Tis the Season for Giving (to yourself)

Let’s start the season with giving…to YOU! This month we are thinking through how to give the gift that keeps on giving, literally, to you – as we bust a few myths around self-care. I recently met fellow female entrepreneur Rachel Hatteberg Walt, founder of Craftingood. Rachel’s work inspires each of us to use our creativity to have fun, cultivate compassion for ourselves, and in return, our families, and our communities both locally and globally. Her mission is to help each of us raise up global citizens while busting the myth of self-care. Rachel and I recently had a physically distanced coffee date (of course). I asked Rachel to share with me (and you) a few of her thoughts, listen in…

Renee: Rachel, what’s the number one misunderstanding around self-care?

Rachel: Most people mistakenly think of self-care as a day at the spa or a weekend away with friends. These things are great, don’t get me wrong, but what we mean by self-care is prioritizing our well-being so we can serve in our various roles with joy, effectiveness, and efficiency. The people around us, especially kids, are influenced by our behavior.  If we are taking care of our minds, bodies, and souls well, the people around us will do the same. Embodiment is a great teaching tool!

Renee: It’s a big buzzword these days. What are your thoughts on why? Or has it always been here and we’re just more attuned to it in the middle of a global pandemic?

Rachel: I think this has been a growing interest for many people because we are increasingly getting burned out, dealing with chronic stress and mental health issues. Something has to give! Plus, self-care has traditionally been branded within the fitness or beauty business as a way to sell products, but it is much more! 

Rachel and I believe that if you’ve got a child in your life…YOU are a teacher. These self-care tips are for our favorite people in the world – TEACHERS! Here are 5 self-care tips for you to consider so that you can be the best version of yourself, and support the children in your lives to be the best version of themselves. Ready…(drumroll please….)

5 Tips for Teacher Self-Care

by Rachel Hatteberg Walt

1. Breathe

Breathing is a free tool that is always available to us. It helps us sync up the heartbeat and breath, calms our nervous system, and gives us something to focus on in the present moment, bringing in mindfulness. In our chronic stress culture, especially with most of us dealing with anxiety during a pandemic, we are breathing too rapidly and too shallow. Deep belly breathing helps us bring in more oxygen and stop the flight or fight cycle we are living in.

There are many ways to use breathing as a self-care tool. The easiest is to put one hand on your belly and one on your chest, breathing in through your nose for 5 seconds and out for 5 seconds, steadily. Add this practice to your daily routine before you click “open Zoom” and maybe even teach it to the students you teach. Deep breathing is especially helpful when experiencing a tech glitch. Give yourself permission to pause and breathe, ask students to join with you.

2. Mindfulness

Mindfulness is the practice of putting our focus on the present moment. Bringing our attention to the present moment helps us prevent overwhelm and be open to finding creative solutions to our stress or problems. Taking a second to bring your attention to the here and now helps you with emotional regulation and coping. Because it can bring you closer to a state of relaxation, it can reduce blood pressure, anxiety levels, and increase attention and focus.

You can pair mindfulness with breathing so it’s a two for one. Bonus points if you do this in nature! Can you imagine adding “Moments of Mindfulness” to your daily schedule with students? Perhaps students can design a “Month of Mindfulness” activities they can do in their home learning spaces with their caregivers.  

3. Nature

We are like plants – we need water, fresh air and sunlight to survive! Getting out in nature has been shown to reduce anxiety levels and improve physical and mental health. The key here is to get outside at least 120 minutes a week. This is important even in the winter months! So get a coat and head outdoors!

Let’s think of all the ways we can get outside!

• Is it possible to teach part of your day from the outdoors?

• In your communication and connections with caregivers, can you ask them to join the students you work with on a walk outside?

• Ask your colleagues if the next meeting that’s scheduled can be conducted via phone instead of the screen, and everyone takes the meeting on the go, (with earphones), and gets some fresh air!

We find that some of our most creative ideas are a result of movement and fresh air! If you’re looking for a lesson to teach students outside – here’s a video that we hope helps. 

4. Gratitude

Turning to gratitude is becoming a cliche at this point but for very good reasons! There is so much research available that shows the benefits in your mental, physical and emotional wellbeing when you have a consistent gratitude practice. Focusing on gratitude can improve your self-esteem, positive moods, and happiness – no matter your circumstances! Showing your gratitude can improve your relationships as well. You can do this through a daily journal, dinner table conversations or even apps! We’re inspired by the 5 Minute Journal by the team at Intelligent Change. Try starting your day with these simple writing (or thinking) exercises:

• I am grateful for…

• What would make today great…

• I am…

Close your day with these:

• 3 amazing things that happened today

• How could I have made today better?

5. Boundaries/Self-Compassion

This one may be one of the hardest self-care habits to start but I would argue, one of the most important and impactful. When we say “no” or set a clear, kind, and strong boundary we are showing compassion for ourselves and respect for the other person. There is nothing worse than overcommitting because you didn’t set a clear boundary and then flaked out because you didn’t have the capacity to fulfill the expectations. No one wins when we don’t set clear boundaries. Let’s focus on saying yes to all that gives us joy, lights us up, and contributes to our overall well being.

Is there a member of your teaching team or school community that you can join together as accountability partners in thinking through protecting your time, creating language stems to use in ways that serve both you and the community? A big tip that helps in creating self-compassion boundaries is planning in advance so that you can be truly responsive to the students, caregivers, and colleagues at the moment.

If you’d like a thinking partner to help you think through your teaching decisions so that you can have clearly defined boundaries in your calendar – I’m happy to work through ideas with you during office hours. Please find the link to office hours here.