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I’ve been finding other people’s optimism really discouraging lately (thread)
It’s already tough for me to admit to my advisors “I’m doing my best but everything’s really hard right now,” and, even though it’s said in kindness, it can hurt to hear “yeah but it’s possible!”
I think so many trainees or people in transitional parts of their careers are quietly grieving the loss of the lives we should’ve/could’ve had, and we don’t want to say so or talk about it because 1) it sounds dramatic and 2) we’re often still the “lucky” ones
I’m constantly grateful that I haven’t lost loved ones; I don’t struggle to pay rent or put food on the table; I have wonderful and caring friends
But I’m still really struggling with watching my slim prospects vanish into no prospects, feeling super inadequate because I can’t produce or even think at the same level as before, feeling how disappointed my advisor and my committee is with me
I don’t really know what my goal is in putting this out there. I guess, if you’re a trainee, I hope you feel a little less alone. If you have trainees, sometimes they don’t need to hear “you can do it,” they need to hear “I understand, and you’re not a failure” (/thread)
