Caring for children—whether in the classroom or at home—is one of life’s most gratifying yet taxing responsibilities. Balancing both roles is a recipe for burnout. This is exactly what the latest TELUS Health Mental Health Index (MHI) found, as teachers with children reported significantly lower mental health scores than their childless peers.
To explore the issue further, Marketing Specialist Emily Morgan recently sat down with Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Kennette Thigpen on the latest episode of Wellbeing at Work. Together, they examined the unique stressors driving higher rates of burnout among teacher-parents—and the power of targeted services in fostering resilience.
Read an excerpt from their discussion below:
Emily: In a recent op-ed, you talked about the challenge of cumulative stress without recovery. What do teacher-parents need that current wellness efforts fail to offer?
Dr. Kennette: Great question, Emily.
I would say one of the biggest gaps is that most wellness programs are designed around the individual, while teacher-parents are living within competing systems. They’re not only managing their own wellbeing—they’re also balancing the needs of their students, their colleagues, their administrators, and, of course, their own families.
Current wellness efforts tend to focus on helping teachers cope with the stress, but teacher-parents are looking for something more. They want to know, “Can someone help reduce the stress?”
Emily: Absolutely. That’s a great point. So to build on that, what are perhaps some solutions that can be implemented to give them a better sense of balance?
Dr. Kennette: What I would say is what teachers really need is time, flexibility, and permission. They need leaders who understand that wellbeing isn’t something you squeeze in after you’ve finished everything else. It has to be built into the way work is designed.
I often talk about work-life integration, and I always say, “Work-life integration is your ability to take care of your responsibilities and still have the time and energy to do the things that you desire.” And so what this means is: protected planning time for teachers; fewer unnecessary administrative demands; flexibility when it comes to being able to access counseling; and leaders who normalize mental health and wellbeing.
I also think teacher-parents need something we don’t talk about enough, and that’s grace. Many carry what I call “dual guilt.” They feel guilty at school because they’re worried they’re not giving enough to their own children. But then on the flip side, they’re guilty when they’re at home because they’re worried about not doing enough for their students. And that’s an incredibly heavy emotional burden that they carry every single day.
The schools that will thrive in the future won’t simply offer more wellbeing programs. They’ll actually create workplaces where teachers don’t have to choose between being an exceptional educator and being a present parent.
Teacher-parents don’t just need more wellbeing resources. They need workplaces that recognize that they’re human first, educators second, and parents always.
Emily: That’s a fantastic way to put it, thank you so much. Going back to what you said about flexibility being one of the key things teacher-parents need, I want to ask you: How can leaders ensure teacher-parents have the flexibility and the opportunities they need to access these resources on a regular basis—especially if their day is booked with teaching, supporting their own children, meeting their own needs, etc.?
Dr. Kennette: So, one of the biggest misconceptions about employee wellbeing is that availability equals accessibility. Just because a school offers counseling—maybe an EAP or wellness resources—it doesn’t mean that teachers actually have the opportunity to use them.
Think about a teacher’s day. They’re teaching back-to-back classes. They’re supervising during lunchtime. They’re answering emails, meeting with parents, and the list goes on. If the only time they can access support is after hours, we’ve unintentionally placed another demand on an already overwhelmed person.
So the solution is to actually bring wellbeing into the workday. That means leaders should take a look at opportunities to build protected time into the school day for appointments when it’s possible, maybe offer virtual counseling with flexible hours, and normalize taking time away for mental health. We already do that with doctor’s appointments, but I don’t think we’re as good when it comes to mental health appointments. And then, of course, I would recommend training administrative principals and other school leaders to be able to recognize the signs and symptoms of burnout so that they can provide the best resources.
One strategy I encourage organizations to adopt is “micro-assess.” So not every interaction when it comes to mental health needs to be a 60-minute session. It can be a 15 to 2o minute coaching conversation, or a single session consultation or intervention—all of which can be just as effective as a 60-minute session.
Ultimately, we need to stop asking, “Why aren’t teachers using the resources?” and start asking, “What barriers have we unintentionally created that prevent them from using those resources?”
Interested in hearing the full conversation? Tune in now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or on our podcasts page.
