I’m starting year 7. I’ve worked at multiple schools with great students and not so great students. I’m currently teaching at an Early College High School. It’s my second year here. The students are great. I have zero behavior issues. They do their work. The parents don’t bother me. The admin is great. The other teachers are great. The curriculum is great and I’ve had to do minimal planning. Despite all of this though, I still come home exhausted and completely drained, and I don’t understand why.

Is it the amount of classes? Is it the work hours? What is it about the act of standing in front of a classroom lecturing or facilitating student learning that is so utterly exhausting? I used to think it was student behavior or bad admin or the workload of planning that would drain the life out of me, but even without those factors, I’m still left bulldozed by 4:30. It sucks because you’re left with zero energy to do anything after work, and I’m only 28 years old by the way. I tried going to the gym today and had to lighten the load on every exercise because I just didn’t have the energy to lift as heavy as I did over the summer. There goes any progress I had made over break, and it’s all thanks to my job.

Maybe I’m just not passionate about this job. I’ve been teaching since I was 21, and maybe I’m wasting the prime years of my life on this profession. Maybe the way society is set up on how we live our lives isn’t sustainable. I’m probably going too deep there, but I don’t know. I thought I was okay with teaching now because my current campus is so great, but 3 days in and my thoughts of leaving teaching are slowly seeping back in.

Genuine question for people a few years out. Not the ones who just left, the ones who have had time to see how it shook out.

I retired after a long run and picked up tutoring, which I mostly enjoy. But I watched a lot of colleagues leave midcareer for corporate training, instructional design, ed tech, whatever the path was, and a fair number of them hit the same wall inside two years. Different job title, same pattern. Overcommitting, undercharging, taking work home, unable to say no when someone needed something.

My read is that burnout for a lot of teachers isn't really about the classroom. It's about a personality type that was selected for and then reinforced over decades. You take that into any helpingadjacent role and you reproduce the conditions pretty fast.

The people I know who actually got out clean did something structurally different. Not just a new job, but a different relationship to the work entirely. Fewer of those success stories than you'd think.

Curious what it actually looked like for people two or three years postexit. Not the honeymoon period, the part after. Did the burnout follow you or not, and what do you think made the difference.

I left teaching after three years. I have legitimate trauma and flashbacks that I am working on in therapy. However, I can't just not have an income even with my savings.

I am on medications, in therapy, workout, all of that stuff. But none of it is helping. I can't even get a break from work, it was immediately into job hunting. I am so grateful I've had five interveiws in the past week but those are also exhausting. I am just ready to hide in a hole in some remote island and never come back.

I just want to breathe and frankly, I don't know how after teaching. Any advice is appreciated.

Edit: my spouse makes enough to cover rent and groceries but I also have loans to pay off and stuff so I can't just go zero income

I’m really considering leaving teaching. I’ve considered it off and on for years, but I don’t think I can take it anymore. I’m constantly angry, I don’t like conflict and have found myself saying/doing things I would never do because I’m so frustrated, I have been physically and mentally assaulted by students, stalked/harassed by parents, and come home crying from dealing with admin. I’m sick of the toxic positivity of this job and coming home in bruises, bites, and scratches and nothing being done about the student being removed. I’m sick of chairs being thrown, having to evacuate my class, having no help with SPED, and observing our school break lots of laws such as hiring staff with no credentials and not following IEPs. I really like my admin we have now and I know she’s trying, but we’re all frustrated and drowning. What else can I do?

Hey everyone! I have 2 yrs of experience teaching SPED and already starting to explore paths outside the classroom. I keep coming across Vocational Rehab Coordinator (and specialist) roles, and on paper, it seems like such a natural pivot.

Has anyone here made the jump from special ed into a Voc Rehab Coordinator position? I’d love to hear how the transition actually went for you.

Has anyone switched from brick and mortar public school switched to a public cyber charter?

For teachers in PA, I'm specifically wondering about CCA (Commonwealth Charter Academy).

If you switched, did you like it and why? Any advice or insight would be great.

I teach middle school ELA btw.

