Keeping a healthy headspace while emerging as a researcher

Conducting research can be strenuous, laborious, and gruelling. It can be described by all sorts of other synonyms that imply that a heavy, lengthy task is being undertaken – sometimes with a high cost. This cost goes far beyond the money invested in training as a researcher – that is, during a Master’s, PhD journey, or postdoctoral journey. Yes, that cost, as you have likely already guessed, is a psychological one. In other words, the journey, as many emerging (and even established!) researchers may agree, can certainly take its (heavy) toll on a researcher’s mental health. The good news is this: balancing one’s research during this journey to keep one’s mental health intact is possible. Not only that, it is easily doable! To help researchers do this, Clinical Psychologist at the University of Pretoria (UP) Dr Hanle Kirkcaldy presented a workshop for registered Master’s, PhD, and postdoctoral students at UP on 30 March 2022 via Zoom. During the workshop, she helped researchers, emerging and established alike, understand how to reclaim ownership of three key facets that affect the mental wellbeing of researchers during the research journey: (1) cultivating a mindset for success; (2) time and stress management; and (3) managing supervisor feedback optimally.

Almost 100 postgrads joined the workshop while around 300 more registered for access to the recording of the workshop. These numbers reflect the real need of emerging researchers for practical, implementable advice on how best to keep their headspace safe and healthy during the demanding research journey. Some of their input regarding the aforementioned facets was familiar to many of the other researchers present: “Very familiar!”, “Everyday”, and “I can definitely relate”. Cultivating a mindset for success, for example, can be tough to do for many emerging researchers. One participant reminded the group of “dreading starting because already you [are] thinking what is needed is perfection from the beginning. Not realising that it is a journey.” In terms of time and stress management, one of the other participants said: “A few minutes on social media becomes hours.” This type of distraction is often intended to help researchers break away, even for a moment, from the stress that eventually becomes the source of more stress. Dealing with supervisor feedback, for instance, can also be so daunting sometimes (if not all the time for some): “I always feel anxious when I receive feedback from my supervisor and I take time to open it,” said one of the participants.

The numbers mentioned earlier also reflect something else: the many emerging researchers who want to take ownership of safeguarding their mental health while successfully completing their research journeys. After the workshop, some feedback that seems to have captured the general response from the participants was also received: “I think it was long overdue,” said one participant while another said that “it was surprisingly helpful, and greatly improved my evening. I feel a bit more hopeful and am looking forward to another workshop.” This last comment, in particular, suggests that this researcher is planning to carry on with their research journey. And rightly so, as these journeys are important: the world needs the knowledge we as researchers produce. And by heeding the advice of the experts in terms of safeguarding one’s mental health, one uses the knowledge these experts have created during their research journeys. Let’s thus help keep the positive feedback loop going. So, let’s encourage emerging researchers to keep on researching, and, in the process, keep their psyche safe. We can and many of our colleagues are already doing it, too.