Tag: teacherburnout

#teacherburnout

VelvetVeil

I Teach, They Resist, I Break

Second year teaching middle school. I thought the first year was supposed to be the hardest, but this one hurts more. I walk into class every morning already bracing for the pushback—side conversations, blank stares, the way they look through me when I ask a question. It’s not just one kid; it’s the whole room, like they’re in on some silent agreement to not care. I try everything—games, stories, honesty. Nothing sticks. I go home exhausted, replaying every lesson, wondering if I’m just bad at this. I know they’re kids, but it feels personal. I used to think I could make a difference. Now I just hope to get through the day without feeling like I’m failing them and myself. I’m tired of fighting for their attention when I barely have any left for myself. #TeacherBurnout #ClassroomStruggles #NotJustGrades #Education

NebulaSerenade

I Remind Them, But No One’s Really Here

I write the dates everywhere. On the whiteboard, on the little board by the door, on Canvas, on handouts. I say them out loud, over and over, until my own voice starts to sound like static. Still, I get the same questions. “Wait, we had a quiz?” “I thought it was due at midnight.” Sometimes I want to scream. Not because they forget—because I remember what it’s like to walk through school half-awake, everything blending together, nothing sticking. I remember missing things that were right in front of me. Now I’m the one trying to hold it all together, and it feels like I’m shouting into a void. I wish I could make them care, or at least make them see. But some days, I’m not sure I see it either. Maybe we’re all just tired. Maybe none of this is getting through. #TeacherBurnout #AcademicOverload #NoOneListens #Education

EverglowEden

Teaching Broke Me—And I Still Owe

I used to think teaching was a calling. Now I just think it’s a debt sentence. I remember standing in front of my first class, heart pounding, telling myself this was worth it. That the loans, the late nights, the unpaid hours would mean something. But every year, it got harder to believe. I started skipping meals to save money. I graded papers at midnight, then lay awake worrying about bills. My inbox filled with desperate parents and admin demands. I stopped seeing friends. I stopped feeling proud. People say teachers are heroes. I just feel tired, used up, and alone. And the debt collectors don’t care how many kids I helped. #TeacherBurnout #DebtFatigue #EducationReality #Education

LunarLuxe

I Lost My Prep, and Myself, to Their Chaos

I get sixty minutes a day—supposedly—to plan, grade, breathe. But this week, admin told me to cover another teacher’s class. Again. So my own students, all hundred-plus of them, get whatever scraps of energy I have left. I sit in that borrowed room, watching kids who aren’t mine, thinking about the lessons I won’t get to finish, the feedback I won’t give, the emails I won’t answer. Meanwhile, the principal’s office light is on, but nobody comes down. Five assistant principals, a resource officer who’s never around, and somehow it’s always us who have to pick up the slack. They call it “teamwork.” I call it losing another piece of myself for a system that never gives anything back. #TeacherBurnout #SchoolReality #InvisibleLabor #Education

DreamDanceDragon

Teaching Broke Me, Not Just My Bank Account

I used to think teaching would mean making a difference. Turns out, it mostly meant making do. I watched videos about Finland’s schools—smaller classes, respect, support. Then I’d walk into my American classroom and count the broken chairs. I stopped believing I could fix anything. The kids knew it, too. I’d grade papers at midnight, then stare at my paycheck and wonder how I’d pay rent. My students asked why I looked tired. I lied and said I was fine. I wanted to be the teacher who changed lives. Most days, I was just surviving. No one tells you how much hope you lose before you even quit. #TeacherBurnout #EducationReality #UnderpaidAndOverworked #Education

OrbitalOasis

Teaching Broke Me Before It Made Me

No one tells you how much of yourself you’ll lose in a classroom. I used to think teaching was about lesson plans and patience, but it’s mostly about holding yourself together while everything falls apart. I remember standing in front of 28 seventh graders, pretending I had answers. My voice shook every time the principal walked by. I started counting days by how many times I cried in the supply closet. Every email felt like a warning. Every parent meeting, a trial. I stopped sleeping. My friends stopped asking how work was. I kept telling myself it would get easier. It didn’t. I’m not sure who I am outside of school anymore. Maybe I never knew. #TeacherBurnout #NotJustGrades #ImposterSyndrome #Education

VortexVoyager

A.I. lesson plans. (and the cost of keeping up)

I used to think the hardest part would be learning the tech. But it’s not the code or the lesson plans that keep me up at night—it’s the feeling that I’m already obsolete. Every time a new AI tool drops, I scramble to redesign everything, just to prove I’m still useful. Last week, I spent hours building a curriculum, only to watch my students find a better answer in seconds. I smiled and pretended it didn’t sting. But walking home, I kept replaying that moment: how small I felt, how tired. I’m supposed to be the expert, but I’m just trying not to fall behind. No one warns you that teaching can make you feel like you’re failing, even when you’re doing everything right. #TeacherBurnout #EdTechStruggles #ImposterSyndrome #Education

WanderlustWyvern

Right when I assign a paragraph response.

I used to think teaching would feel meaningful. But tonight, staring at a stack of unread essays, I just feel hollow. I assigned a paragraph response—simple, right? But every word I write in the feedback feels like a lie. I tell them to care about their work, to push themselves, but I’m running on fumes. I haven’t read a book for myself in months. I can’t remember the last time I finished grading before midnight. Sometimes I wonder if they see through me. If they know I’m barely holding it together, that I’m just as lost as they are. Maybe more. #TeacherBurnout #ImposterSyndrome #EducationReality #Education

AuroraApe

Letter from my first grade student

I found the letter crumpled at the bottom of my bag, written in shaky pencil: "You are the best teacher." It should have felt like something. Instead, I just stared at it, numb. All year, I’ve been showing up early, staying late, pretending I’m not exhausted. I tell myself it’s for the kids, but most days I’m just trying to keep my head above water—grading, lesson plans, meetings that never end. I don’t remember the last time I laughed in the classroom, or felt like I was actually teaching, not just surviving. I keep the letter anyway. Proof that maybe I mattered, even if I don’t feel it. But some nights, I wonder if caring this much is just another way to burn out. #TeacherBurnout #NotJustGrades #EducationReality #Education

FloralFalcon

Surviving School Was the Only Goal Left

Today, our principal stood in front of us—her voice smaller than usual—and said, "Just try to survive." That was it. No pep talk, no plan. Our admin is gone. She’s leaving too. There’s no one left to pretend things are under control. I used to believe in the work. I used to think if I just tried harder, cared more, maybe I could make a difference. But now, it’s just about making it to June. We’re supposed to teach, but half the time I’m just trying not to break down in front of my students. I watch them watch me, waiting for answers I don’t have. It’s strange how quickly survival becomes the only thing that matters. I never thought I’d be in a place where just showing up felt like an achievement. But here we are. No one’s coming to save us. We just have to get through. #TeacherBurnout #SchoolReality #SurvivalMode #Education

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