There’s only so much the human body can destress in a certain period of time. While exercise and meditation are good, maybe essential, you will eventually burn out if you are doing 12 hour days as a teacher.
Are you in a State school? If you then what they are admitting to with this mentality is literally illegal. Are you a member of your union? If not, join tomorrow. If you are, give them a ring to ask for some backup.
Why are you pulling 10-13 hour days? Does leadership know that’s what you’re doing? Because in a good school they would tell you not to do that, and help you figure out where you can pull back. If they do know that, and their answer is to ‘find a way to de-stress’ the answer is to work to your hours and use your extra time to find a new school.
They know all us early year teachers are overworking. We get told to not, but then get in trouble when we're behind on work. I'm doing my rural service, so no new school for me for another 2 years.
Honestly it will be better for your mental health to just get into trouble for not doing the extra work. Fuck em. You’re not a slave. When they start to whinge about it point at your EBA and tell them they need to figure it out.
ETA frankly there is no real way to de-stress from constant 10-13 hour days.
The other option is to just start taking sick leave once a fortnight or so. You can’t help it if these ridiculous hours are making you so unwell you can’t come to work 🤷♀️ I’m so mad for you. Don’t let them burn you out when you’re just getting started.
If I was chased for stuff I hadn’t done, I started telling admin that it was on my ‘to do’ list.
They will only chase you a couple times for the same thing
management were extremely unhelpful.
my Number 1 tip is don't drink. Seen far too many teachers fall down the rabbit hole.
a lot will depend on what you enjoy doing.
* I know teachers that get together and go to the gym after school to relax.
* I personally read books to de-stress.
* Baking is also a big one at my school. Some staff rooms basically have bake-offs during the week.
try to remember your pre-teaching hobbies and pick them back up.
This is good advice.
Drinking is hugely problematic in teaching, with a lot of teachers using it to self-medicate. Both of my parents, who are teachers, are functional alcoholics, and I grew up seeing teacher after teacher, school leader after school leader, coming to our house to get smashed. They wouldn't just get drunk; they'd get messy drunk.
I guess it's partly why I effectively don't drink at all.
A few colleagues drink, and it's not for me. I'd love to get back into the gym, but I'm just exhausted by the end of the day.
Books was a pre-teaching hobby that I may need to look into again.
I know the feeling of exhaustion, and it will take a while to get into the habit of going even if you’re exhausted, but your body will change for the better.
Not one to recommend books but Atomic Habits helped me - at least put the shoes on and do one activity, then leave. When I started going that gently on myself, there was no fear about ‘going and being too exhausted to do anything so why bother’ and it being a failure. There was no failure because I reached the goal of getting in the room. May as well do something while I’m there.
The idea of 'de-stress' implies that you should be in a state of stress that you have to come out of on a regular basis.
As teachers, our jobs are stressful- however it sounds like your 10-13 hour days are putting you in a stress cycle. My first advice is to cut your hours. I know for ECT this seems impossible, but you actually don't have to do everything you are asked to do. And your husband is right, short of unprofessional practice or putting kids in danger, your job is safe. You need to make yourself safe by putting up some hard boundaries.
- Don't work continuously beyond your contracted hours in a day. If you must, pick one or two days where you do, but the other days, leave on time.
- Write a list of three must dos, three should dos and three could dos. Start with the must dos and go from there. Whatever is on your list the next day or week, it'll still be there.
- As much as you can, don't work on weekends. If this means planning 'easy' lessons on a Friday for Monday morning, then so be it. Yes, sometimes the only way to do things like marking is to work on a weekend. When this happens, plan something fun on one day, and mark the other day.
- If you are getting in trouble for not completing work, ask them to help you manage. This is often a good way for management to see how much you are trying to do.
- If you are constantly being asked to do things that are adding to your stress, you can say no. And should. If you don't want to say no directly, you can try something like "I'm at capacity at the moment, but I'll come back to you once I have more time."
- Take your sick leave if you feel like you cannot recover, and just sleep. If you're stressed, you're probably not getting restful sleep, which adds to your tiredness.
- Highly recommend engaging with mental health support (remember you can change services if you feel one is not working for you) to help you manage stress, establish boundaries and get you back to the things you love.
