I've been holding onto this news for a couple of years.
This September marks the beginning of my third year in the PhD program in Kinesiology at UBC Okanagan. I'm very lucky to be studying under the supervision of Dr. Kathleen Martin Ginis and working with an exceptional group of individuals (at all levels). The focus of my work is on reducing pain (ideally solving it) for persons with a spinal cord injury (SCI).
I experience nerve pain daily, so deciding to study it was probably not the best decision (at least in the short-term). It’s common for an article or discussion to up the intensity of the pain I’m feeling at that moment. The flipside, however, is that my lived experience provides new insight into how SCI related pain is experienced and better ways to treat, or maybe someday, to even cure it. My life continues to be a pain experiment, but because I know firsthand the importance of the work that needs to be done, I feel compelled to do my part. Starting another degree in my 50's after so much time away from academia has been interesting. My brain has never been so tired from working so hard. Fortunately though, this is a good kind of tired.
Currently, I'm seeking publication of a scoping review that investigates psychological therapies and neuropathic pain. Mid-September I'll be releasing a pain survey for Canadians with SCl in partnership with Spinal Cord Injury Ontario. Collecting information from at least 200 individuals with SCI should allow me to focus recommendations and craft interventions that will be unique to this community. I'm excited.
So here I am, back in school, chasing down another big goal. It's challenging, it's rewarding, and it's exactly where I need to be right now.
photo: Nate Adams (3rd year PhD), Dr. Kathleen Martin Ginis (supervisor), me, and Dr. Matteo Ponzano (postdoc).