Hi all,

Are there any other final year PhD students who are shattered beyond belief?

I've been working really hard over the last few weeks into writing up my result chapters-ie working 15/16 hours a day (including weekends)- although I think I've made some progress (my supervisors will probably disagree!) I'm totally shattered and really just want to curl up and sleep!

I know this has been discussed before but has anyone got any tips to combat chronic tiredness!

In working these long hours I haven't exactly looked after my health lately (ie coke, sweets, chocolate bars to keep me awake) so I'm probably guessing that has something to do with it!

Yes! Particularly after a few weeks of late night panic - body wants to sleep, lights off, brain on at super speed telling me I'll never do it. Joy! Then finally get a good long sleep I feel even worse. Not helped by doing practically no exercise. I try to stay away from too much caffeine as it seems to have a huge effect on me. I have forgotten how much longer you've left? I'm sure if you feel like you've made progress your supervisors will agree so that's a return on your exhaustion! If you want to sleep, you probably need to sleep, particularly given your work schedule. I also think there's an emotional exhaustion to all this that we don't notice as quickly.
I think one combat is to give your body the time it needs to rest and some good food fuel to be able to do the job you ask of it. Having a few breaks in the long days to rest your brain, eat some healthy food as well as the chocolate...mmm...chocolate... I'm lucky as one of my friends is a good infuence trying to get me to do exercise which, although I know will help, I'm terrible at putting off myself. Sometimes the time not working can be very productive in refreshing me to be more productive when I get back to my desk.
Good luck!

You should really try to give yourself a break. I know it may seem couterproductive as you'll spend less time working, but the time that you DO spend working will probably be a lot more fruitful as a result.

I always find that getting some fresh air helps me feel more alert and clears my head, especially after lunch when I seem to get a huge concentration dip. Even if you just go out and walk round the block, it's better than nothing.

Try to take a break from work - go and do something mundane like housework, phone a friend...anything to give your brain a break from work. You may find that you're subconsciously thinking about work without realising it, and might stumble across the answer to a problem that's been bothering you.

And try to eat healthily too if possible - maybe going to cook a nice meal for yourself would be another good way to take a break! :-)

I think you should have a break too and cut down your working hours. You can't be that productive working 15/16 hours a day - unless you're super human! If you cut down your hours, slept more, you'd probably be more productive working 8-10 hours.

I realised last year that my poor diet (mostly chocolate and bad carbs) was having bad effects on my health and energy levels, and now 90% of the time I eat healthy foods (no white foods or sweets). I also try to take a short walk or do 30 mins of exercise in the morning as this seems to clear my head. I can't say I've given up on drinking coke and I still have 'healthy'ish snacks like granola bars (these will give you energy for a longer time than chocolate).

I also take Berocca effervescent supplements - it's probably a placebo effect, but they do seem to give me a boost of energy.

Yes, like the other OPs, I think you need to look after yourself a bit more - you'll burn out at that rate, and getting sick won't help you at all. I'm in my final year, and also working hard, but am making sure I do everything people suggest - eating well, exercising, sleeping, socialising a bit. You might think you don't have time for these, but you need to look after yourself so you can keep going. Have a brisk walk, a rest, a nice meal with some friends, and you'll feel a lot better!