Today is part three of our Challenge to build healthy relationships. We’re focusing on you, my teacher and homeschooling parent friend. We’re looking at self-care.
For the past few weeks, we’ve talked about caring for those who surround you, like your students and your family members. Today though, we’re looking at taking care of and loving yourself.
As educators, we spend so much of our time caring for others that we often either feel too tired or forget to look after ourselves.
After a long day at work, I come home to play with my baby, then complete my chores and I used to do more work. I used to be so tired that I couldn’t get into bed fast enough.
I’ve implemented the following strategies that have helped me care for myself and I know they’ll work for you as well.
Actionable Steps:
#1. Set and Maintain Boundaries
I learned how to see myself as important and worthy enough to set aside special time for myself. I set up boundaries so that I could make this happen.
If you’d like to create boundaries, please check out the article called, “How to Set Effective Goals for Teachers In and Out of the Classroom.”
#2. Plan Ahead
I planned my teaching, prep, and extra work time so that I could have time for myself. Knowing that I wasn’t in constant fight-or-flight mode enabled me to enjoy my job and relaxation time.
In my article, “5 Time Management Tips for Teachers to Alleviate Stress,” I outline exactly how you can achieve this as well.
#3. Be Grateful
When you’re tired, you’ll naturally see negativity around you. Therefore, it’s important to spend time looking at all of the beauty in your life.
The best part about this is that you don’t have to do it alone. You can do it with your students. Find out “How to Teach Gratitude to Students” and enjoy doing it with them.
#4. Put Yourself First
You need to destress away from everyone and in your own way. I’ve created a “15 Comforting Self-Care Strategies & Reflection Guide” to help you carve out time for yourself and find self-care strategies that work for you.
You don’t need to spend a long time on self-care; you only need about 10 minutes every night or morning to indulge in it.
Recap:
Let’s recap really quickly. Today, we looked at the following:
- The importance of caring for yourself.
- Four steps to try this week: set and maintain boundaries, plan ahead, be grateful, and put yourself first.
Additional Thoughts:
In the mean time, if you’re still feeling stressed out, overwhelmed and burnout, then I encourage you to check out the following:
Next Steps:
In the comments below, answer the following:
If you’d like additional resources for your classroom here are the three ways you can access them: 1) Free Resource Library; 2) At my store; 3) Systematic Plan to Super Passionate; 4) The Colourful Teaching Club.
If you found this video beneficial, would you do me a favour? Share this with your family, your friends, your loved ones, your co-workers or someone who you think could benefit from this. Thank you!
I’ll see you next Friday at 5:30pm PST.
Until I see you next time, remember to create, experience & teach from the heart.
Take care,
Charlotte
