Hey all you cool cats and kittens! No? Oh wait, this is not a Tiger King blog! I mean hi, teachers! Sorry, I think I’ve been stuck at home too long. Going on 10 weeks here! Even though many of us have been home, things are still pretty stressful, so I wanted to share some self-care ideas for teachers!
Physical Activities
Squish Stuff!
Get yourself a stress ball! Or just pop some bubble wrap. You probably have some free stress balls somewhere but I love the positive messages on these.
Move your Body
Do something physical that you enjoy -whether it;’s just talking a walk, toga, or an online workout. Build yourself an obstacle course in the yard and run it, then try and beat your time!
Mental Self Care
Take a Break
Make sure you take time off on the weekend! You do not have to check online submissions on Saturday or reply to parent emails. And in my opinion, I really really advise you not to schedule Zoom meetings with colleagues on weekends!
Try something you find fun but haven’t done in a while: puzzles, crossword puzzles, and art (paint by numbers are HOT right now!) These are a few of my favorites. For a beginner/medium paint by numbers user, isn’t the giraffe cool? And yes that’s a puzzle, not a pile of candy to eat. But if that is your self-care, go for it!
Self-Talk
Positive self talk. We teach our children and students this, but do we honor ourselves with positive self talk? Even if you have to do one day at a time self-talk, such as “Today will be good” or “I will make through today!”
Games
Play a game – board game, online game, or video game. If you follow me , you know I find the Sims 4 to be great stress relief! Pick your favorite, and if it’s something you can do as a family, like Animal Crossing, why not?
Bonus
Not so much self care, but good practice! If you get a stressful email, wait at least an hour (or longer to reply). Give yourself time to process stressors and formulate a calm, professional reply.
