Living in a society that places so much pressure on working hard to achieve your goals, many people can relate to the struggle of feeling guilty for resting and prioritizing their interests outside of work. Teachers are not exempt from this experience.
One teacher took to Reddit to ask if any other teachers could relate to feeling guilty for incorporating balance into their lives.
In the r/teachers forum, the woman explained she has dedicated a lot of hard work and time to her career and has grown in the industry, reaching a “point of stability as a leader.”
“I decided it was time to start getting some balance back into my life,” she said. “I love my job and my career, but I want to feel like I have a life outside of it again.”
Since this mindful decision, the woman has begun exercising one hour a day, adopting a healthier diet, and creating space to focus on her interests when she gets home from work.
“I’ve gone from working every day after work at home (for about 2-3 hours) and on the weekend (up to 5 hours each day) to only allowing myself to work at home Wednesday evenings and weekends when I need to,” she explained.
While she clearly seems to have the right idea of maintaining a healthy balance between her work and her life, she can’t help but feel guilty about it and pressured to do more.
“I keep feeling like I’m going to miss something or I’m not working hard enough,” she shared candidly. “It’s so frustrating because I feel like I’m prioritizing my whole life, not just my work life, and I’m struggling with the adjustment.”
Reddit users validated the teacher for her relatable feelings of guilt and commended her for prioritizing her wellbeing.
They asserted that those in the education industry specifically tend to fall privy to these toxic patterns, as boundaries are not always enforced or respected.
Teachers have some of the most crucial roles in society, as they are responsible for educating the next generations of civilization. Reddit users argued that just like any other profession, teachers deserve to prioritize their personal lives and identities outside of their jobs and they should not feel guilty for doing so.
“Taking care of myself makes me a better teacher,” one person commented on the post. “You can’t set yourself on fire to keep other people warm.”
“Some people make their work their lives,” someone else commented. “Some people go to work to facilitate their actual lives. Congratulations on becoming the latter of those two.”
Other teachers argued that those in the teaching profession need to collectively uphold a work-life balance more often, as the trend of teachers consistently overexerting themselves is leading administrators to expect this work ethic from everyone.
“You should feel guilty for neglecting your personal life and putting in too many non-contract hours,” another teacher asserted bluntly. “Honestly, it’s teachers like you that drive the rest of us crazy and … make us look bad by ‘going the extra mile’ for free. This causes admin to expect this from all of us. I’m glad you’re taking a step back, but I urge you to go even further back.”
Teachers, like everyone else, deserve to foster a healthy and balanced relationship with themselves outside of work.
It can take individuals a while to recover from burnout after spending so much time overexerting themselves at work. Even after they do recover, they’ll still likely feel pressured into falling back into the cycle of working more than they need to. This is because society has normalized hustle culture, and we all feel pushed to set our personal needs and goals aside for the sake of our work responsibilities.
Teachers already take on so much by managing classrooms full of kids five days a week for ten months out of the year, many of whom don’t even respect their teachers.
If we want our kids to receive the necessary guidance and attention from their teachers, the individuals responsible for their education must be pouring into themselves so they can perform as their highest, most balanced selves at work.
As it applies to anyone in any scenario, we as humans can only do so much, and we must know when to draw the line between work and downtime. Of course, it’s admirable to be passionate about your work, and there’s nothing wrong with working additional hours now and then if you have the time and ability.
But always stay mindful of your needs, your identity, and your personal life outside of work, especially when you have a family. Remember what values you stand for, and know what is most important at the end of the day. Nothing is worth invalidating your personal feelings and interests — not even your job.
Francesca Duarte is a writer on YourTango’s news and entertainment team based in Orlando, FL. She covers lifestyle, human-interest, adventure, and spirituality topics.
