I was in Burnout and didn’t know it

I was doing fine.

Kinda.

Getting up in the morning wasn’t as difficult as “being in burn-out” made it out to be. Unfortunately, I was more on edge than I realized.

I’d had harder classes, I was in a pretty good planning and prepping groove, my team was the freakin’ best…

…and I was still struggling without a clear way of describing why.

Then,

the unthinkable happened

My Story

I was a couple weeks into my administrative leave when I found out I had literally been replaced. I knew I shouldn’t have tapped that student on the cheek and I was ready to accept the consequences of my behavior, but this?

Really?

Knowing what I know now, that was the first moment my stress became trauma. My disbelief was more profound than anything I had every experienced. I love kids, I am and incredible teacher-especially after my 8.5 years of teaching and what seemed like endless schooling including endorsements and getting a master’s degree. Yet there I was; home instead of with my students.

Self-compassion saved my life.

What I knew about myself and the details of my reality were so vastly different. Never in a million years did I imagine I’d have to fight to keep my teaching license; I was not one of “THOSE” teachers.

Working my way through the emotion of shame, I knew that if I continued to care as I did what people thought of me, I would not survive.

This is when Kristin Neff’s research finds its mark. I had spent YEARS being hard on myself because I thought that’s what was holding everything together, and I kept doing it because it’s a fabulous short-term solution. Unfortunately, I never understood the long-term effects.

As Dr. Neff describes, the inner critic actually activates the threat system in our body from the inside. I had enough things ‘attacking’ me from the outside that I could not control. From the inside? With the help of mindfulness, common humanity, and self-kindness I was able to create inner calm with the things I COULD control.

With just a few minor shifts, my own burnout could have been prevented. Now it’s my mission to drive systemic change that fosters true connection, strengthens emotional resilience, and creates schools where both teachers and students can thrive.

This looks like transforming stress into support, isolation into connection, and burnout into sustainable well-being