Teachers @ Risk

Putting forward the case for teacher mental health, emotional health and wellbeing programs.
Mental health: “a state of well-being in which every individual realizes his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community” (WHO, 2010)
Interventions to develop and implement an assessment and management approach to teachers’ mental health. 
To what extent are the issues which teachers have described as impacting negatively on their lives correspond to mental health symptoms?
What are the issues that teachers describe as having a negative impact on their lives?
The issues which teachers have identified are placed in the following categories: 
  • Poor interpersonal relationships 
  • Low self-esteem 
  • Poor management of stress 
  • Identity issue 
  • Habitual procrastination 
  • Poor eating habits 
  • Mistrust 
  • Depression 
How have teachers experienced the negative impact of the issues on their lives?
Poor interpersonal relationships            -     Anger
                                                                         -     Mistrust
Poor Management of stress                    -     Managing stress
Depression                                                   -     Coping with feelings
Identity issues                                             -     Low self-esteem
Poor eating habits                                     -     Overeating and fast consumption of food
                                                                        -     Eating disorder

To what extent are these behaviours of teachers consistent with mental health symptoms?

General symptoms that may suggest a mental illness in adults include: 
  • Confused thinking 
  • Long-lasting sadness or irritability 
  • Extremely high and low moods 
  • Excessive fear, worry, or anxiety 
  • Social withdrawal 
  • Dramatic changes in eating or sleeping habits 
  • Strong feelings of anger 
  • Increasing inability to cope with daily problems and activities 
  • Denial of obvious problems 
  • Many unexplained physical problems 
  • Abuse of drugs and/or alcohol 
Other symptoms that may suggest a mental illness in adults include: 
  • Severe anxiety 
  • Paranoia 
  • Displaying stress 
  • Sudden mood changes 
  • Suicidal thoughts 
  • Depressed feeling 
  • Irritability or anger 
  • Hypersensitivity to others’ criticism 
  • Little energy or motivation 
  • Appearing desireless, feeling nothing at all 
What symptoms to teacher often present?
Strong feelings of anger                          -     "I am always snapping at someone."
Excessive fear, worry or anxiety              -     "When I am in this state (stress), I tend to rearrange my
                                                                                priorities in the wrong order…”
Confused thinking/displaying stress     -     “Stress is an enormous issue I face”. 
Increasing inability to cope with
daily problems and activities                   -    “Procrastination has become a way of life for me"
Dramatic changes in sleeping
and eating patterns                                    -    "I do not engage in much physical activity”.                                                                                              
                                                                                "I consume too much junk foods” 
Long-lasting sadness or
depressed feelings                                     -     “…When my parents got divorced I started to degenerate
​                                                                                into an emotional disaster.” 
A teachers’ awareness and understanding of their own behaviour and by extension their mental health 
status is critical.

Questions for consideration.
  • Who is really “at risk”, is it the student or the teacher? 
  • Why are there so many “at-risk students” and so few “at-risk teachers”