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Professor Lynn Myers 1954-2015

Dr Parminder S. K. Dhiman with an appreciation.

06 January 2016

Health Psychology has lost a bright and imaginative personality in Professor Lynn Myers. Lynn died peacefully at the Lister Hospital at the age of 61 after battling valiantly for the past 40 years of her life with a rare neurological condition called Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP), which caused her to lose her mobility gradually over the years.

Lynn started her career as a Pharmacist but pursued her interest in Psychology because this entailed a better balance between physical and non-physical duties. As a mature student, she began her Psychology career with a first class BSc. honours degree at Hatfield Polytechnic and an impressive PhD with no corrections from the Institute of Psychiatry. Lynn held posts at Reading University, Royal Holloway, UCL and then Brunel University. Just two of her notable contributions to students reading Health Psychology were creating the highly respected MSc. in Health Psychology (UCL) and the eminently popular MSc. in Psychology, Health & Behaviour (Brunel University).

Despite her chronic illness, Lynn rose to the rank of Professor and was an international expert in the field of the repressive coping style. She published extensively in the field of Health Psychology and will still be present in many studies as a posthumous author.

Owing to her neurological condition, Lynn was in constant pain over the past 40 years, but never let this stop her living her life to the fullest. She persevered with her career and personal life, demonstrating outstanding resilience. Lynn was a strong character and displayed a fighting spirit when needed. A stout supporter of her students, she always encouraged them to develop their skills and own resilience, both professionally and personally. Lynn worked with an open door policy and was always welcoming - she would always raise her arms in the air and exclaim your name as you would walk through the door.

Lynn was a very well-liked Head of Department at Brunel University. She encouraged her colleagues to reach their potential and additionally helped them to achieve a healthier work-life balance. Whether it was a student or colleague, Lynn would always defend the underdog and speak for those who could not speak up for themselves. Lynn would reassure students even when she was in hospital and was the one really in need of support.

Lynn was always smiling and loved vibrant hues and would often dye her hair in different colours and wear multi-coloured nail varnish. She was an avid science fiction fan and a self-confessed Trekkie and would devour Sci-Fi novels on her Kindle. With her husband Mark, Lynn also loved travelling to different countries and closer to home, she loved to visit Brighton. A passionate fan of live music, Lynn frequented concerts and festivals. She also sang in a rock choir.

I once asked Lynn what was the biggest lesson she had learnt from the difficulties in her life. After a pensive pause, she replied “to be true to yourself”. That is something we should all remember: to be true to ourselves.

- Find Professor Myers' work in our archive