Mindfulness as a Coping Method: A Teacher's Experiences

Abstract

Daily teaching life at school, in person or online, goes hand in hand with a wide variety of tasks, bureaucratic requirements, and relationship management between colleagues, with parents and/or unmotivated students, classes to prepare, and assessments to grade.<br/>Teaching is among the most stressful and exhausting professions (Lomas et al., 2017). And despite the high potential for satisfaction of this profession, teachers’ burnout is considered a global phenomenon, leading to symptoms such as emotional exhaustion, helplessness, and a feeling of incompetence (Skinner & Beers, 2016).<br/>There are several ways to deal with stress effectively, preventing the physical, emotional, and occupational consequences of burnout. The use of coping methods, such as emotional regulation strategies, is strongly related to the reduction of stress symptoms (Pyhältö et al., 2020). The use of positive strategies to deal with stress can act as protective factor against stress, with the possibility of transforming challenges into growth opportunities, contributing to a higher quality involvement in teaching, greater satisfaction and better well-being (Skinner & Beers, 2016).