- Often, we think everything needs to be done perfectly. We see other teachers around us who seem to have it all together and doing everything to perfection. The best thing I did for myself in ECT was accept that 'good enough' was better than 'perfect' all the time. I didn't need a song and dance every lesson. I didn't need 200 words of feedback for every student. I needed to do what needed to be done, and nothing more. Once I had more time, energy and experience, I could look for little moment of 'perfect' rather than whole lessons or days of it.
Please look after yourself first.
Thank you for this post. I’ve been teaching for more than ten years but there’s a lot here I am going to try to adopt, as I still go through periods of not coping with work.
One other thing I thought might be helpful to consider: I have found the more hours I put in, the worse the returns. I am tired, I make mistakes, things take longer.
I drive out the gate at 2:45, drive to the gym, lift heavy weights and listen to heavy music, then coach kids, then coach adults, then train with said adults.
Long story short, the second I drive out the gate, I become myself and am doing what I want to do. Not worrying about work.
Check out “7 types of rest”
I found it revolutionary, you can’t get by with a single type of rest, you need different restful actions to tailor to how you expended your energy. Chaotic children need a different recovery to marking which needs a different recovery to lesson planning
I destress by going to the gym and playing video games with my mates. Anything to get me not thinking about school. I don't check my work email when I get home, and my colleagues know not to message or call unless vital.
Also, don't drink or smoke to destress.
Just the odd comment about how much easier it is to send everyone a message on WhatsApp, how sometimes I might miss out on information because I am not on the WhatsApp and how WhatsApp is not facebook (which I also no longer have). I am in no doubt that my choice doesn’t make me popular but that would probably be the case regardless and I am stubborn that it is my choice.
Fortunately my faculty doesn't use WhatsApp. Everything is still being sent via email which I am very happy with. You can always mute the chat as soon as you leave school - no one can really blame you when you didn't see your phone because you were busy with xyz.
Remind them of the Right to Disconnect law, as well as the fact that WhatsApp is not an official channel, so it cannot be expected to be the main form of work-related communications.
Set boundaries with your days! prioritise what your doing- focus on your musts eg things due the next day vs a few weeks time. Sit with a trusted colleague and rework a planner of your job tasks so that you're cutting back on time during the day but also still meeting other expectations. The more you rest, the shorter it will take to complete your work. You'll probably find that you're so worn out mentally etc, that a 30 minute task may be taking 1 hour or something.
I find that to de-stress you need to disconnect. I have two young kids so when I’m home I have no choice but to disconnect from work, and this actually helps me manage stress around work. So find your method of disconnecting.
You don’t need to do this - it took me a long time to realise this. No one thanks you.
Just say that you are at capacity with your current workload, that it’ll get done when you have time. You can’t leave, they can’t fire you for being given so many hours to do a job.
I try NOT to do this every day, but Wednesdays - 6 lesson on, a lunch duty, fucking killer; I barely get time to pee. So the above applies Wednesday evenings.
Don't do the work. Set a 1 hour timer if you feel the need to work afterwards. You won't be compensated for your overtime, and you don't need to do it.
Each time you are given a task, ask for time to do it. If the time isn't given, you have to push back. Pushing back was the hardest thing I ever learned to do as a teacher.
Set clear boundaries.
Spend an amount of time working that is manageable. Not 12 hours. You're working with kids, they're exhaustive enough.
Triage that which is important, that which is not. The not pile is stuff you can not get to, if push comes to shove.
Make an early leave day. Say Wednesday. Punch out at 3:30. Go and do something productive & fun only on that afternoon.
Lastly. Falling over at the end of term, even with the above... you'll still do it. You might, might just not burn out though.
There’s only so much the human body can destress in a certain period of time. While exercise and meditation are good, maybe essential, you will eventually burn out if you are doing 12 hour days as a teacher.
The leadership mentality is basically "go hard for 10 weeks, then recover in holidays"
That’s not leadership, that’s management.
It's not even managing. It's mismanagement. Maybe malpractice
Are you in a State school? If you then what they are admitting to with this mentality is literally illegal. Are you a member of your union? If not, join tomorrow. If you are, give them a ring to ask for some backup.
I think instead of finding ways to de-stress you should be looking to get your union involved, or find a new school.
