DepressionI am realizing that I have been in a depression for much longer than I ever imagined. Sadness, bouts of crying, no confidence in my self, bleak outlook, all those, of course. Walking away from things, like my PhD, ok granted my boss, Dr. A, was the biggest a-hole in the world, people in the lab called him pig vomit, but if I really wanted that PhD, I should have persevered. My friend Tina did, even though it took her 9 years!!! Much too long, unheard of in Biology, most people get done in 3-5 years. And I was on track to finish mine in 3 years when Dr. A-hole decided not to let me do the experiments I knew I had to do in order to finish my PhD. So I quit. And he promptly gave my project to his favorite student who finished in 3 years, because most of the work had already been done by me. Ouch! Bitterness, Samina! Leaves a bad taste in your mouth and probably shortens your life. However, it was sexism, and Dr. A-hole truly was intimidated by my intelligence, and I was cycling through being manicky and depressed, and I did not have my husband’s support. All excuses, I know, yet it really was kind of a bad situation through and through. But, now looking back, I know I should have persisted. Is it too late to go back? No! It’s never too late, as long as you’re alive. For example, when I was getting my Master’s degree in Molecular Biology in 1985, there was a student named Victor, who was 70 years old, starting his PhD! So I have another 15 years to think about it, haha.