For many, conferences are really exciting times for research. Our ideas and knowledge can be shared and collaborations can be formed with others across organisations at conferences and events. At the PhD stage, conferences can often be discussed as both a great opportunity for a researcher as well as a crucial part of disseminating work from a project. They can be opportunities for your research to find more fruition.
However, as a neurodivergent postgraduate researcher, I have found conferences can also be overwhelming and tiring. This does not mean I do not like attending and presenting. But I am often impacted longer-term from the run up to the event and decompressing post event more than people who are not disabled or neurodivergent. This blog post is a reflection on what I have learnt to help myself when participating in conferences.
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Knowing your needs
Knowing your needs and wants is key to help making the experience more comfortable for you. Contacting the conference team can be a really helpful way for you to find out more about any specific logistics or arrangements for the conference generally or for activities such as workshops, dinners or online setups. For me, my focus only really starts from 10am and if I have not had at least enough sleep, I struggle to work to the best of my ability.
If I am presenting, I always ask to start after 10am for this reason. Additionally, I have found it useful to discuss any needs with the team booking any travel arrangements (whether this is internal or external to the University). I never go into very specific detail, but it has helped to provide some context and understanding for the person booking or making adjustments for me in the instances of changes to travel plans for example.
Managing expectations
It is important to think about your own expectations of yourself when attending a conference. When the conference schedule comes through, there can be so many interesting talks and activities you want to try to squeeze into your time there. And to be honest, if you can really go for it and do as much as you want to, then go for it! But from my experience, I have planned to go to lots then have felt too burnt out during and after the event. So, I now find it helpful to plan to attend any talks and activities that are relevant to my research but that would add something more than other literature I have already read. If there is someone due to talk and I am interested in their work, that is also a good indicator to attend. My other consideration is anything that might be a different research focus but something I am genuinely interested in learning about. This latter approach is helpful in keeping my brain stimulated and giving me energy. It may have some relevance at some point in my research experience anyway!
Energy levels
Knowing how your energy can fluctuate in certain environments and situations can be extremely helpful in making the conference trip as comfortable as possible. One thing important to me is if I am staying somewhere overnight, I like to book accommodation as close to the conference venue as possible. This is to enable me to have somewhere I can just retreat to if things get too much and have a break away from people. I am aware this is very dependable on budget and other accessibility factors and needs. However, it has been a real energy saver for me where I have been able to enjoy an event so much more from allowing myself time away in my own space. When I come home after an event, I also like to plan ‘easier’ work for a couple of days. This has helped me to recover from any overstimulation and fatigue from being around people for a long time.
Planning a couple of weeks (at least) in advance
Once the main trip to the conference has been arranged, I like to learn how to navigate different systems including transport. Figuring this out when I get somewhere can bring me both excitement and a lot of anxiety. Making time to look into this prior to travelling is just as important for me as it is writing a paper to present at the event. This includes looking at any logistics and admin around travel. It is one of the best things I can do to save worry and energy when I arrive somewhere. It might not be be perfect when I get to the destination, but I have a rough idea visually from looking at maps and other websites to gather information about a destination. YouTube can be really helpful for getting some kind of familiarity with transport systems and facilities within an area you are not familiar with too. Additionally, for those like me who are new to travelling, I have found The Man in Seat 61 very helpful to save energy on train route planning, particularly across Europe. The website has helped me to reduce anxiety around train and station facilities, relevant to departures too. Just to note that if using this website, not all of the information is up to date.
Getting there a full day prior to the event
Although I have not managed to do this yet, mainly due to budget and time reasons, in future, I plan to book a full day or two before the event to allow myself some time to explore the nearby surroundings as well as compensate for potential delays. I know this will help me to settle into a place without the worry of rushing on the first day there, on top of other conference-related worries.
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As a neurodivergent postgraduate researcher, I find planning and thinking ahead is so helpful in ensuring my conference experience is enjoyable whilst looking after my health. In this blog post I have provided you with some of the few things I now focus on prioritising to when preparing to attend a conference/any event. Hopefully this has provided some insight for you too. Don’t forget, it is always worth speaking with DASS and/or your supervisors if you feel you need some additional support for attending conferences too.
