Next stop on Lebanese American Tina Habchi’s research journey is Denmark, and she is excited to break new ground and explore topics like stress and psychiatric disorders.
Driven by deep curiosity about the brain, Tina Habchi’s research interest focuses on the biological underpinnings of psychiatric disorders:
”I have always been passionate about psychology, but I still have deeper, more biological questions about what happens in the brain and why we feel and behave in a certain way. I really want to look into the neurobiology of psychiatric disorders – that is where I have found myself in neuroscience,” Tina shares.
After completing her master’s degree in Neuroscience, Tina has spent almost two years in Bordeaux, France as a lab manager and research engineer, gaining experience within her field of interest. For her first rotation in the Palner Lab at the University of Southern Denmark, she will gain further experience within the field of psychiatric disorders while getting the chance to try out new techniques and animal models. She remains open to possibilities for future rotations, and she is especially excited to grow from the unique opportunities that the pre-PhD year allows:
“I think that is what I really appreciate about the programme: having that extra year to explore and meet different people before choosing to commit to one place. It really grows your network, and you get a glimpse of different things, different techniques, different people. On a more personal note, the programme allows me to move around without worry. I think this will help me gain confidence to step out of my comfort zone and allow growth. During this year, it is really important for me to venture into different opportunities,” Tina explains.
Tina aims to contribute to a greater understanding of mental health through her research. Like most scientists, Tina is motivated by getting great results – yet like most scientists, she also knows that these results can often be elusive. Luckily, she deeply enjoys the research process:
“One thing that actually excites me a lot is watching myself be able to do things I never thought I would be able to do in terms of different techniques. So even though I am not sure what results may come out at the end, the whole process is really fun for me – I literally enjoy every moment. I think the excitement comes from being able to do different manipulations and growing confidence in what I once found intimidating. This keeps me going because I keep wanting to try different things – and when the results come out and they are great, it is a win-win situation. If not, we try again, and I get to do more experiments,” Tina says.