As you go back-to-school, you are probably navigating changes and new challenges. Dealing with sudden schedule shifts, or struggling with a student’s behavior, trying to keep up with teaching the syllabus, and taking care of your personal needs simultaneously can be a great deal to manage. Overwhelming demands added to your daily responsibilities are the reasons why you should you take time to care about yourself! This article will offer helpful reminders of ways you can practice self-care as you begin the new school year.
Change Your Mindset
Changing your mindset may be a challenging task, because it requires time and effort, and is a process. Self-love is a journey, not a one-time activity. The best way to change your mindset is to practice daily. You should start your day with positivity, knowing that you are worth it. You need to appreciate yourself first. For example, the moment everything is not going as planned is the best time to remind yourself to stay positive. It can be a challenge to remember that kids are just kids, and you should not expect the students to behave and think like you. However, if you start your day with with mindful gratitude, you will remember to forgive yourself, and the students. Over time, these realizations, and staying positive, will help you change your mindset for the better.
Congratulate Yourself
It is always a fantastic feeling to set your goals and achieve them. Many remarkable things happen when you feel like you are on top of the world. When you achieve your goals, there is always that feeling that you can go bigger. But when you stop celebrating and start comparing yourself with others, you feel less capable to doing better. What is self-love if we cannot celebrate our success? It is good to celebrate other people, but you need to celebrate every milestone you make as a teacher too.
Practice Self-Affirmations
It is essential to know that we are a product of our thoughts and when you have positive reviews, you become a positive person. Find positive affirmations which you can read, listen to, and repeat aloud before you start your day. These affirmations will help shape the way you think about yourself positively. You can also write down your best positive affirmations and stick them on your desk and home. Such quotes can make you love yourself more, and they can help you get on a path of health and mental wellness.
Reflect on Your Feelings
Be kind to your mind! There is no better way to love yourself than recognizing your emotional needs. When you are aware of these needs, it is time to take a moment and reflect on them. Find out why you are feeling the way you are feeling and identify what you may need now or in the future to translate this feeling into positivity. You can use the help of a journal, music, and any other creative outlets to help you reflect and process your emotions.
Set Healthy Boundaries
As a teacher, it may be normal sometimes to work unconventional hours. For example, you may work till late evening or during the weekends to prepare a lesson plan or do grading and more. It is, however, essential to draw a line between your professional life and your personal life by not allowing your schoolwork to spill over into your personal life to an unhealthy level.
Loving yourself will mean making a deliberate decision to take some time off to reduce the feeling of being overwhelmed. This should be done knowing it’s for both the students' good and your good.
Setting a healthy boundary between work and personal life will give you time to do those activities that make you feel stress-free and good. There is no self-love if you are not feeling good about yourself.
Stay Socially Connected
Being in good social standing with your colleague teachers it's an act of self-care that translates to self-love. Being in good social standing with the other teachers is an excellent way to support and talk through the challenges you face as teachers. Being social with positive people will create an avenue that will help all of you find the best solutions to the common problems you're facing. It is also an excellent avenue to pour out your frustrations, which helps you relieve your stress. Having a teacher's peer support group will help to ensure you practice self-love, because you will be discussing issues that you face as a person.
Lower Your Expectations
Do not have very high expectations for yourself, like a perfectionist would. For example, if a lesson did not go the way you expected and you did not achieve the desired target, you should not get down on yourself because things did not go your way. Instead, you should take it to learn from your mistakes and embrace the new skills with love. We always teach our students to learn from their mistakes, and so similarly, we should take our advice. Always let go of the idea that every lesson must be perfect and do not blame yourself for not reaching the desired target. Instead re-strategize and try again.
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Conclusion
As a teacher, extra positive mindfulness and loving affirmations may be necessary for mental health and wellness. Remember that being healthy is not the numbers you see on a weight scale, but also how you feel inside. Use these tips and you will enjoy a vibrant school year. Remember, life doesn't have to be perfect to be wonderful!