UM Surabaya Lecturer Shares Tips So Teachers Don't Get Stressed Easily

• 25 Feb
• 2023

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UM Surabaya Lecturer Shares Tips So Teachers Don't Get Stressed Easily

• Article
• By Uswah Sahal
• Health
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Every individual has their own stressors when carrying out their profession, so that at certain moments the appearance of stress symptoms is inevitable. This is of course also susceptible to experienced by teachers. An article by The Hill published in June 2022 indicates that US teachers experience twice as much work stress as the general workforce. Although the number of incidents in Indonesia has never been reported, it does not mean that teachers are not at risk of experiencing stress while carrying out their duties.

Uswatun Khasanah, Lecturer in Mental Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences (FIK) UM Surabaya, said that although not all stressors can be avoided or eliminated, teachers need to learn and get used to implementing several strategies so that they are not easily stressed while working.

The first is identification, as a teacher who has a high risk of experiencing stress due to daily work routines, it is important for teachers to try to re-identify various situations that have a high risk of causing stress.

“Identification can be done by recalling the situation when someone starts the day until the end of the day. One can note specific situations that are the main stressors to then look for a solution strategy, especially by not getting stuck in the same stressor again," said Uswatun Saturday (25/2/23)

Second, make changes. Things that have been successfully identified as stressors can be changed using management system strategies such as work-life balance, teachers need to balance work responsibilities, personal life and other responsibilities, this can be started by dividing time properly.

“Taking time to respond to the stress you feel can change your mood. Making changes to teaching and learning methods to be more exciting and fun, thereby indirectly reducing the response to stress," added Uswatun again.

Third, focus on things that can be controlled. One is important to list controllable and non controllable. It's good to focus on things or jobs that can be done with certainty, achieving realistic expectations.

Fourth, provide mutual support. Teachers can share stories and strategies for dealing with the problems they are facing, so that each person will have many strategies if they are in a similar situation.

"This is a simple form of peer support which is quite effective in preventing or even reducing the stress you are experiencing," he said.

Lastly, practice stress management. Teachers with excessive workload will have a high risk of experiencing stress, so they need to equip themselves with several stress management techniques such as adequate rest and sleep, eating nutritious food, taking time to exercise or do other physical activities, deep breathing relaxation exercises, meditation exercises, yoga and tai chi.

"Those things are effective in making the body produce happiness hormones so that stress is reduced," concluded Uswatun.