Article summary: I’m currently writing my dissertation (thesis). A dissertation is a long report covering your research over your entire graduate career. Writing a dissertation is an incredible amount of work and it sucks a lot! This article is about tips I learned that are helping me write my thesis right now. Published papers can be chapters in your thesis …Read or listen to the rest
Self-advocating
Adderall: The downside
Article Summary Adderall allowed me to study more than 12 hours per day, EVERYDAY. I felt HIGH when I took Adderall. It also increased my heart rate and blood pressure so much that I would feel my eyes pulsate every time my heart pumped. The side effects and the HIGH feeling scared me so much that I talked to my …Read or listen to the rest
Empty Frames
Article Summary I’m an eternal (annoying) optimist. My optimism helps me deal with my disabilities. Scientists NEED to be optimistic. If all of us LD and ADHD individuals had the optimism of scientists I think we would have the potential to perform at the best of our abilities! Celebrate your accomplishments by displaying them in way that you can see …Read or listen to the rest
PhD me… Please? part 3
Article Summary My second year of grad school was a roller coaster of emotion. Your second year of grad school can be defined by its comprehensive exam. If you fail this exam two times than you get KICKED OUT of school. I passed the written part of my comprehensive exam but failed the oral defense part! I began to HATE …Read or listen to the rest
PhD me…. Please? Part 1
Article Summary I began graduate school 3 months early so I could work in a research lab without worrying about graduate school homework. I was very anxious about disclosing my learning disabilities to the school because of the social stigmas attached to them. I thought I had to sacrifice fun by studying and working a lot! I was NOT balanced. …Read or listen to the rest
Schooling the imperfect perfectionist
Article Summary School has and continues to be VERY difficult for me I always worked really hard and got decent grades despite my disabilities I did well not only because I worked hard but because I also received appropriate accommodations (extended time on tests, a decreased distraction test environment, NO Scan-trons!, spelling and grammar were not always counted against me) …Read or listen to the rest