The Hidden Burnout Cycle in Teaching | How to Break Free

Why We Miss the Signs of Burnout (Until It’s Too Late)

Burnout doesn’t usually crash in like a storm - it seeps in slowly, disguised as deadlines, distractions, and the quiet pressure to just “keep going.”

In Burnout: How to Manage Your Nervous System Before It Manages You, clinical psychologist Dr. Claire Plumbly explains why so many of us - especially those in caregiving and high-responsibility roles like teaching - fail to notice burnout until we're already deep in it.

She identifies two powerful forces that make it hard to stop: external pressures (like workload, role confusion, or lack of appreciation) and internal pressures (like perfectionism, guilt, and people-pleasing). These act like a double bind - pushing us to perform even when our bodies are screaming for pause.

Sound familiar?

You’re on autopilot during lessons.
You can barely lift your coffee cup.
You haven’t slept well in days.
And the thought of marking 30 exercise books tonight brings you to tears.

To understand what’s happening beneath the surface, we can turn to Stephen Porges’ Polyvagal Theory, which explains how chronic stress pulls our nervous system out of safety and into states of fight, flight, or freeze. Over time, this dysregulation becomes our “normal.” The more we override the early cues of stress, the more we risk tipping into full burnout - a state where rest doesn’t feel safe, and slowing down feels like failure.

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

By learning to recognise the subtle cues of stress - both in the classroom and in our own bodies - we can begin to interrupt the burnout cycle before it takes hold. And from there, gently shift from surviving to truly thriving.

But here’s the danger: the longer you stay in a dysregulated state, the more damage it does. Your body starts to break down - sleep becomes fragmented, your immune system weakens, and your brain struggles to think clearly. Relationships suffer. Joy disappears. And the worst part? You barely notice, because this exhausted, wired, disconnected state starts to feel normal. In teaching, where the pressure never stops, you don’t crash overnight - you erode slowly. By the time you realise what’s happening, you’re already deep in burnout.

A Personal Story: From Breakdown to Breakthrough

I know the signs of burnout not just from clients - but because I’ve lived them.

I was the teacher who smiled through the school day, then collapsed on the sofa the moment I walked through the door. I told myself I just needed to push a little harder, hold on a little longer. But behind the scenes, I was surviving - not living. I’d forgotten what it felt like to wake up without dread or to end a day with energy left for my own family.

It wasn’t a dramatic collapse - more a slow unravelling. Sleepless nights. Internal panic in staff meetings. Crying in the car after work. That was the moment I realised something had to change - and that healing wasn’t about working less, but reconnecting more. More with my body. More with who I was outside of the classroom. More with what I actually needed to feel like myself again.

Eventually, my body said what I wouldn’t: enough.

That journey is what led me to this work. Now, I help other teachers take that same brave first step - not back into the same burnout cycle, but forward into something healthier, more aligned, and truly sustainable.

So Where Do You Start?

The first step out of burnout isn’t productivity hacks or another to-do list - it’s safety. Your nervous system needs to feel safe before it can truly recover. That means gently reconnecting with your body, your breath, and your sense of presence - not pushing harder.

This might look like:

• Taking three slow breaths between lessons

• Noticing your feet on the floor while speaking in class

• Creating a pause before answering one more email

• Saying “no” even when it feels uncomfortable

• Letting yourself feel - not just function

Small, consistent signals of safety can begin to shift you out of survival mode and back toward regulation. You don’t have to fix everything overnight. But the moment you choose to listen to your body - rather than override it - is the moment the healing begins.

Reclaiming Regulation - One Small Shift at a Time

For teachers, the demands are relentless - lesson planning, behaviour management, data tracking, pastoral care… often layered on top of sleepless nights and personal responsibilities. It’s no wonder your nervous system is on high alert. But the path back to balance doesn’t require a grand gesture. It begins with small, consistent signals of safety.

Here are some teacher-specific ways to begin gently regulating your nervous system:

• The 90-second breath reset: Between classes or meetings, take 90 seconds to breathe deeply and slowly. Place one hand on your chest and one on your belly. Let your exhales be longer than your inhales.

• Anchor moments: Choose one regular part of your day - like taking the register or walking to your car - and use it as a cue to ground yourself: notice your breath, unclench your jaw, soften your shoulders.

• Boundaries as regulation: Saying “no” to another after-school task isn’t laziness - it’s nervous system preservation. Honour your limits.

• The “safe touch” technique: Gently press your palms together or place a hand over your heart. These physical cues can send a powerful message of safety to your system.

• Regulate before you react: When classroom stress rises, pause (even just internally) before responding. This helps break the stress-reaction loop that fuels burnout.

But regulation doesn't happen in isolation - and it’s hard to sustain on your own when you’re deep in survival mode. That’s where burnout coaching can play a transformational role.

A good coach won’t just give you strategies - they’ll help you rebuild trust in yourself. They create space for you to pause, reflect, and reconnect with the parts of you that have been silenced by stress. Coaching offers a calm anchor, helping you process what’s going on beneath the surface and identify what you need - not just what the system demands of you.

With the right support, you don’t have to wait until burnout breaks you. You can begin rebuilding from where you are - one breath, one choice, one boundary at a time.

Ready to Take the First Step?

If any part of this resonated with you - the exhaustion, the disconnect, the quiet sense that something needs to change - know this: you're not weak, you're not broken, and you're certainly not alone.

You don’t have to figure it all out by yourself.

Whether you're on the edge of burnout or already deep in it, support is available - and it starts with a conversation. My free clarity call is a space to pause, breathe, and explore what’s really going on beneath the surface - with no pressure, just presence.

Book your free clarity call here

Because you deserve more than survival mode.
You deserve to thrive.