Educators tend to put others' needs before their own. They are born helpers, providers, supporters, and nurturers. Being there for others, for their students, is often a number one priority. ​We have some tips to share with you.

Self-care Tips for Educators

Please contact a member of your district's Navigator Team or refer to our specialized services directory. 

Characteristics

• Many students with mental health challenges have difficulty regulating their emotions and behaviors, often becoming inflexible and oppositional, disengaged or disruptive.

• Students with anxiety or other mental health challenges may demonstrate inconsistent performance and behavior, which may fluctuate with their emotional state.

• Most students with mental health challenges exhibit small behavior changes (wiggling in their seats, speaking loudly, or putting their heads down) before they become overwhelmed, act inappropriately, or stop working.

The Flexible Classroom

Characteristics

Although depression may occur only one time during your life, usually people have multiple episodes of depression. During these episodes, symptoms occur most of the day, nearly every day and may include:​

• Feelings of sadness, tearfulness, emptiness or hopelessness

• Angry outbursts, irritability or frustration, even over small matters

• Loss of interest or pleasure in most or all normal activities, such as hobbies or sports

• Sleep disturbances, including insomnia or sleeping too much

• Tiredness and lack of energy, so even small tasks take extra effort

• Changes in appetite — often reduced appetite and weight loss, but increased cravings for food and weight gain in some people

• Anxiety, agitation or restlessness

• Slowed thinking, speaking or body movements

• Feelings of worthlessness or guilt, fixating on past failures or blaming yourself for things that aren't your responsibility

• Trouble thinking, concentrating, making decisions and remembering things

• Frequent or recurrent thoughts of death, suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts or suicide

• Unexplained physical problems, such as back pain or headaches

For many people with depression, symptoms usually are severe enough to cause noticeable problems in day-to-day activities, such as work, school, social activities or relationships with others. Other people may feel generally miserable or unhappy without really knowing why.
 

Depression symptoms in children and teens:

Common signs and symptoms of depression in children and teenagers are similar to those of adults, but there can be some differences.

• In younger children, symptoms of depression may include sadness, irritability, clinginess, worry, aches and pains, refusing to go to school, or being underweight.

• In teens, symptoms may include sadness, irritability, feeling negative and worthless, anger, poor performance or poor attendance at school, feeling misunderstood and extremely sensitive, using drugs or alcohol, eating or sleeping too much, self-harm, loss of interest in normal activities, and avoidance of social interaction.

From Mayoclinic.org

Characteristics

Formal Definition

“The executive functions are a set of processes that all have to do with managing oneself and one's resources in order to achieve a goal. It is an umbrella term for the neurologically-based skills involving mental control and self-regulation.”

Primary Executive Functioning Skills

• Organization

  • The ability to keep track of things physically or mentally.

  • Individuals who struggle with this aspect of executive functioning can often lose their train of thought, lose items, or lack the ability to impose order.

• Impulse Control

  • The ability to think before acting.

  • People who have poor impulse control are often impulsive which may take the form of blurting out inappropriate things or at inappropriate times.  This may also take the shape of engaging in risky behavior (i.e. not considering consequences).

• Emotional Control

  • This ability to regulate one’s emotions or keep them “in check”.

  • Individuals who struggle to control their emotions may overreact or have difficulties accepting criticism or disappointment.

• Flexible Thinking

  • Being able to adjust to the unexpected.

  • People who struggle with flexible thinking are often rigid in their thought processes.  This can be seen through an individual’s struggle to “roll with the punches” or problem solve.

• Working Memory

  • The capacity to retrieve needed information from one’s memory.

  • Working memory deficits can take the form of an individual’s difficulties with remembering directions or accessing information that has been taught previously.

• Self-Monitoring

  • The ability to evaluate oneself.

  • Individuals who have a hard time with self-monitoring may be surprised when given a grade or feedback because it might not match up to their perceived performance.

• Planning and Prioritizing

  • The ability to decide on a goal and make a plan to meet that goal.

  • Students who struggle with planning and prioritizing often do not know where to start a project or how to choose which aspects may be the most important.

• Task Initiation

  • The ability to begin a task or activity.

  • People who have weak task initiation skills often don’t know where to start on a task.  Once one step is done they may not recognize the need to move on to the next step or to follow plans through to completion.

These 8 primary executive functioning skills help individuals lead productive lives and deficits in any of these areas may have an impact that varies from minimal to extreme.  Some individuals may struggle in only one skill area while others may have needs in many; however, it is important to note that executive functioning can be improved through the targeted instruction and practice of specific strategies.

From understood.org. 

Grief Resources to support children

School Printable Resources

Lifeline wallet cards

• Suicide Risk Assessment (English)

• Warning Signs Suicide (English)

• Warning Signs Suicide (Spanish)

• Community Cards for Teens

Teen suicide: What parents need to know

Helping Children and Youth Who Are Feeling Suicidal

Characteristics

Many of the reactions displayed by children and adolescents who have been exposed to traumatic events are similar or identical to behaviors that mental health professionals see on a daily basis in their practice.  

~ American Psychological Association

These include:

• the development of new fears

• separation anxiety (particularly in young children)

• sleep disturbance, nightmares

• sadness

• loss of interest in normal activities

• reduced concentration

• decline in schoolwork

• anger

• somatic complaints

• irritability

Complex Trauma:  Facts for Educators

Seven Ingredients of Resilience for Parents

Active Shooter Toolkit