Stress Management Plan For Teachers

Teaching is usually considered to be among the most stressful jobs. Teacher stress have caused a lot of early retirements due to ill health, lengthy absences because of extended illness, and new teachers “exiting” during either training or in five years after taking up post; these factors have been significantly increasing among teachers.

For teachers, stress is a “normal” part of everyday life; however, if these stresses are left unmanaged, it will weaken their effectiveness in teaching, as well as hinder appropriate productivity for their students. Fortunately, there is a stress management plan for teachers for them to properly manage stress.

A stress management plan for teachers usually involves several steps to carefully follow and apply to their daily dealings with stress. Here are some steps for a successful stress management plan for teachers:

Be familiar with the signs of stress
A teacher should monitor themselves for stress symptoms such as: not sleeping, getting sick a lot, feeling nervous every time, eating less or more than usual, always tired, forgetting important things, thinking about parting with the teaching professions, and no longer enjoying daily activities. If these stress symptoms have taken over, then it is time to make a move.

Recognize the key stressors
An important step in stress management plan for teachers is identifying the main sources of one’s stress. These sources may be situational, mental/emotional, or behavioral. Take notice to your “stress load” in the next several days or weeks; keep a journal to record the reaction to particular events. Evaluate the results, search for patterns, and spot the major sources of your “life stress”. Then, make an objective plan to alleviate or shun from these stressors.

Talk to co-teachers
A frequent cause of “professional stress” is social isolation; teachers should discuss things over among their colleagues. Questions like how they deal with classroom issues or what techniques of managing stress works for them are casual conversations that will help cope with stress.

Plan in advance to prevent feeling rushed
Time management is very essential in stress management; developing weekly schedules for teaching, meetings, gradings, and other tasks will help a lot in reducing stress.

Practice daily “stress management skills”
Get a lot of rest, exercise, eat well, reduce the intake of caffeine, take pleasure in a favorite hobby regularly, and keep that sense of humor.

These are just some steps of stress management plan for teachers that will help teachers get through difficult periods in the teaching arena. Always keep in mind to take it one day at a time, and plan for “self reward” when the “crunch” has ended –get that soothing massage or that special dinner out.