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How can we maintain our mental well-being while meeting the demands of early childhood education?

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By the end of this professional development session, educators will be able to:
- Identify signs of burnout and stress in their professional life
- Implement at least 3 self-care strategies
- Create a personal work-life balance plan

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Educators will develop:
- Emotional resilience techniques
- Effective boundary-setting skills
- A supportive network within their school community

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Click the image above...Develop a weekly self-care plan incorporating physical, emotional, and social well-being activities.

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To develop your self-care plan, you will identify what you value and need as part of your day-to-day life ( maintenance self-care) and the strategies you can employ when or if you face a crisis along the way ( emergency self-care).

There is no "one-size-fits-all" self-care plan, but there is a common thread to all self-care plans: making a commitment to attend to all the domains of your life, including your physical and psychological health, emotional and spiritual needs, and relationships.

Steps to guide you...

Don't be overwhelmed by the steps in this process! They are simple and straightforward and will help to guide you on your path.

1. How do you cope now?

Identify what you do now to manage the stress in your life. The Lifestyle Behaviors (pdf) ( Transcript of Lifestyle Behaviors) ("Is your life causing you stress?") assessment can help you to identify the coping strategies you currently use and whether they are likely to be good (or not so good) for your well-being.

Decreasing or eliminating at least one "negative" coping strategy can be one of the goals of your maintenance self-care; employing more "positive" strategies can be another.

2. What do you do for self-care now?

The Self-Care Assessment (pdf) will help you highlight the good things you are already doing for yourself and whether there is an imbalance in the areas in which you practice self-care.

The items in this assessment can also give you some ideas for additional things you may want to do in the future to help prevent stress and burnout and to maintain and enhance your well-being. Make a note of the items that you would like to add (or add more of) to your self-care practice. In considering this, try to be sure that each domain of self-care is well represented. If you think of things that are not included in this list, just add them at the end.

3. Maintenance self-care: Adding self-care practices and eliminating obstacles

"Maintenance self-care" refers to the activities that you have identified as important to your well-being and that you have committed to engage in on a regular basis to take care of yourself.

My Maintenance Self-Care Worksheet (pdf) ( Transcript of My Maintenance Self-Care Worksheet) provides an opportunity for you to identify the activities you would like to add to your self-care practice in each self-care domain ("new practice").

It is also useful to identify possible barriers or obstacles that could get in the way of implementing and/or maintaining these new activities. Think about what you anticipate these barriers/obstacles to be (try to list at least 3 or 4 in the spaces provided), how you can address them, and how you can remind yourself to follow your plan. Write these solutions on the last page of the My Maintenance Self-Care Worksheet. If you have chosen to limit or eliminate a negative coping strategy that you currently use, note this as well.

You can revisit this topic and revise your list as the demands of your personal and professional life change.

4. Emergency self-care: Be prepared

So far we have focused on maintenance self-care: the kinds of things one does regularly to reduce stress and maintain and enhance well-being. But planning out what you would do under extremely trying circumstances, even though they are rare, is also important. To do this, develop a framework using your Emergency Self-Care worksheet (pdf) before you are faced with a crisis or feel overwhelmed. This is not to suggest that you will invariably face such a situation; the idea is to be prepared just in case.

Think of developing your emergency self-care plan in the way you would think about preparing for other possible emergency situations: it is important to figure out your plan in advance when you have the time, wherewithal, and concentration to do so effectively!

5. Make a commitment to yourself

Remember: Just like the flight attendant says, you need to put on your own oxygen mask first before you can be of help to others. So, take a moment, think it over, and then make your personal commitment to your own self-care. You deserve it!

If you find making a commitment to be a challenge, then take some time to explore your reservations. Do you have a tendency to put the needs of others first? The truth is that your self-care is not only essential to your well-being, but it is also a necessary element for you to be effective and successful in honoring your professional and personal commitments.

Preparing a plan is important; it identifies your goals and the strategies to achieve them. However your success in implementing your plan is ultimately based on the level of commitment you make to your self-care.

6. Share your plan

Once you have developed your plan and made your commitment, remember that friends, family, peers, and/or colleagues may be good additional resources for exchanging new self-care ideas/strategies and to provide support and encouragement.

Consider taking your commitment a step further by joining or starting a support or discussion group (see Tips for Starting a Support or Discussion Group).

7. Follow your plan

Now that you have completed the assessments and worksheets described above, you have identified the core elements of your personal Self-Care Plan. The final step is to implement your plan and keep track of how you are doing. Keeping track of your progress will help you recognize your successes and identify and address any difficulties you may not have anticipated. Don't forget that you can revise your plan as needed. Remember, also, to employ your emergency plan should emotionally difficult circumstances arise.

Remember that self-care is always a work in progress!