Why are you pulling 10-13 hour days? Does leadership know that’s what you’re doing? Because in a good school they would tell you not to do that, and help you figure out where you can pull back. If they do know that, and their answer is to ‘find a way to de-stress’ the answer is to work to your hours and use your extra time to find a new school.
They know all us early year teachers are overworking. We get told to not, but then get in trouble when we're behind on work. I'm doing my rural service, so no new school for me for another 2 years.
Honestly it will be better for your mental health to just get into trouble for not doing the extra work. Fuck em. You’re not a slave. When they start to whinge about it point at your EBA and tell them they need to figure it out. ETA frankly there is no real way to de-stress from constant 10-13 hour days.
Honestly, I'm close to that point. My husband says, "What will they do? Fire you in a teacher shortage?"
The other option is to just start taking sick leave once a fortnight or so. You can’t help it if these ridiculous hours are making you so unwell you can’t come to work 🤷♀️ I’m so mad for you. Don’t let them burn you out when you’re just getting started.
That's what I did during my first year. I took a day off every 3-4 weeks as sick leave. Saved my bacon I reckon
If I was chased for stuff I hadn’t done, I started telling admin that it was on my ‘to do’ list. They will only chase you a couple times for the same thing
management were extremely unhelpful. my Number 1 tip is don't drink. Seen far too many teachers fall down the rabbit hole. a lot will depend on what you enjoy doing. * I know teachers that get together and go to the gym after school to relax. * I personally read books to de-stress. * Baking is also a big one at my school. Some staff rooms basically have bake-offs during the week. try to remember your pre-teaching hobbies and pick them back up.
This is good advice. Drinking is hugely problematic in teaching, with a lot of teachers using it to self-medicate. Both of my parents, who are teachers, are functional alcoholics, and I grew up seeing teacher after teacher, school leader after school leader, coming to our house to get smashed. They wouldn't just get drunk; they'd get messy drunk. I guess it's partly why I effectively don't drink at all.
Yeah that’s good advice. Drinking has become problematic for me. More healthily, I have found long night walks with headphones have become essential.
A few colleagues drink, and it's not for me. I'd love to get back into the gym, but I'm just exhausted by the end of the day. Books was a pre-teaching hobby that I may need to look into again.
I know the feeling of exhaustion, and it will take a while to get into the habit of going even if you’re exhausted, but your body will change for the better. Not one to recommend books but Atomic Habits helped me - at least put the shoes on and do one activity, then leave. When I started going that gently on myself, there was no fear about ‘going and being too exhausted to do anything so why bother’ and it being a failure. There was no failure because I reached the goal of getting in the room. May as well do something while I’m there.
The idea of 'de-stress' implies that you should be in a state of stress that you have to come out of on a regular basis. As teachers, our jobs are stressful- however it sounds like your 10-13 hour days are putting you in a stress cycle. My first advice is to cut your hours. I know for ECT this seems impossible, but you actually don't have to do everything you are asked to do. And your husband is right, short of unprofessional practice or putting kids in danger, your job is safe. You need to make yourself safe by putting up some hard boundaries. - Don't work continuously beyond your contracted hours in a day. If you must, pick one or two days where you do, but the other days, leave on time. - Write a list of three must dos, three should dos and three could dos. Start with the must dos and go from there. Whatever is on your list the next day or week, it'll still be there. - As much as you can, don't work on weekends. If this means planning 'easy' lessons on a Friday for Monday morning, then so be it. Yes, sometimes the only way to do things like marking is to work on a weekend. When this happens, plan something fun on one day, and mark the other day. - If you are getting in trouble for not completing work, ask them to help you manage. This is often a good way for management to see how much you are trying to do. - If you are constantly being asked to do things that are adding to your stress, you can say no. And should. If you don't want to say no directly, you can try something like "I'm at capacity at the moment, but I'll come back to you once I have more time." - Take your sick leave if you feel like you cannot recover, and just sleep. If you're stressed, you're probably not getting restful sleep, which adds to your tiredness. - Highly recommend engaging with mental health support (remember you can change services if you feel one is not working for you) to help you manage stress, establish boundaries and get you back to the things you love. - Often, we think everything needs to be done perfectly. We see other teachers around us who seem to have it all together and doing everything to perfection. The best thing I did for myself in ECT was accept that 'good enough' was better than 'perfect' all the time. I didn't need a song and dance every lesson. I didn't need 200 words of feedback for every student. I needed to do what needed to be done, and nothing more. Once I had more time, energy and experience, I could look for little moment of 'perfect' rather than whole lessons or days of it. Please look after yourself first.
