How do you overcome teacher burnout?

I'm a teacher of Textiles, and I'm also an Access Bars Practitioner. I can't think of a better method (although there are other body processes) that help teachers deeply relax, release the stresses of students, senior leadership and classrooms and revitalise. I don't wait till I recognise the signs. I just have a Bars session every week, because, let's face it, sensitive teachers will download all of their students' stuff, feel it as theirs, and be worn out. Teaching is so challenging nowadays, from official lesson plans to actually captivating lessons, to inclusion and diversity and tests and getting the students to care. It's just hard. And rewarding. And meaningful. And exhausting. Don't wait for your body to wear out. Get support.

The best way would be...never get to that point. But once you're there. Stop. Reflect about what's going on, what's wrong and how you would like things to be. Then, write an action plan to get to that goal, step by step, with little achievements. And of course, if you need professional help...do it. Best I did back in time.

Although setting healthy boundaries is extremely important, however, most contracts i have signed during my career were not limited to mentioned responsibilities that were described in the contract. In fact there was a specific term that states that one of the responsibilities as a teacher is to do anything you are requested to do by the administration, and this eliminates the fact that i can set boundaries and say no.

It is such a privilege to teach, to impart knowledge, to make a difference to the next generations. Teacher’s burnout is real and must be taken seriously. Teachers naturally gifted have tendencies to always go the extra mile. It’s so easy to go above and beyond our work. Building boundaries is a must, the more so being disciplined to keep those boundaries in place. One must be intentional and do self-care. Draw a map of what your self needs are in relation to your work priorities and make a point to follow them. In addition, it’s extremely important to be surrounded and supported by true leadership. Micro management is toxic and can robe the self motivation, creativity of many in the educational field.

I think, as mentioned above, one of the reasons that it's hard to set boundaries is that it's built into our job that there are no boundaries. For example- oJob Descriptions may not list sponsoring a club, despite it being expected for all full-time staff.

En mi caso que la mayor parte de las clases son online, cuando apago el ordenador se acabaron las pantallas y voy a dar un paseo largo con mi perro. Silencio y movimiento despejan la mente y bajan las revoluciones, que tendemos a acabar muy acelerados y hace falta un tiempo de descompresión.

Stay plugged into your educational community. Be confident someone has your back. Protect your life outside of school. You are a whole person. Remember you are doing the work you love. Don’t worry about all the other noise.

It is quite easy to be on the burnout edge when passion is diminished, or is diminishing. How can you restore passion to your work as a Teacher to keep you motivated? * Revisit your Teaching Philosophy. If you never had one, you might want to draft it. It has a way of always giving you a goal to look forward to, hence, sustains your excitement. * Develop an attitude of measuring your achievement and output. Get feedback from your past and current students, from parents, colleagues, and School Leadership Team. How many students have you genuinely impacted? What are the things you've been doing right? * By all means, make Continuous Professional Development a part of daily living. What are the areas of expertise you should improve?

Communicate as much and as soon as possible with kids and invite them to share with you what makes them tick. Highlight their unique abilities, interests,personality traits, aspirations and dreams. Feed this info back to parents by giving them a good news call or inviting them in for an informal chat to discuss what motivates their child. Kids want to know they matter and parents want to know their kids are happy and safe. This simple equation provides what Stephen Covey commonly referred to as a "win-win" using a "seek first to understand"methodology. We all want to feel we are listened to. Talk to colleagues and supervisors. Do the heavy lifting up front and stave off potential burnout later on.

Continuous feedback with the students. Both ways...but first, making clear what a real feedback is, which is not just complaining.

I have found that some teachers think their profession to be less honourable, in comparison to other society's A-rated professions. This is a sure way of getting burnt out on the job easily. Mental reorientation is needed. Dear Teacher, Applaud yourself for the great job you do. You are moulding the next generation! Give yourself that much accolade, and find happiness within you.

One simple change that I made was setting a "Do not disturb" routine on my phone. On school nights, from the hours of 9:30pm-5:30am, my phone will not give me any notifications or allow any texts/calls to go through - I was able to set exceptions for my husband and brother. This small change, in addition to turning off email notifications on holidays, long weekends, sick days, etc - has forced me to separate from work and be more present for my family and myself.

Just start. Maybe it’s marking. Perhaps planning. Maybe an assembly to prep for. Your ‘to do’ list saps the energy to do, well, much of anything. But you also know that once you start things get easier. ? So, start. ? Mark one book. Plan one lesson. ? Maybe you won’t finish, but start. One book. One lesson. Something. Just start. ? Sometimes starting will spark the energy to power through. Other times it’s a battle; you’ll only chip away at the task. But, you’ve started. Your list just got smaller. ? This isn’t to say never rest. On the contrary. You should. This advice is for when you know you should be doing something. ? Just do it. Just start. The rest will take care of itself…or not…but at least you’ve made a start.

I'm a mental health therapist and one of the most effective tools I've found is to take a break and that doesn't mean an extended vacation or even any time off at all. It's just noticing my tension and taking 2 minutes to breathe, slow down my heart rate and remember that I'm okay.