The Teacher Wellbeing Index 2018 by the Education Support Partnership and YouGov found that 67% of education professionals describe themselves as stressed, and 74% consider the inability to switch off and relax to be a major contributing factor to a negative work/life balance.
Here is a list of tips to help manage or reduce your stress going back into the classroom.
Understand The Signs of Stress
Take a moment to sit and recognise the signs that you are stressed. This could be:
- racing thoughts
- feeling overwhelmed
- some hair loss
- skin is grey/dull
- stomach cramps
The signs of stress can be physical as well as mental and emotional, and can misdirect us as to the cause of the problem.
Keep a mood diary to track how you are feeling day to day, and see if there is a pattern to how often you feel stressed.
Work Out Your Stressors
Once you have worked out what stress feels like to you, and you have been tracking it for a little while, you may start to see patterns as to what precedes you feeling stressed. It could be that you feel stressed for short periods of time such as during a challenging lesson, or for longer sustained periods where you are experiencing a number of things to deal with such as upcoming trips or exams, and/or personal issues like a death in the family.
Find Your Strategies
Once you know what signs to look for and what your stressors are, you can try coping techniques when you can feel that you are stressed. It may be:
- colouring in
- meditation/mindfulness
- playing football/physical activity
Make a list of what your stressors are and what helps alleviate stress so you have your next steps to hand whenever you feel stress coming on.
Look After Yourself
Making sure we are healthy can support our mental health – eating right and exercising helps the blood flow to the brain and ensures our thoughts aren’t foggy.
Think positively, don’t react to imagined results or dwell on past mistakes – these are learning opportunities which have made you stronger and better prepared for the future.
Reduce sedatives and stimulants such as alcohol and cigarettes. These agents will help us feel better in the short term, but ultimately they create more problems than they solve, which adds to your stress load. Find other ways to achieve the affect you are looking for such as yoga for relaxation, or sport for stimulation.
Count Your Victories
Make sure to notice every time you have accomplished a task and congratulate yourself. You can do this mentally, or write them down. This way, as you take things off your ‘to-do list’, you grow your list of accomplishments for the day.
Prioritise Tasks
Prioritise tasks; if there are any that are less time critical, create a space to do those after what you’re currently working on before you start the next time critical task.
The important relationships and events in your personal life AREpriorities.
Make time for each task, rushing tasks can lead to errors, which increases the stress and doesn’t necessarily reduce the time taken completing it. If you need time to complete a job before starting the next one, ask people to wait and schedule in the time for it.
Only Take On What You Can Manage
You are allowed to say ‘No’. We often get caught in the trap of saying ‘Yes’ to extra work, but this can be to the detriment of our physical and mental health. Only take on the tasks you can manage, or schedule the work for a later date when you can make time for it.
Involve yourself in change processes at work, embrace them rather than resisting them.
Discuss concerns with a line manager so solutions can be implemented as a team. Attend any training and learning to further develop your skills and increase your resilience.
Find Your Work/Life Balance
Find hobbies or things you enjoy outside of work and commit to attending them regularly. This could be:
- a class
- sports team
- regular time with friends/family – evidence shows that caring for others can be protective against stress
Create An End of Day Routine
Create a routine to signal that the work day has ended. This might be:
- listing the tasks for the next working day
- organising your desk
- placing books and papers into your bag after marking
When taking work home, set realistic time frames for doing this work and take regular breaks. Ensure that you take time to drink fluids, stretch and allow yourself at least 7 hours sleep for the night. Consider practising mindfulness such as relaxation and meditation.
Best of luck and good health for the new school year!