PhDiaries: Approaching conferences as a neurodivergent student
For many, conferences are really exciting times for research. Our ideas and knowledge can be shared and collaborations can be formed with others across organisations at conferences and events. At the PhD stage, conferences can often be discussed as both a great opportunity for a researcher as well as a crucial part of disseminating work from a project. They can be opportunities for your research to find more fruition. However, as a neurodivergent postgraduate researcher, I have found conferences can also be overwhelming and tiring. This does not mean I do not like attending and presenting. But I am often impacted longer-term from the run up to the event and decompressing post event more than people who are not disabled or neurodivergent. This blog post is a reflection on what I have learnt to help myself when participating in conferences.
—
Knowing your needs
Knowing your needs and wants is key to help making the experience more comfortable for you. Contacting the conference team can be a really helpful way for you to find out more about any specific logistics or arrangements for the conference generally or for activities such as workshops, dinners or online setups. For me, my focus only really starts from 10am and if I have not had at least enough sleep, I struggle to work to the best of my ability. If I am presenting, I always ask to start after 10am for this reason. Additionally, I have found it useful to discuss any needs with the team booking any travel arrangements (whether this is internal or external to the University). I never go into very specific detail, but it has helped to provide some context and understanding for the person booking or making adjustments for me in the instances of changes to travel plans for example.
Managing expectations
It is important to think about your own expectations of yourself when attending a conference. When the conference schedule comes through, there can be so many interesting talks and activities you want to try to squeeze into your time there. And to be honest, if you can really go for it and do as much as you want to, then go for it! But from my experience, I have planned to go to lots then have felt too burnt out during and after the event. I have found it helpful to plan to attend any talks and activities that are relevant to my research but that would add something more than other literature I have already read. If there is someone due to talk and I am interested in their work, that is also a good indicator to attend. My other consideration is anything that might be a different research focus but something I am genuinely interested in learning about. This latter approach is helpful in keeping my brain stimulated and giving me energy. It may have some relevance at some point in my research experience anyway!
Energy levels
Knowing how your energy can fluctuate in certain environments and situations can be extremely helpful in making the conference trip as comfortable as possible. One thing important to me is if I am staying somewhere overnight, I like to book accommodation as close to the conference venue as possible. This is to enable me to have somewhere I can just retreat to if things get too much and have a break away from people. I am aware this is very dependable on budget and other accessibility factors and needs. However, it has been a real energy saver for me where I have been able to enjoy an event so much more from allowing myself time away in my own space. When I come home after an event, I also like to plan what I find to be ‘easier’ work for me for a couple of days. This has helped me to recover from any overstimulation and fatigue from being around people for a long time.
Planning a couple of weeks (at least) in advance
Once the main trip to the conference has been arranged, I like to learn how to navigate different systems including transport. Figuring this out when I get somewhere can bring me both excitement and a lot of anxiety. Making time to look into this prior to travelling is just as important for me as it is writing a paper to present at the event. This includes looking at any logistics and admin around travel. It is one of the best things I plan time for to save worry and energy when I arrive somewhere. I may not be perfect when I get to the destination, but I have a rough idea visually from looking at maps and other websites to gather information about a destination. YouTube can be really helpful for getting some kind of familiarity with transport systems and facilities within an area you are not familiar with too. Additionally, for those like me who are new to travelling, I have found The Man in Seat 61 very helpful to save energy on train route planning, particularly across Europe. The website has helped me to reduce anxiety around train and station facilities, relevant to departures too. Just to note that if using this website, not all of the information is up to date.
Getting there a full day prior to the event
From my experience so far, I have not planned a day or two prior to an event starting, mainly due to budget and time reasons. In future though, I plan to book a full day or two before the event to allow myself some time to explore the nearby surroundings as well as compensate for potential delays. I know this would help me to settle into a place without the worry of rushing on the first day there, on top of other conference-related worries.
—
As a neurodivergent postgraduate researcher, I find planning and thinking ahead is so helpful in ensuring my conference experience is enjoyable whilst looking after my health. In this blog post I have provided you with some of the few things I now focus on prioritising to when preparing to attend a conference/any event. Hopefully this has provided some insight for you too. Don’t forget, it is always worth speaking with DASS and/or your supervisors if you feel you need some additional support for attending conferences too.