How to Support Teachers’ Emotional Health

The jeans pass. The pizza lunch. The yoga hour. The extra mental health support hours buried in an obscure system briefly mentioned during back-to-school professional development. The flowery platitudes about teacher well-being.

These gestures often fall short of truly promoting educator wellness. Meanwhile, teachers are expected to pull off trauma-informed practices for students without ever receiving real support to handle their own traumas and triggers. While social and emotional learning (SEL) curricula can benefit students, teachers must be fully invested for it to succeed. The challenge is, many educators haven’t had adequate social and emotional support themselves.

How do we get teachers raised on “You get what you get and you don’t get upset” or “Suck it up, buttercup” to buy into leading daily 20-minute conversations about feelings? What resources can be offered to help them reach a mindset where emotions matter and drive better outcomes? For student SEL to work, educators need space and time to address their own emotional challenges, triggers, and past traumas.

The Unseen Emotional Labor of Teaching

If “Suck it up, buttercup” were a profession, education would be its poster child. From critical parents and gotcha walk-throughs to students commenting on everything from shoe game to outfit repeats and hairstyles, teachers and administrators have to develop a thick skin. But how do we allow them to keep this protective armor while encouraging the vulnerability needed for them to engage in SEL?

One thing not to do is to require teachers to discuss their feelings in a setting where there may be repercussions. Even rating emotions with emojis can feel intrusive, especially without follow-up for anyone not selecting a smiley face. Instead, offer teachers time to transition—whether through silent reflection, journaling, or chatting with a trusted colleague—before meetings or classes.

Also, remember that teachers bring their full lives with them, including unprocessed experiences that impact how they respond in the classroom. Assuming that everyone arrives emotionally regulated is unrealistic. Simple community practices, like a few moments of silence, soft or upbeat music in the hallways, or even affirmation stones at entrances, can help staff center themselves before facing the day’s challenges. Once teachers are on board with being intentional about their emotional well-being in a supportive school climate, it’s time to move on to practices that allow deeper introspection.

Emotional Baggage and Classroom Relationships

To help teachers build emotional resilience, encourage regular reflection on difficult interactions. Did something press on an old wound or stem from a past situation? Was the reaction to a classroom behavior on par with the offense, or could it have been an exaggerated response with roots in a past negative interaction? Supporting teachers in having these types of reflections will help them recognize triggers or biases that may influence their responses, ultimately enhancing their SEL instruction and classroom relationships.

Another strategy is creating a trigger journal. Staff can list common triggers, such as disrespect, sassiness, apathy, or whining. Once armed with the sheet, teachers can tally their own emotional reactions to these triggers. Teachers can identify patterns and unpack why certain behaviors provoke stronger responses. This insight can improve their relationships with students—and colleagues.

Adding archetypes to this practice is also valuable. Do certain types of students—like the jock, the popular kid, or the quiet student—trigger stronger reactions? These patterns might trace back to personal experiences or hidden biases. Although confronting buried hurts is painful, it can be transformative for teachers working with students.

Finally, consider the language you grew up hearing. Did it include phrases like “No backtalk,” “Because I said so,” or “I’m your teacher, not your friend”? These types of phrases often reflect rigid authority and compliance rather than encouraging self-regulation. Replacing them with alternatives can foster healthier relationships. For instance, instead of “No backtalk,” encourage teachers to try “Come back when you’re ready to talk kindly.” Instead of “Because I said so,” teachers could say, “Follow directions now, and we’ll discuss it later.” Harsh language heard by teachers growing up is likely to be repeated in their classrooms, but it may not always serve our students well. Unpacking emotions, especially in regard to teacher-student relationships, can transform classroom culture and drive better student outcomes.

Real Teacher Well-Being

Teachers may resist this kind of emotional work, especially if they’ve never had the time or tools to process their emotions. That’s why, if we expect teachers to model and teach SEL to students, we must provide them with the support they need.

Rather than campus professional learning, give teachers PL time and explicit instruction on how to access mental health resources and reflect on their emotional well-being in relation to their work. Advocate for SEL programs that focus on teachers’ emotional intelligence without requiring them to share personal feelings unless they choose to. Most important, ask teachers what support they need for the emotional labor of teaching—and work to provide it.

Teachers cannot be expected to teach SEL effectively without first being intentional about their own emotional health. If we want educators to guide students through emotional regulation, they must have the time, space, and support to do that work themselves. This goes beyond surface-level wellness initiatives—teachers need opportunities to reflect on their emotional triggers, manage their own stresses, and receive genuine support from their schools. Only when teachers are empowered to process their own emotional challenges can they truly foster a healthy social and emotional environment for their students.