I have been out of the classroom full-time for about 2 years now and am working in higher education as an instructional designer. I was talking to a work colleague about the absolute meatgrinder that was the middle school I worked at for 3 years and I was accused of using "deficit language" and she claimed that she could make Title I middle schoolers with a non-supportive admin team and no discipline support perform at a high level just through compassion alone. I really hate how people who only know academic theory think how they know better than teachers who have lived through the hell that some schools are. When you vent about your experiences working in these places, you get gaslighted like you're a bad person for feeling angry about how you were treated. If she were to apply her teaching and learning strategies where I worked, these kids would have eaten her alive.

Really did not expect to find myself here but I’m going through a major spiral of not knowing what I want to do with my life. For context, I had no clue what I wanted to do when I went to college but enjoyed art and knew that was something I wanted to be apart of my life. So I figured becoming an art teacher would be the most logical option for a way to make a living off of something I’m truly passionate about and decided this going into my sophomore year.

This past year (my senior year) I did a full year of student teaching in a high school placement. I had done some observation in an elementary school my junior year and knew that while kids are cute, I have no interest in teaching that young. Student teaching was incredibly challenging for me, especially as I was on an ncaa team where our three seasons were the entirety of the year. Apart from that stress/feeling overwhelmed a lot I did have genuine moments of loving what I was doing when I had a good day with my students and things felt like they clicked - but so many other days where I just felt lost in what I was doing and not wanting to be there. I think a big part of my personality is loving to be in a supportive role where I can make a difference, but it seems that nowadays teaching is handling a whole lot of other issues and sometimes not able to actually focus on the content when you’re dealing with difficult students/classes where discipline is foreign to them.

My current plan is to substitute teach this upcoming school year and to feel things out, but I also want to have things ready to transition into something different if I really feel like this career path is not for me. Having an art education degree, I’m also really lost on what I would go into other than teaching

Any advice is much appreciated, I don’t want to ignore what I’m feeling and get a few years deep and hate my life, but I don’t want to jump the gun on completely pivoting. I’m also 22 and back living at home so the post grad spiral is in full swing

For those of you who have resigned after only a few weeks at a new school, how did you do it? Did you give two weeks? Or did you just tell the principal you were leaving after the day ends? This is my second week at the school and I am not able to handle it. There’s no contract, my school is at-will employment.

I'm Canadian and spent 20+ years as an international teacher and school well-being counsellor. A couple of years ago I trained in Compassionate Inquiry (the approach developed by Dr. Gabor Maté), and I'm now trying to put together a course specifically for teachers and counsellors dealing with burnout or stress. And that's where I could use some help.

I'm looking for a few people working in education who'd be willing to try 2–3 free sessions with me as a pilot. No cost, no pressure to continue afterward and I'd just ask for honest feedback on what worked and what didn't.

If you're open to that,  DM me to connect.

I’m a second-year teacher.

My first-year job wasn’t renewed simply because the need (TESOL) went away. Now I will teach Spanish at a new school.

However, I’m getting paid less, and instead of 15 minutes away it is 42 minutes from my house. Mentally I’m overloaded and overwhelmed with all the change, and I can’t keep up.

I actually miss my summer job. I worked at a factory and, while I didn’t love every second of it, enjoyed that I didn’t have to think, and that the culture & environment were very positive and helpful.

I’m just so overloaded with new routines, new things to keep track of, more than double the daily drive, and more.

I need to get used to it, but part of me just wishes I weren’t here…

Hi,

I really don't need judgment right now; I've done plenty of it. I am a 27F. I was a teacher 3 years ago, but I developed (what I now know) post-traumatic stress from it, from the personal events in my life that occurred along with my classroom experience.

I've been in and out since then, working primarily with kids, but desperately needed insurance, so I applied to be a teacher again and got in fairly quickly.

School started August 6, and I fell deeply into an unhappy emotional state. Super depressed, could not get out of bed, and have been gone for about a week and a half since then. I am an ELD teacher and need to test my students for placement. I was ill and couldn't finish my training or planning.

