As we all begin to head back to school I wanted to leave you with some ideas to keep the school year less stressful. The unplanned parent visits, endless meetings, lesson planning, bulletin board hanging, and recess duty can leave any teacher a little weary. Here are some tips to follow to make the year stress free.
1) Eat healthy. It would be easy to grab the donut from the teacher's workroom but the extra sugar will only give you a very short amount of energy and you will be tired again. Plan on adding some healthy snacks to your grocery list. I love the individual peanut butter containers by Jif! You could dip pretzels or bananas in them. Fresh cut veggies with hummus will give you some protein and energy that could last throughout the day. Or a yogurt with some granola. Start planning ahead.
2) Exercise. It can make you happier! It is good for your brain and your body because it increases your endorphins (which make you feel good). It is known to lower incidences of depression and anxiety. It is a great way to forget your troubles and focus on your body.
3) Laugh more often. Life is going to hand you a few lemons, but you can make lemonade out of most things if you learn how to laugh about them. Some of the best ways to break the ice in the classroom is to share a joke at the beginning of class. Take a moment to talk with your co-workers and share stories about your weekend and families. Laughter must be shared with others!
http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART00535/common-stress-triggers.html
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/exercise-and-stress/SR00036
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/StressManagement/FightStressWithHealthyHabits/Fight-Stress-with-Healthy-Habits_UCM_307992_Article.jsp
What great reminders for everyone but especially teachers! The one thing that I like about September is that it gets me back into my routine which includes gym habits, healthy eating etc. I love that you posted this!
ReplyDeleteA great post. Thanks! It's funny how the simple things such as eating right, exercise, and laughter will make our lives so much easier!
ReplyDeleteGreat stressbusters! Not only are these stress relievers but they are also self esteem boosters. Most people feel good about themselves when they workout and eat right because we all know that these are good things for us to do. A lot of times eating unhealthy and feeling guilty about not getting to the gym cause us to feel bad. It's a tough balance. I am craving a workout today!!!
ReplyDeleteWe have been through our 7 days of inservice and will have students on Monday. I honestly needed these reminders. The stress was building and I had to take a day just to walk it all off and I felt so much better. I think I will make a poster with these points and put it on my closet door to remind me everyday!
ReplyDeleteI have been feeling so overwhelmed and stressed out especially since school is starting tomorrow. I get stressed out when I have 1 billion things to do and not enough time to do it. These are great tips and at church this morning we discussed how important it is to get enough rest. We need to try and not put as much on ourselves, but that is very hard.
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