It seems strange to just start blogging about my PhD journey when I am in my second year and still have a (little) while to go. But I must start somewhere, right?
When I started a PhD so many friends and colleagues said how fast it would go by, but I never truly realised how right they were. Now, I KNOW, it goes by so quickly!
I have learnt so much already. Even though it scares me how quickly the rest of the PhD will fly by, it is very exciting too. It’s not going to be a straight easy ride, there will be bumps and bruises I am sure, but it will be totally worth it!
Starting at Coventry University
I arrived at Coventry University in January 2017 after a chaotic Christmas move up from Southampton. My Husband and I moved in with my wonderful Grandparents in Nuneaton until we could find our own place. I got straight into the PhD, reading as much as I could and attended almost every workshop and seminar there was. I even volunteered to be a Research Student Rep for the Student Union (which will be a later blog post). I also made some really great friends! I started working on a systematic review (which I am still doing), presented a poster at the HLS conference and at the GAMO annual symposium in London in the first few months.
While doing my systematic review I was thinking about what to do next and what gaps there were in the area. I started looking into chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, learning about the condition, the benefits of being physically active with the condition and the use of technology such as apps and wearables.
Now
While still working on my systematic review, I am putting together a protocol and ethics application to conduct a qualitative study to find out about the experiences of people with COPD in using apps and wearables for monitoring their physical activity. I have no idea what I will do after that yet but I will figure it out!
So, in brief, that’s where I am at the moment. I am not even half way through my PhD yet and I have so much still to do, but I am really enjoying it. It’s hard and it’s challenging at times but if it was easy everyone would be doing it, right?
Thanks for reading! If you have any questions or want to know how I might be able to help you, please get in touch!