A recent study shows that an overwhelming number of teachers in the UK have suffered either physically or mentally because of their jobs, and the research, commissioned by the charity Education Support Partnership, indicated 75% of teaching staff in schools and colleges experienced symptoms stemming from their work.
Depression, anxiety and panic attacks were among the conditions cited.
This is even worse than an earlier survey which showed that 62% of the UK’s working population was affected by stress and other mental health issues.
Pran Patel, a physics teacher at Mark Hall Academy in Harlow, told the BBC: “Teaching is the best job in the world and the reason for that is I change lives every single day and get paid for it. However, there are unnecessary challenges that are put on teachers day in, day out.
“The sheer amount of workload has had an impact on my mental health. I have suffered from bouts of depression, anxiety and sleeplessness. It’s nothing I’m ashamed of. It’s just an illness that affects many of us.”
He said that increasing levels of marking, admin and exam targets have led to some teachers working 12-hour days and now the Department for Education said it was addressing issues raised by teachers.
The challenges posed by a career in teaching are having an impact on recruitment, said head teacher Sean Maher from Richard Challoner School in South-West London.
He said there were fewer people entering the profession and that central government was not doing enough to help.
Referring to the survey on the UK’s working population, Louise Aston, Wellbeing Director for Business in the Community, said: “Alarmingly, our comprehensive survey of workplace mental health suggests that many companies are failing employees who suffer from poor mental health.
“It is clear that thousands of employees are suffering in silence, feeling unable to share their experiences at work. When they do reach out for support, many are met with an inadequate response. We must end this injustice.”
Dealing with mental health issues like stress, anxiety and similar concerns is become gm ore common for clinical hypnotherapists who are members of the National Council for Hypnotherapy and, says the national body, while some people can manage with the stresses their work and modern society put on them, ‘more and more people are showing signs of over-anxiety, which leads to stress, which can make a significant impact on the quality of life and well-being’.
The benefits of sessions with a hypnotherapist include feeling more confident. More relaxed in previously stressful situations and a feeling of calmness and clarity of thought. This, adds the NCH, is achieved through the therapist and client working together to achieve mutually decided goals aimed at reducing anxiety and stress.
“It’s as if hypnotherapy unlocks the potential you have to break free of negative thought patterns, and to react more positively and more confidently to situations in your life that may have previously made you anxious,” says the NCH.
There are NCH-registered therapists who have special offers to businesses for stress reduction schemes at work. It is worth talking to your employer or to a local hypnotherapist to see if that this is a possibility.
To contact your nearest NCH-registered therapist, simply click here.