This Year, Put Your Well-Being on the Lesson Plan: Small Changes Bring Lasting Support

The Sleep-Stress Loop: How to Break It 

It’s hard to show up fully when you’re running on empty, yet many teachers struggle getting enough rest. Sleep isn’t a luxury. It’s the foundation of emotional regulation, focus and long-term resilience. 

Healthy sleep hygiene can start with small changes. Reducing screen time before bed, using calming cues like soft lighting or herbal tea, and giving yourself even a moment of journaling or breathing can make a real difference.  

Practicing exercises like the 4-7-8 breath can help the body transition from alert to relaxed. It’s easy to do—just inhale for four counts, hold for seven, exhale for eight. It can help calm your heart rate and signal to your body that it’s safe to relax. In fact, it’s a tool you can use any time—lying in bed, sitting in the dark, even during midnight wakeups when your mind feels loud. For educators whose days are packed with overstimulation and emotional labor, sleep isn’t just rest, it’s repair. And you deserve that restoration. When you get the rest you need, everything feels more manageable. 

Gut Feeling: How Nutrition Fuels Your Mood 

The mind-body connection isn’t just theory—it’s chemical. What we eat has a direct impact on how we think and feel. Blood-sugar swings, inflammation, and poor hydration can all contribute to brain fog and emotional crashes, while steady nutrition helps keep mood and focus on track. 

Choosing meals and snacks that combine protein, fiber and healthy fats can give you more consistent energy throughout the day. Something as simple as adding a hard-boiled egg or some hummus to your lunch can help you feel more balanced and less reactive.  

For many educators, mealtimes often feel rushed, and sugary pick-me-up snacks in the teacher breakroom may be relentlessly calling your name! But reframing food as fuel for both your body and your brain can shift it from one more task to an important form of self-care. Even preparing a few grab-and-go snacks at the start of the week—trail mix, fruit, nut butter packets—can set you up to feel more supported during busy days. 

Hydration is just as vital. Mild dehydration is linked to fatigue, foggy thinking and lower emotional regulation—all things teachers can't afford to deal with in the middle of a school day. Keeping a water bottle at your desk or using a hydration reminder app can help make this habit stick.  

These aren’t sweeping changes, but they’re well within reach. And over time, they build a stronger foundation for both physical and emotional resilience. 

Community Is a Mental Health Essential 

Mental health isn’t something we maintain on our own. It’s something we build in relationship with others. Too often, teachers feel they have to power through in silence. That isolation can quickly feed burnout. 

Whether it’s a trusted colleague, a small group message or a brief check-in with another educator at lunch, human connection helps. These small interactions offer validation and support—especially when things feel overwhelming.  

If you don’t feel like you have that kind of network, consider reaching out to one person to start. Join an online group for teachers navigating similar challenges. Or propose something low key, like a weekly coffee chat or even a shared gratitude board in the staff room. You don’t need a big group—just someone who gets it. 

Educators give a lot. And many feel pressure to keep giving, no matter the cost. But sustainable teaching starts with sustainable self-care. When you prioritize your own well-being, you aren’t taking away from your students—you’re modeling something powerful. You’re showing that boundaries are healthy, that rest matters and that emotional honesty is a strength.  

Students need to see adults who protect their own energy and speak up when they’re struggling. That example is a lesson in itself.  

So, this back-to-school season, make space for a pulse check. Not as a to-do, but as a moment of care. You don’t need a full plan or perfect consistency. You just need a willingness to pause, notice how you’re doing and take one small step forward—because when teachers are well, everyone benefits.