Coping with stress and overwork in academia during COVID-19 | Professor Philippa Saunders

"I think I realised it was getting to me personally when I had a grant rejected and literally burst into tears. It was the loss of potential of that grant, and that it would have supported the salaries of two people, that really finally got to me."

Professor Philippa Saunders is Professor of Reproductive Steroids at the University of Edinburgh, and a member of the Academy of Medical Sciences' Council. In this video she talks about stress, coping with lockdown, missing family, uncertainty and lack of control. She emphasises the importance of work-life separation and keeping in touch with colleagues, and how to build routines around exercise and things that give you pleasure. She also talks about the opportunities for talking with teams about their own work-life balance and a chance to talk honestly about career goals.

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Thank you for sharing your work and personal experience about stress of academic work life. The loss chance of salaries of the people who work with us is painful. Thank you also for the tips! Love how you add morning exercise, that sounds so pleasant. Also other tips about the end of the day.

This might not be related to your video, but it reminds me about the stress in academic world issue: I feel like Covid-19 gives the chance for many to discuss this issue more openly, since not being able to cope with academic work seems like a taboo topic to be discussed openly prior to Covid-19 era.