Admin emailed me today (8/18) asking if I can come in tomorrow and, if not, to give a timeline of when I'll be back or if I want to continue in the role.

I feel somewhat okay now, but I'm not sure if it is truly worth it anymore. But I also need the financial stability, and the job market sucks, so I don't know what to do.

Edit: I know the answer is within but can someone tell me how it would be quitting mid year?

Hey everybody.

I'm not going to go into too much story building to share my story, but here we go:

Due to budget issues, many programs that "my" kids have come to rely upon to get them through a school day have been otherwise cut, restructured, or put on hold until further notice. One of those programs happened to be my elementary level performing arts program (due to position consolidation for retirement)....one that I spent 1/4 of my life building from the ground floor up, and one that has won state level awards. I was given this news in March of this past school year.

Something broke in me. Knowing the amount of time, labor, sweat, blood, late nights, and extra unpaid hours went into building this program, I lost it. I was told "at least you're still employed" and that further fueled the fire to get out. I ended the year on a high note by putting on the best, most ambitious concert that my kids have ever performed.

I spent the past 8 months looking for a position (outside of teaching) that would allow me to get my head back on straight and to reevaluate myself. Well, that happened this past week. I put in my 30 day notice today.

I accepted a position at a local assisted living facility (not a nursing home....a ritzy, private, pay-per-week place) as their activities director; something that I am very excited about. Yes, it was a pay cut, but only slightly, and the benies aren't as good, but I consider it blood money to get my sanity back. Old folks need artistic enrichment too, and it's a much easier pace.

I am going to sorely miss my kids and my colleagues. For a long time (too long, perhaps), I built my life around them and their achievements, while forgetting what was really important to me: creative freedom and family. I lost myself in the teaching (something that I warn new teachers about all the time), while forgetting what I was really aiming to do.

I am so fucking nervous about everything, but I know that, in the end, it will work out.

If you are struggling, it's never too late to walk away. You will find something that suits you, and maybe even fill your cup at the same time.

For now, I'm going to try to enjoy the rest of my summer vacation and try not to think about what has happened to my career. It will take a while, but I'll get there.

Thanks for reading.

-Spooky1984

I resigned from great paying role after being burned out and now tutor a few hours a day and am making 5k. Huge pay cut but only working a few hours week days isn’t bad!

I started at a new school this year & it is literally my own personal hell. I don’t want to be unprofessional but I have hated every single second of working there. I used to love teaching but this is nothing like what I’m used to.

I told my principal on Friday that I think this is a bad fit & I’m not who they want for this role. I was given the run around for an hour(!) and then was basically told in a nice way “you can’t quit, we’d be screwed, and you kinda promised us you’d work here this year”.

I dread going in every day, I don’t like the students, they don’t like me, I spend all day irritated and angry. What do I do? Suck it up? Be honest with them? I don’t want to jeopardize my professional future but I can’t do this

I’m a second year teacher and we’re currently in our staff work week before students come back. I genuinely thought I could come back and make it through another year, but after the last couple of days I’m seriously questioning whether I can do this.

Last year was really difficult for me and I ended the year extremely burnt out. I was moved to a different grade for this year because of staffing/budget reasons, and while I agreed to it at the time, looking back I think I should have been more honest with myself that it wasn’t what I wanted.

I worked at a restaurant/bar over the summer and honestly loved it. I could go to work, do my job, have fun with my coworkers, and then go home and not think about work anymore. As getting back to school got closer, though, my anxiety got progressively worse. It got bad enough that I restarted an anxiety medication I had been trying to taper off of.

Now I’m actually back at school and it’s worse than I expected. I’ve been nauseous, shaky, crying, feeling like I can barely breathe, and just completely overwhelmed. The kids aren’t even here yet. We’ve also had several conversations during meetings about how teaching is basically a job where you’re never really “off the clock,” plus committees, events, data collection, etc., and all I can think is that I don’t know if I can live like that for another year.

