Keeping sane as a teacher - anyone want to join me?

[lbnblbnb]

I teach in Secondary, I have a DD 13 and a DS 7. Supportive husband - irritating old sod in many ways but basically good. I have been struggling for the past couple of years, workload, responsibility, daydreams of doing a Thelma and Louise and running away... anyway, I have decided that despite all this I do love teaching and have to get better at managing/balancing. Not that I think there is a perfect way to do it, I think the way teaching is set up at the moment is ridiculous, but I want to try to keep myself sane in the middle of it all. If anyone would like to join me you are welcome.

Ideas so far (not prescriptive, everyone has to find their own way):
Cutting out caffeine - I did this from Jan 1st, has crept back up. Helps me sleep so much better.
Alcohol - similar, I sleep so much better if I don't drink during the week.
Planning evenings out/ a weekend out with DH - he works many weekend eves, so takes some forward planning.
Exercise - always difficult for me, too easy to think I have no time. Need to think that one through.
Weekend traditions - pancakes Sat morn, "film night" with DCs on a Friday eve, all in PJs on sofa with popcorn.
Getting a cleaner - need to throw out loads of the crap first unfortunately.
Find a yoga class, get DD to come with me - she has some of my tendencies, perfectionism and pushing herself too hard.
Other ideas?

I teach in primary and have complicated family responsibilities. Marking my place.

Love your username LaBelleDame, welcome. Yes, it is balancing the family responsibilities and school that I need to work on.

Is there anyway you could drop down to 4 days? I find that my non working day mid-week keeps me sane as I have time to:
Go to the gym (sometimes)
Catch up on paperwork at home
Shop for birthday presents, clothes etc.
Run a million errands
have lunch with a friend (sometimes)

I still feel completely overworked because I still have sole responsibility for a class (complicated arrangement!), but think that things would be so much worse without my day off.

Littlefish - that isn't an option for me at the moment, although friends of mine have found that makes a big difference. Particularly it being mid week. My income is the main one, and I want to pay off the mortgage ASAP, extend, help kids with uni, retire early. So I want to keep full time wages.

I'm in - I have really worried myself this half term, I feel so exhausted and haven't started to feel better yet. I'm finding it hard to see any way of doing things better/making life easier. DH is also a teacher and very active in the union and although we have loads of family support, we just can't seem to make things balance.

I definitely need to keep sane. I had the start of a panic attack on Tuesday night for the first time in over 20 years. I'm not going down that road again! I am planning to get out of teaching, but I need to do another 18 months at least, and want to it to be as smooth and successful as possible.
One of the things I most need to get on top of is making the most of time I have at school to do some marking, as I really struggle to mark at home.

Welcome balia and Nonie241419. balia, it is terrible when you can't seem to get enough rest. Is there anything you have done in the past that has helped? Please believe me, I don't think it should be up to us to fix it all - teaching is a ridiculously stressful and hard job - but whilst I wait for a miracle to change our conditions, what can you do to help yourself now? Do you have kids?

I have been a primary teacher for 20 years. I have got to look at the work/home balance because after ' dragging ' my achy body in at the end of summer term last year I thought I had a touch of a bad head and then fast forward to now and just about to hopefully start back after having meningitis. Thankfully because I love my job and am generally extremely healthy and it was viral I am going back but it will still be a slow phased one. I have to try going back as there is only so much 'rest' and also until I go back I will not know what I can do. My husband is so supportive so is my family, but they know what I am like as do the school. For health I need to change.
I aim to try to keep work at work and not bring any home.
I aim to not try to worry about being made to be responsible for what has happened while I have not been there.
I aim to put me first.
I aim to prioritise and delegate. I plan and teach and mark, if I have a ta to a display they do it not me!!!!
I am entitled to eat my lunch at lunch time not at home time.
I will leave on a Friday and do 'me things'
But I will still go to 4 different tesco branches to get 30 spoons because they want to make puppets because they want to and I will still go to 3 supermarkets to find fresh mango and coconut as they say they have never tasted it and I will still give my cheese sandwich to the child whose drink has spilt onto their lunch

Nonie, I agree about needing to do more marking at school - I find it hard to focus on it at school, but hate bringing so much home.

Blimey ilovecolouring, you have had a tough time of it. I 100% agree you must look after yourself - I like your list. Keep up this attitude - that is what I find hard, my good intentions can get lost under the mass of things to do once you get to school...

lbnblbnb the list looks good but doing it is a different matter!!!!! Did a pop in and cried all the way home and then supportive husband has hidden my fob so couldn't pop in this week to just tidy or look on the computer. He knows me to well. But seriously will have to otherwise it will be longer before I am back full time

Love Mr Colouring hiding your fob - good plan! Seriously, although it is not the same situation I am similar in that I need to actually carry out all the good ideas I have - maybe this thread can support us to actually do it.

I have been ill all half term because I was doing the school show the week before and did not stop. I love my job but I need to look after myself more. I need to exercise more and cut down on caffeine. My non-negotiable is choir on a Wednesday. Knowing that it's coming up keeps me sane and means I don't bring work home on a Wednesday. DH is really good, but I don't help myself DTDs are 8 and do a lot of after school things. I need to slow down!

Welcome EvilTwins and FleurdeHeadLice - some of the best usernames I have seen are on this thread.

Looking after ourselves - so easy to say, so hard to do consistently. I like your non-negotiable EvilTwins - I need to set up something like that. I am too helpful - to school, my DH or my kids.

Although I teach secondary, I do get what you mean FleurdeHeadLice - it is hard to bond with some classes. The meanness is what I find hardest to deal with.

I find it very hard not to get too emotionally involved. I have yr 11s whom I have taught weekly for 5 years and have spent hours with on school productions. Then when I habe marking yo do but they need to chat at lunchtime about their latest teenage crisis, I find it very hard to say no... I will also do things like drop term home after rehearsals/trips rather than allow them to walk home late at night (when parents can't be bothered or think that 14 is old enough to get the bus at 10pm in January) and that adds hours on. I'm not trying to make out that I'm Superteacher but it does get in the way of getting home!

Oh and I was in the supermarket today and picked up a pot of vitamins/supplements which is supposed to help with stress levels. Read the label and put them back because taking them three times daily seemed too much of a commitment

EvilTwins - I know, it is so hard. You want to look after those kids and listen - too many students can't talk to their parents - but it means I have less time for my own kids when I get home. Makes me think of my mum - lovely, lovely person, but she was a nurse and whenever we were ill we got no sympathy whatsoever. She would never take us to the doctors. I don't want to look back on my life and wish I had had more time and energy for my own children. But it is what I love about teaching, building relationships, making a difference.

Yeah - three times a day, that is pushing it....
But truly, once we are back at work, it is like that. I NEED to look after myself - such a simple idea, why is it so hard?

FleurdeHeadLice fab name!
Magnesium is good for mental stability, and only one a day
Marking in school - really good rule. Other stuff (planning) can be done at home, but I refuse to mark at home.

I'm going to carry on saying no. Can't do it without caffeine though.

DontGotoRoehampton - one a day sounds more possible.
Do you manage to do all your marking in school? Any tips? It sounds so pathetic, but I hardly every manage to mark in school.
guilianna - saying no is at the heart of a lot of my problems I think. Or rather not saying no. Caffeine - I love it, it is only because of poor sleep that i tried giving it up. Each to their own.

It is very hard to say - not a hit in meetings.