(Prepared by Lisa D. Butler, PhD, based in part on materials provided by Sandra A. Lopez, LCSW, ACSW, University of Houston, Graduate School of Social Work)

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Write a brief reflection on:
- One strategy you will implement tomorrow
- One long-term change you plan to make
- One insight you gained about your mental health needs

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Share one commitment to self-care with your colleague group using our collaborative Padlet wall.

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Watch this 9 minute video.

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Learn to shine your brightest- the importance of self care for teachers (and everyone!)

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Self-care is proving to be difficult to master and weave into our teachers frantic lives. As human beings we must prioritise our own well-being and as teachers as well we can begin to place the same emphasis on staff well-being in our schools as we do for the mental health of the children we teach.

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Read this study.

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Early childhood educators  emotional exhaustion and the frequency of educational activities in preschool

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Read to learn about the signs of burn-out

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Teacher burnout is a serious problem in the United States. That's why educational leadership must know the signs of teacher burnout in their schools and address issues as soon as possible. Burnout leads to a revolving door of educators, disrupting students' learning and creating instability in schools. Burned-out teachers are also less effective in the classroom, which can be detrimental to student outcomes.

Most importantly, burnout harms teachers' mental and physical health. This creates a negative atmosphere in schools, impacting everyone from teachers to students.

Teacher burnout refers to extreme and prolonged work stress that leads to exhaustion, cynicism, and negative attitudes towards the profession. Whether directly or indirectly, it affects almost every teacher in every school, with 90% of educators describing burnout as a serious issue . While some degree of job stress is expected, excessive or ignored strain erodes mental health over time.

Educational leadership has a responsibility to proactively minimize burnout. Preventing and relieving teacher burnout requires deliberately designing supportive environments that foster resilience. This involves strategic school improvement plans to uphold teacher wellness, spanning policy reform, communication practices, and resource allocation.

Common Causes of Teacher Burnout

Burnout is a result of several interrelated factors. Without interventions, these factors coalesce into a self-perpetuating burnout spiral, eroding personal wellness and fulfillment. Since student potential manifests through quality instruction, reversing burnout is pivotal.

Unsustainable Workloads

Teaching is a relentless treadmill of instructional design, delivery, grading, standardized test preparation, data analysis, parental outreach, and administrative tasks. Perfectionist tendencies that many passionate educators possess exacerbate an overload of duties.

Lack of Autonomy

Micromanagement and limited authority over curriculum and classroom policies can emotionally drain teachers. Creativity and self-expression remain fundamental human needs, even for the most selfless individuals devoted to service. Environments that suppress the natural motivators demoralize teachers over time.

Insufficient Support

Consistent access to high-quality coaching, mentoring, and support from leadership, along with opportunities to develop skills collaboratively in professional learning communities, is the exception rather than the norm. Isolated environments inhibit growth.

Inadequate Resources

Outdated teaching tools, technology constraints like slow networks, and insufficient classroom staples due to tight budgets impede instructional quality. Educators cannot deliver their best without proper infrastructure.

Student Behavioral Issues

For teachers tasked as surrogate caretakers while still expected to deliver quality instruction, coping with defiant, abusive, or special needs students accelerates burnout.

External Pressures

Ever-changing government mandates, standardized test score focus, school ranking systems, and immense pressure from parents and broader society are enough to push teachers to the door.

The 10 Signs of Teacher Burnout

Burnout progresses gradually, often going unnoticed until worsening symptoms begin interfering with daily functioning. Some common red flags include:

1. Cynicism

Some teachers begin showing excessive negativity toward students, parents, coworkers, collaborations, and leaders.

2. Irritability

A quick temper, coldness, a sarcastic tone, and a general lack of empathy are all warning signs of an irritable, burned-out teacher.

3. Anxiety or Depression

Hopelessness about the future, sadness, suicidal thoughts, and lack of motivation require urgent intervention.

4. Low Morale

Some teachers feel constantly overwhelmed, ineffective, and lose recognition of achievements.

5. Physical Fatigue/Frequent Sickness

Emotional exhaustion manifests as physical symptoms like repeated colds and flus caused by a suppressed immune system.

6. Insomnia

The inability to detach from workplace anxiety causes interrupted sleep and can become a vicious cycle.

7. Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms

Binge eating, skipping meals, increased alcohol use, or using illicit drugs to mentally escape stress are all warning signs.

8. Absenteeism

Frequently using allotted personal and sick days to avoid facing workplace troubles may indicate a burned-out individual.

9. Declining Student Outcomes

Rushed lesson plans, difficulty concentrating, and eroded creativity cause student feedback scores to slip over time.

10. Neglecting Responsibilities

Sometimes a teacher approaching burnout may start allowing assigned duties to slide as the focus narrows toward preserving personal wellness.

