Teachers Alert - “Burn Out” is a Syndrome

Teachers Alert - “Burn Out” is a Syndrome

Do you often feel exhausted? Do you get feelings of negativity at your work place? Then be alert, you are at BURN-OUT.

Work place “Burn-Out” in teachers has been identified very commonly.  Burn-out refers specifically to phenomena in the occupational context. It has been seen that teachers over-strain themselves to perform multiple tasks. The pressure of deadlines to submit tasks at stipulated time, parental pressure, pressure from colleagues to showcase the best ,  pressure to deal with different children with different abilities,  pressure from management, family pressure etc.  There could be thousand other reasons of occupational stress in teachers.  This is an alarming situation and teachers have to be little alert for the physical and mental health. 

Recently the world health organisation (WHO) has redefined Burn out. Report says that WHO has declared Burn-Out as a syndrome which is the result of the chronic occupational stress that has not been managed properly. It is not a disease but if interventions are not being done then it may have serious medical repercussions.

Burn-Out is characterised by three ways:

1. Emotional Exhaustion: At work place when you receive feelings of low energy or energy depletion or exhaustion then it is Burn-Out.
2. Depersonalisation – When you feel negative about everyone even the ones who care for you or you don’t feel connected to your class/students or the job then it is Burn-Out.
3. Reduce professional efficacy- When you are unable to perform assigned task due to negativity, you feel that you do not have any more new ideas, and you feel like your brain has stopped working which affects your efficiency then it is Burn-Out.

Most common reason of work place Burn-Out is NO HOLIDAY due to the following probable reasons.
1. Sometimes teachers do not get holiday at a stretch of 15 days/month or even unable to avail entitled leaves because of back to back functions in the school. This leads to anxiety.
2. Sometimes teachers do not take holiday because of the fear of replacement. Everyone get a feeling of being replaced by others as if you go on a holiday and your work is being performed perfectly by your colleague then you may be replaced.
3. Sometimes if you have taken a holiday by chance then also you need to respond to phone calls from the school after every minute. Because if you don’t receive phone calls, you have to face the criticism or blame by the management, you will be made to realise that you have done blunder taking a holiday. So, you repent at last for why did you take a holiday, and you get a feeling of not to take holiday in future.
4. Sometimes teachers are so overburdened that they even can’t think of taking a holiday because they need to complete the course and meet the deadlines as if they don’t complete on stipulated time then they have to face negativism, sarcasm and criticism which will not be healthy for their appraisal in future.  
 
All teachers face such situations where they reach to burn-out point.

This can be avoided doing few simple things such as Flower-CandleBreadth.

1.When feel low or exhausted, take a deep breath like you smell the fragrance of a flower and leave breadth as if you are blowing out a candle.

2. One glass of Water- Drink one full glass of water in one go rather drinking sip by sip.

3. Exercise- Daily exercise or yoga or meditation atleast for 10 minutes.

4. Share- Burst out your heart in front of your trust worthy friend. When you share your things, you feel much more relaxed.

5. Priotise- Do the important and urgent tasks first. Hence priotise your things so that the task is being completed at stipulated time. Manage your time.

6. Log Book- Mention a log book to understand your trigger points, what create anxiety and makes you feel depleted of energy. 

7. Holiday- Many short vacations do more for you than one long. One holiday rejuvenates, refreshes & relaxes your body & mind.

The mental well-being of teachers is extremely essential. BURN-OUT is not healthy and it may leads to severe health issues. Prevention is better than cure.  It’s better to cure it at early stage to live a happy and healthy personal and professional life.