Any teacher training on self care strategies tends to have the same result. A few people take notes and pay attention. The majority, however, shake their heads and wonder why they have to waste time they don’t have on things they don’t have time to do.

Unfortunately, the teaching profession is only adding more stressors. Nothing has been taken off teachers’ plates, unless you are in one of few phenomenal school districts out there. So why the emphasis on self care? (If you don’t care for the answer and just want the strategies, feel free to scroll to the bottom)

There is a point of agreement among politicians, school leaders, psychologists, and teachers themselves. People who take charge of their own health and wellness perform better and find more career satisfaction than those who don’t. Investing in self care makes you better at your job and happier while doing it.

Staying Ahead of the Game

While there is agreement of the importance of applying self care strategies, disagreement occurs in the reasoning for it. Often, leaders and politicians look to create a self care environment that drives more productivity and less complaining. A resilient staff will work harder and be slower to respond to being overworked.

Obviously, that is not what we want as teachers. It is not ideal to be in a position to be trampled even further. So should we throw self care out the window and prepare to give only our minimum?

Of course not! It is our health and happiness at stake. Promoting positive self care does more than just increase our satisfaction. Applying these strategies can help you advocate against negative school policies, strengthen you to refuse overworking, and redirect stressors into fuel for a healthier lifestyle. Energizing yourself will always be to your benefit and can only help you combat those who would use it against you.

The List: 32 Self Care Strategies

Are you ready to take control of your life and apply powerful self care strategies? In our book, Teacher’s Guide to the Mental Edge, we highlighted 32 effective strategies broken down by the following:

Professional (strategies for your work environment)

Personal (strategies to apply at home or outside of work)

Passions (strategies to apply to the part of your life you may be leaving out by overworking)

Want to support the work of Drs. Leichtman? Order a copy of our book today and get a full breakdown of our mindset practices for the classroom!

Here it is, directly from chapter 7. 32 ways to apply self care strategies in your life:

Remember, the strategies are only as good as your application of them. Find what works and lean on it. We believe in you!

Looking for a full SEL curriculum for your classroom? We have you covered with our Mental Edge digital curriculum!