![]() ![]() As a society, we should acknowledge that giving our mental health as much discussion time as our physical health is crucial and can make a positive difference. Whilst it is impossible to predict what the coming months might bring, the need to focus on our mental health is greater than ever. For those already living with mental health issues or illness, the uncertainty has exacerbated their symptoms. However, in the year where each of us has seen dramatic changes to our professional and personal lives and experienced new feelings of anxiety, stress, and isolation, we must recognise that mental health is very much a global issue.įor some, concerns about job security, family members, and their own physical health have put them under unexpected pressure. ![]() What’s most concerning about these pre-COVID-19 studies is that they already point to the fragile state of mental health within the academic community, even before the impacts of past few months and the unprecedented transition to online teaching and learning, are truly exposed. In the UK, these findings are supported by Advance HE’s annual Postgraduate Research Experience Survey, which showed alarming levels of anxiety, with only 14% respondents reporting low anxiety, compared to the 41% population average, according to the Office for National Statistics figures of May 2019. Nature’s 2019 biennial PhD survey, for instance, revealed that 36% of the 6,300 graduate students surveyed had sought help for anxiety or depression related to their PhD. Much of the recent research calls us to draw urgent attention to the sharply declining mental health in academia, particularly in PhD researchers. #DoOneThing – Recognising World Mental Health Day
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