interactive session explores the emotional landscape of the PhD, helping you develop a greater understanding of how expectations, overwhelm and imposter feelings can arise and affect your experience of academic life. 

Drawing on mindfulness-informed approaches and insights into the nervous system, you'll learn how stressful experiences, both past and present, shape your thoughts, emotions and behaviour, and gain practical techniques to respond more healthily and effectively to challenging situations. 

Through guided reflection and simple mindfulness practices, you'll develop greater awareness of unhelpful mental and emotional patterns and develop strategies to cultivate greater calm, confidence and self-compassion throughout your doctoral journey.

By the end of this workshop, you will be able to:
•    Recognise how the demands of doctoral research can contribute to stress, anxiety and self-doubt.
•    Understand how the brain and nervous system respond to pressure and uncertainty.
•    Identify unhelpful patterns of thinking, including the inner critic and other automatic responses.
•    Apply practical mindfulness-based strategies to regulate stress, build resilience and respond more calmly and confidently to challenges.