Teacher Burnout and Stress Management
We have come up with five tips that will help you alleviate the stress monster:
1. You're Not A Robot - Ever get that overwhelming heart pounding feeling in your chest because you have so much to do, and you don't know if you can get everything done? You're a teacher, not a robot. You must learn to prioritize your life, and forget about the rest, at least for today. Don't be afraid to ask for help. We have tons of resources and time-savers at our Website to help teachers save time and reduce their workload.
What can make this go away? Planning, planning, planning... Many teachers figure this one out by about their fifth year of teacher. If you plan every single aspect of your daily routine, you can't fail.
2. Hit The Gym - A big stress reliever that helps most people is to exercise. Join a gym if you have the time or take a run after school in the evenings. Invest in a treadmill or bike, and work out while you're listening to your ipod or watching the news. The point is to take some time for yourself to feel good, increase your energy, and help reduce stress. Then, of course, after you exercise soak in a nice hot bath. You'll be feeling better in no time! For any joint pain remember to use advil or motrin. Ice always helps too.
3. See Your Doctor Regularly - It's always a good idea to visit your family doctor for a check-up. Talk to your doctor about the stress that you're feeling, and he or she may be able to help you and offer some professional advice. Plus, getting a check-up is an excellent way to make sure you're healthy! You need to be critical of your health on a daily basis. Some teachers simply work themselves to death, in some cases literally.
4. Talk. Find a co-worker, family member, or friend to confide in. Sometimes it does us good to talk about our feelings. Another option would be to keep a journal. Write down your day to day thoughts. This will help you to see and understand what you're feeling on paper.
5. Meditate. This is a wonderful way to relax the mind, body, and soul. You will feel better, sleep better, and overall bring peace to your life. A nice transition can also be to perform yoga at least twice a week. Join a yoga class or buy a DVD of yoga on some exotic island. This can be very relaxing.
Teachers are very important professionals and society members. Teachers are responsible for the education of society and in that sense the quality of the teachers can indirectly shape the future direction that their country goes in. The profession of teacher does have its fair share of job stress and pressure. The article that follows addresses the question of teacher job stress, what causes it and how it may be alleviated.
What is Teacher Job Stress?
The feeling of job stress can take many forms. In one sense, it can occur within the teaching profession when teachers begin to feel that the daily tasks of their job are ever growing. For instance, sometimes teachers are required to fulfill an almost social-worker type role in addition to their regular teaching duties.
What Causes Teacher Job Stress?
This occurs because the children in the classrooms these days have so many adult- sized problems. Teachers find themselves dealing with the effects of addictions, poverty, divorce, violence and even more social ills. Why is it happening that teachers are being affected in the classroom by these challenges? The answer is that teachers' roles are being expanded to meet these challenges because children's lives are being touched by these problems. This situation is often more than one teacher can handle and this dilemma fosters teacher job stress.
Of course, there are even more examples of teacher job stress than this. For instance, teachers routinely have assessments, parent conferences and meetings with the principal and other superiors. Also, there is paperwork as well as lesson plans and letters to write home to parents. These are routine and expectable parts of the teaching job, but nevertheless they add up as duties and can increase the demand of a teacher's daily job.
How May Teacher Job Stress be Reduced?
The problem of teacher job stress is one of social importance and can be viewed through a wider lens as a measure of social challenges as well. It is likely that the more stressed out and anxious teachers are, the more challenges the children and society overall are facing. One easy and quick solution is to simply reduce class size. Although it is expensive, this always makes it easier for teachers to do their jobs.
Another very proactive move would be to provide a free of charge stress alleviation program for teachers. The stress management training could include instruction from such disciplines as meditation, yoga, aromatherapy and guided imagery. This way, with teachers practicing these wise disciplines, they could raise their tolerance for stressful conditions and fend off job stress before it begins.
The above is an explanation of teacher job stress. Discussed are what teacher job stress consists of, as well as possible causes and alleviations of teacher job stress. In every society, teachers are supremely important with a significance that reaches far into the future. For this reason, teacher job stress should be identified and quickly removed so that the teacher can get on with their life purpose: to improve the world one student at a time.
More Information On Teacher Burnout and Stress Management
- Burnout Inventory
- Effects of Stress and Prevention Suggestions
- Strategies to Beat Stress Give Your Career A Shot in the Arm
- Stress Management and Relaxation Central
- Teacher Burnout