How to Avoid Teacher Burnout

Teacher burnout is no joke. It’s actually a real thing, and if you’ve ever suffered from it – you’ll know how exhausting and awful it is. Having recently gone through teacher burnout myself, I felt like I really wanted to share my experience with others. In this blog post I’m going to share with you what teacher burnout is, how you can recognise if you have it and what you can do to AVOID teacher burnout.

What is it?

Teacher burnout is hard to explain. Some people say it’s like ‘stress’ and many often will just say they have stress and leave it there. But, teacher burnout is a lot more than stress. It’s where you are absolutely exhausted, both emotionally and physically. It’s where you are at the point that you just can not get everything done that you want and you are not yourself. If you do not feel well rested, especially after a weekend or holiday, and you still feel down, it’s most likely you have teacher burnout.

Why do teachers get ‘Teacher Burnout’?

If you’re asking this, you may have never worked in a school setting – or at least not recently. It’s not like it was many, many years ago. There are so many added pressures onto our teachers now with paperwork, bigger student workloads, less staff support. And let’s face it, the wage doesn’t always make this seem better! On top of that, teachers are taking work home, they’re working from early in the morning until late at night. The work/life balance is all over the place, and many of us feel unsupported. All of this – along with MANY other reasons – can contribute to us getting ‘teacher burnout.’

What are the signs of ‘Teacher Burnout?’

So, like anything, we can all display different signs. But, the main signs to look out for are;

• Change in mood. Has your mood changed? Do you get irritated quickly? Does your temper go quicker than normal? Do you find it hard to be nice and kind – like you usually are? Do things bug you now that wouldn’t have before? 
• Exhausted. This can be both emotionally and physically. Oh my gosh, I remember not even being able to hold my head up sometimes! And the pure exhaustion would bring on headaches and so many illnesses  because you just feel SO run down! Have you ever sat there in the mornings before your class arrive and just stare at the walls? You don’t know what to do today.. you don’t have the energy to complete what is on your plan. Or even after the kids have gone home, do you find yourself sat in an empty classroom with no energy to get up or get moving – even if it means going home. 
• On the flip side – insomnia. I have had this for SO many years, but it got a LOT worse during my burnout phase. Insomnia is horrific and really, until you’ve experienced it, you’ll never understand how awful it is. The desire and NEED to go to sleep, but you just can’t. No matter what you do, you lay there, tossing and turning and your body just can’t go to sleep. During my burnout phase I went from having around 4 hours sleep a night to around 2 hours a night – and that’s on a good night. Even if you are absolutely exhausted and just need to sleep, it’s like your body just can’t let you shut down.
• I don’t want to go out! Have you stopped attending meet ups with your friends? Does the thought of going out with family/friends fill you with dread? I went through teacher burnout not so long ago, and I remember dreading any upcoming events. It was like I didn’t have the mental energy inside of me to communicate or socialise with others. I wanted to go home, sit down and just stay there – without anyone else.
• Food. There are 2 types of people in this world – the comfort eaters and the non-eaters. I am a comfort eater – well most of the time. There’s been times when the added stress has put me off food. But, the majority of the time I can find myself eating my way through our weekly shop in no time at all. There’s something about eating that can make you feel that bit better about yourself. But, on the flip side, you may not want to eat at all – you may or may not feel hungry. Or you may just not feel like you have the energy to cook or eat a meal right now.
• Negative-Nelly. Do you feel like you are down in the dumps all the time? Do you feel like negativity is constantly leaving your lips or the whole atmosphere just feels negative? You may be stuck in a rut, and when things feel so negative, it can be really hard to get out of this rut.
• Memory. I’ve always had a bit of a struggling memory through years of insomnia. But during teacher burnout, this was a whole new level. I would totally forget everything. If someone asked me a question, within a few minutes it would be gone. It was horrific and so upsetting. I couldn’t figure out why I couldn’t remember things. 
• Speech. I don’t know how, but my speech would just disappear – well, not really. Let me try to explain. Have you ever tried to speak a sentence but you’ve spoke it too fast and the words come out all jumbled and nobody can understand you? Or you just couldn’t think of the words you need. Yep, this happened to me during burnout. Sometimes I’d have to sit there and think about what I wanted to say before saying it otherwise it would be a jumbled mess. It was the mixture of exhaustion and my brain trying to communicate when it was just so tired.
• Health. As I mentioned earlier, many of the above symptoms can cause more physical symptoms in you like headaches, ear aches, chest pain and so much more. Talk to your doctor if you’ve had any new physical symptoms appear because this may be related. I could list SO many symptoms here but there are just too many linked to stress and everyone displays different symptoms.

What Should I Do?

If you think you have teacher burnout, I’m so sorry. I know how you feel and it’s not nice. But, you’re starting to take the right steps. To find yourself here, you have obviously been googling and doing some research. First, get yourself to a doctor. Explain everything that is going on. You may need to take some time off work – and I KNOW that is scary and something NONE of us like doing, but as I’ve mentioned many times on my website – you can NOT pour from an empty cup. Your students will miss you, of course they will. But right now you need to look after yourself. Then, when you are back to 100% you’ll be able to give your students all your time and energy again.

Also, make sure to talk to family members and friends. See if there’s a way they can support you while you are going through this tough time. Even if it’s taking your own children out somewhere to give you a break at home or having someone to clean your home. These little things can take that extra something off your plate to just help you out.

How Can I Avoid Teacher Burnout?

There are many ways to avoid teacher burnout, but you may also never been able to avoid it. When you’re getting close to that burnout stage, it must be inevitable that you are going to hit that wall. But, it’s ok. Help is always at hand. I’ve compiled a list of ways below that may help you avoid teacher burnout.

• Make yourself aware of the symptoms. Especially, before you even think about teacher burnout, if you know some of the symptoms you can catch it in it’s tracks. If you feel like you’re getting a few of the related symptoms, take a few days off. Go away for a couple of days on the weekend. You’ll be surprised what a change in surroundings can do for you.
• Take care of yourself. Always make sure that you are putting yourself at the top of your priority list – or at least VERY high on that list! Make sure you look after yourself – both physically and mentally. If that means taking a few days off now and again for mental health days – you go for it. 
• Look at your school. Do you have a good support system? How about management? Do you feel supported and appreciated by them? Or colleagues – are they positive/helpful? If the answer is no to any, most of or all of the above, think about changing schools. Sure, change can be scary. But it can also be very good and beneficial. New surroundings and with a supportive team and management around you can make a HUGE difference.
• Atmosphere. What is the atmosphere like in your school? Does it need an injection of positivity and kindness? Consider setting up some sort of system to help spread some positivity, kindness and fun between your colleagues. This could be a little gift basket each week filled with pick me ups that gets passed around everyone.
• Work/life balance. Remember to have a steady work/life balance. Stop taking work home with you. Stop answering school emails at home. Do not let work take over your life. Set up a routine that works where you can go home and switch off from work and not think about it again until tomorrow.

Don’t forget to sign up for our FREE 10 day Teacher Self-Care challenge, starting on the 1st February 2019. Sign up here now.

Do you have any other ways to avoid teacher burnout? We’d love to hear them!