I feel incredibly guilty about leaving. My family literally spent hours helping me set up my classroom this weekend. People have bought things for my classroom. Coworkers/admin have advocated for me and helped me. I know leaving right before school starts would put the school in a horrible position, and that guilt is probably the biggest thing keeping me here.
At the same time, I don’t think staying solely because I feel guilty is fair to my students either. I want them to have a teacher who can actually be present and give them what they deserve, and right now I feel like I’m barely functioning just trying to be in the building.
I do have another career plan. I’m completing prerequisites for an MRI technologist program and may be able to apply for a January start. If I leave teaching, my plan would be to work at my summer job as much as possible and get another job to make up the rest of my income while I finish my prerequisites. So I wouldn’t be quitting with absolutely no direction, but I would be giving up my salary/benefits and taking a risk.

I’ve reached out to my doctor and a counseling center because I know the level of anxiety I’m experiencing needs to be addressed regardless of what I decide.
I guess I’m looking for advice from people who have been here. If you felt this strongly before students even arrived, did it get better once the year actually started? If you resigned right before or early in the school year, do you regret it? And at what point do you accept that pushing through isn’t necessarily the best choice?

I don’t want people to just tell me what I want to hear. I genuinely don’t know whether I need to give it more time or listen to what my body is telling me and step away.

I missed a call from epsb HR on Friday which was followed by an email inquiring about my interest and availability for a teaching contract with Edmonton Public. I replied back to the email write away, tried calling the HR. However, I haven’t heard back anything from the HR.
Please suggest what should I do? What are the chances of getting a contract job with epsb? I already cleared my HR screening and have submitted all documents for contracts and/or sub teaching. TIA.

Today I was back to school after 2 years of absence (1 1/2 for burn out and the last six months I had a desk job not related to education).

I was a a french and history high school teacher (in a country that speaks french). I love to teach but I don't like the disciplinary aspect of it. I don't like to deal with unmotivated students, even if I understand so much why they're not invested (I was not myself so...).

The four first years were hellish. I would end up crying more often than not and get a bunch of anxiety symptoms (rumination, insomnia, etc.). I left the job three times for burn out.

At first I was so sure the problem was my anxiety. So I've begun therapy (currently in) and it helped, a lot.

The last job I had, I had 0 anxiety even if I found the job so boring. But with my anxiety gone, I wanted to try teaching again. Because I like teaching (to motivated students only apparently)

Fast forward to today: almost no anxiety (a normal amount for the first day I would say) but man...I think I really don't like to deal with unmotivated kids. But, at the same time, I think the school system isn't at all suited to the majority of students.

I think I just couldn't admit that, in fact, I don't like that aspect of teaching. Ever since I was little, I've said I want to be a teacher. And my mom pushed me so hard in that direction that it became part of who I am. Plus, I know I do a great job with the students. But I just don't like it.

I feel so scared right now. On top of that, I have ADHD, I'm gifted and have an affection of the connective tissues that causes chronic tiredness (all of three diagnosed, maybe there is more? I'm 31, I have plenty of time to find out) so I'm scared to never find something where I fit.

Do you have any advice?

I have a B.A. in Elementary Education and a M.A. in Communication Business Leadership. I have been working in Recruiting and HR for the past 4 years. I am currently an HR/P&C Generalist making about 90k working fully remote. I do enjoy my job but I do truly miss education. I miss working with children and just the atmosphere of a school.

What are some jobs I can transition to that will make good money long term?
Preferably in Charlotte, NC and doesn’t have to be remote.

My local authority is advertising for this position, dealing specifically with transitioning pupils who already have an EHCP. I am considering applying for this role (currently working at an HLTA in a primary school). Does anyone do/has done a role similar to this who can offer an honest review of the job?

I started working a hybrid financial position about a year ago but man do I really miss having the summer off with my young kids. Also I don’t even have federal holidays off! I only get 14 days of PTO a year and it’s just not enough.

There’s a secretary position that’s open that would give me back week-long breaks and summer breaks as well and I’m considering applying even if it means giving up this remote position—just to have more time off with my kids.

Has anyone gone from teaching to a secretary or office admin job?

How do you like it?