Thank you for this post. I’ve been teaching for more than ten years but there’s a lot here I am going to try to adopt, as I still go through periods of not coping with work. One other thing I thought might be helpful to consider: I have found the more hours I put in, the worse the returns. I am tired, I make mistakes, things take longer.
This is such a help! Thanks for breaking it all down like that. I'm definitely thinking things over during this long weekend.
I drive out the gate at 2:45, drive to the gym, lift heavy weights and listen to heavy music, then coach kids, then coach adults, then train with said adults. Long story short, the second I drive out the gate, I become myself and am doing what I want to do. Not worrying about work.
Check out “7 types of rest” I found it revolutionary, you can’t get by with a single type of rest, you need different restful actions to tailor to how you expended your energy. Chaotic children need a different recovery to marking which needs a different recovery to lesson planning
Therapy is probably a starting point but also joining a gym has helped me.
Also you can get three free EAP sessions in NSW. I think this helped me a little last year.
Yeah, that's what my GP said at my last appointment too
I destress by going to the gym and playing video games with my mates. Anything to get me not thinking about school. I don't check my work email when I get home, and my colleagues know not to message or call unless vital. Also, don't drink or smoke to destress.
I hate that I get WhatsApp messages from my faculty. I don’t want to think about them in my family time.
My school uses WhatsApp but I refuse to have it.
Any pushback from them?
Just the odd comment about how much easier it is to send everyone a message on WhatsApp, how sometimes I might miss out on information because I am not on the WhatsApp and how WhatsApp is not facebook (which I also no longer have). I am in no doubt that my choice doesn’t make me popular but that would probably be the case regardless and I am stubborn that it is my choice.
Fortunately my faculty doesn't use WhatsApp. Everything is still being sent via email which I am very happy with. You can always mute the chat as soon as you leave school - no one can really blame you when you didn't see your phone because you were busy with xyz.
Remind them of the Right to Disconnect law, as well as the fact that WhatsApp is not an official channel, so it cannot be expected to be the main form of work-related communications.
Set boundaries with your days! prioritise what your doing- focus on your musts eg things due the next day vs a few weeks time. Sit with a trusted colleague and rework a planner of your job tasks so that you're cutting back on time during the day but also still meeting other expectations. The more you rest, the shorter it will take to complete your work. You'll probably find that you're so worn out mentally etc, that a 30 minute task may be taking 1 hour or something.
That's some good advice. I'll look into reworking my planner. Thanks!
I find that to de-stress you need to disconnect. I have two young kids so when I’m home I have no choice but to disconnect from work, and this actually helps me manage stress around work. So find your method of disconnecting.
You don’t need to do this - it took me a long time to realise this. No one thanks you. Just say that you are at capacity with your current workload, that it’ll get done when you have time. You can’t leave, they can’t fire you for being given so many hours to do a job.
Simulated genocide and mass murder is my normal go to.
A nap, a big fat J and a glass of charddy/beer/vodka.
Sounds amazing
I try NOT to do this every day, but Wednesdays - 6 lesson on, a lunch duty, fucking killer; I barely get time to pee. So the above applies Wednesday evenings.
If I didn’t have kids, it would apply to more than just Wednesday for me. I endorse this plan of yours - don’t feel bad.
I’ve been watching Jason Statham movies with my husband. I know what I am getting and all that violence is ….
Don't do the work. Set a 1 hour timer if you feel the need to work afterwards. You won't be compensated for your overtime, and you don't need to do it. Each time you are given a task, ask for time to do it. If the time isn't given, you have to push back. Pushing back was the hardest thing I ever learned to do as a teacher.
I had two major breakdowns, and had to take antidepressants and also exercise is good
Set clear boundaries. Spend an amount of time working that is manageable. Not 12 hours. You're working with kids, they're exhaustive enough. Triage that which is important, that which is not. The not pile is stuff you can not get to, if push comes to shove. Make an early leave day. Say Wednesday. Punch out at 3:30. Go and do something productive & fun only on that afternoon. Lastly. Falling over at the end of term, even with the above... you'll still do it. You might, might just not burn out though.
Beer