While warning signs vary between individuals, collectively, they signal the detrimental impacts of ignored stress. After recognizing at-risk educators, swift, personalized action is vital for reversing trajectories before the damage becomes permanent.

How Educational Leadership Can Support Teachers

With teacher health intrinsically linked to student success and school outcomes, education leaders are collectively responsible for disrupting the prevalent burnout trend in America's schools. Utilizing best practices supported by decades of in-depth improvement science research is necessary to effectively build resilience and strengthen teachers who are already under extreme pressure.

Create a Support Framework

Environments that allow unmanaged stress to become burnout set educators up for failure from the start. Reform requires restructuring support systems through:

Open Communication: Schools where teachers are comfortable discussing mental health outperform . Destigmatization, transparency, and healthy rapport between leadership and teachers are foundational.

Collaboration Networks: Build opportunities for teachers to regularly exchange ideas and best practices in learning communities without fear of criticism.

Mentorship Programs: Facilitated mentor-mentee relationships allow veterans to coach next-generation educators on stress management, instructional ability, and professional growth.

Implement Workplace Policies that Promote Balance

Rebuild unrealistic workplace expectations through carefully considered policy initiatives like:

Capped Working Hours: Codify 40-hour maximum weekly policies to enforce work-life balance. Unlimited overtime drives burnout.

Mandatory Personal Time: Incentivize teachers to completely detach from work by making minimum vacation days compulsory rather than optional.

Focus on Achievements: Publicly highlight teacher accomplishments in communications and meetings while redirecting away from shortcomings.

Invest in Professional Development

Allocate budget for professional development opportunities for educators through:

Wellness Training Access: Fund available counseling, individualized stress management, mindfulness, mental health first aid, and trauma-informed instruction courses.

Ongoing Pedagogy Development: Sponsor regular professional development days focused on social-emotional learning, behavior management strategies, and emerging education trends.

Skill Refreshers: Arrange succinct programs run by professionals to reinforce efficient time management, organizational practices, and communication strategies.

Build Support Infrastructure and Provide Resources

Education leaders play a significant role in lobbying to acquire resources and build environments where teachers can physically thrive.

Reduced Class Sizes: Advocate for structural changes allowing smaller groups and individual attention, which has dramatically improved teachers' ability to personalize development while reducing strain

Upgraded Tools and Technology: Lobby districts relentlessly until basic needs like updated classroom equipment, faster networks, and modern learning applications become available

Higher Salaries and Reward Structures: Push administrations for pay raises, retention bonuses, and extra benefits to attract and retain talented teachers in a competitive job landscape

Build an Integrated Community

Genuine human connections remain most influential in creating communities where teachers support one another. A healthy culture cannot be manufactured overnight, but it is well worth working toward.

Personal Check-Ins: Make time for regular, sincere conversations. Follow-ups on burnout warning signs with personalized advice and assistance go a long way

Peer Support Circles: Facilitate gatherings for teachers to share struggles and achievements in a non-judgmental manner

Social Events: Host informal potlucks, movie nights, sports teams, and celebrations to gradually strengthen personal relationships among staff members

Why Schools Need Improvement Science

With chronic stress becoming endemic, teacher burnout will only accelerate without deliberate cultural interventions focused on collective wellness and fulfillment. While the path requires long-term commitment, positive environments where empowered educators actively drive their best work remain an inspiring possibility.

Create a School Improvement Plan

Teacher wellness must be central to school improvement plans moving forward. Structural initiatives like policy changes, communication system rebuilding, and resource lobbying establish supportive cultures and environments. In the end, compassionate leadership and meeting human needs create interconnected communities where everyone can prosper, which leads to systemic change.

Measure Success Through Improvement Science

Education leaders should continuously measure program outcomes around teacher health and satisfaction using improvement science . This allows iterative refinement of burnout prevention initiatives based on real evidence over time.

The Bottom Line

Left unaddressed, prolonged teacher stress metastasizes into career-damaging burnout, reducing job satisfaction, effectiveness, and retention rates. As stewards, education leaders have a proactive responsibility to disrupt this status quo and reverse the damage done. However, solutions must emphasize collective wellness, fulfillment, and human potential actualization above all else.

Learn how Schools That Lead helped North Carolina education leaders create their own strategies for managing the students in their care and improving student outcomes, such as a greater decline in chronic student absences than the state average.

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How to Spot the Signs of Teacher Burnout - Schools That Lead

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Teacher burnout has subtle yet critical warning signs. Educational leaders should implement evidence-based strategies to reduce burnout at the first sign of burnout.

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National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

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Free mental health videos, coloring books, and hands-on quizzes and activities for students and educators.

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Complete this assessment to assess your knowledge.

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Take 5 minutes of mindfulness for yourself!

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Mindfulness Guided Meditation - 5 Minutes