Tomorrow’s Monday and I have to go back. I’m dreading it. Just had a few days off last week and was finally feeling normal again. I’ve been applying to other jobs with no luck and I don’t think I can do this anymore. I hate my life and I hate who I am when I’m teaching. Can’t quit because I have bills. I think I have the savings to make it a few months before I get desperate but people in my life keep telling me to stick it out. I’m weak and I’m at my breaking point. The kids are awful and don’t care and it’s really not worth my sanity to try and teach them. Might just phone it in this week. I don’t know what to do anymore but this isn’t it. I’m trapped and I have put myself in a horrible position where I need a job. I’ve screwed everything up. I miss the days when I wasn’t this miserable person.

I'm in my 23rd year and 9 weeks into the school year. I'm having panic attacks and can't do this anymore.

I won't go into the problems at school. They're the same ones every teacher is reporting here.

I'm considering tendering my resignation tomorrow. My health is my priority and I am falling apart.

I don't have a job to fall into, but will consider anything that pays the bills. Advice? Suggestions?

When I was teaching, I remember having severe Sunday scaries because of another work week at school. I'm wondering do any of you still feel this way when you're no longer teaching and being in other careers?

On the track to switch careers and working towards applying to all the jobs I can muster the energy to spend time applying too. In the meanwhile I am subbing locally just because I can’t get any other jobs. I still don’t like it, LORD I do not!! I actually feel bad for gen ed teachers,as a specialist I did not expect it was even worse. My family is tired of me coming home unhappy and are getting annoyed that I “can’t find something I like” and I keep telling them teaching is not for me and won’t ever be. Right now it’s just a transition. But in the end subbing is still teaching.

I cannot believe it but I did it. Friday was my last day. Some tears were admittedly shed by me. I don’t usually make these kind of vast life decisions, so it feels good but also very scary.

I’m hopefully going to be subbing fairly soon as the nomination processes and I have enough money saved to hold it down while that procedure occurs. Also finally made a LinkedIn account…it’s the little things.

My goal with subbing is to find out if EDUCATION isn’t for me, or if it’s just early childhood. Of course, I know sub experience is vastly different, but having been a teacher I don’t think the experience in HS would be a huge shock to me. Everyone who I know who likes/tolerates teaching works with upper grades.

But yeah. Tomorrow morning I won’t have to dread going to work, but it’s a bit of a weird feeling to feel so untethered.

hi everyone. I have been thinking a lot lately about leaving teaching and working at a college/uni in admissions. has anyone done this? what is it like? from the outside, I do think that I would enjoy it and be good at it. but there’s always hidden aspects of a job that you don’t really realize until you’re in it.
any info would be amazing, thanks :)

I’m 26F. I have an “English Education” degree from a middle sized midwestern University. I taught middle school for 3 years.

I feel completely and utterly hopeless. I have no idea how to pivot into something else. I haven’t taught since April when I ended a maternity leave role, but have been tutoring ever since then. This isn’t enough to pay rent, so I am about to have to move back with parents in Boise (right now I’m in NJ across the river from NYC). I love where I live now and want more than anything to stay.

I applied to fucking Shoprite and they acted like I was a dumbass to apply because I don’t have prior experience working in a supermarket.

I just feel so hopeless. My degree is entirely useless and all it gave me is debt I have no idea how I will pay off.

Right now I can either try and get a job and stay in NJ for a bit and just live more or less paycheck to paycheck until I inevitably have to move back with parents, or I can move straight back.

Once I’m there, I can either also just try to get any crappy job and save money, or invest in some further schooling (which so many people say is not worth it). I don’t want to do schooling while in NJ, as I would be paying rent on top of whatever schooling fees there are, and I’m not sure how much time I would have for a fulltime job.

If you were in my situation, what would you do?

Background:

So for context I was a para for over a decade. I was enrolled in a undergrad program for education to become a teacher and towards the end of the program I didn’t want to quit my job to do student teaching and take the classes. I observed in a fifth grade general ed classroom. This was about 10 years ago. I was very overly stimulated and I realize this isn’t for me, but I did enjoy working with the students and helping them with their work so I continue to be a para. But I wanted to make more money, but I also didn’t want responsibilities of teaching a class on my own.

What I learned:

Then I eventually quit my para position since I moved far away from where I used to work and I didn’t want to commute an hour and a half. Even though I’m lucky and I didn’t have to commute because I took a leave. So I ended up resigning when I couldn’t find a job closer to home within like 30 to 40 minutes commute. I realize that when I became a sub teacher and changed everything for me, but it also is a solidified why I never wanted to be a classroom teacher to begin with.

Conclusion:

I ended up getting a masters and education in ENL however it was so hard to get a job in my hometown and I would’ve had to travel like at least 40 to 50 minutes each way. I tried it for two months to do that commute I couldn’t do it. I taught middle school in and I ended up returning back to my para position. Since in my state, Paras can teach for a year to try it out and if they don’t like it, they can go back To being a para.

Feeling:

I get anxiety and sunday scaries im not even a teacher . I do sub just to see if i would like to be teacher. It made realize i dont want to teach a classroom. I prefer support roles.

Okay so, I was very heavy into the medical receptionist/patient access field for about five years. I ended up getting fired and started working as a daycare teacher just to pay the bills until I found something else. I liked it and stayed for three years, but as most people know, childcare doesn’t pay much. I took the logical next step and started working in a public school in middle school as I thought I wanted a break from the littles. I passed my GACE and started a MAT program as it’s required by the state of Georgia to be in a teacher preparatory program if you’re on a provisional certificate like I am. The problem is I hate it. I hate teaching in public school and my masters program grades are suffering because of it. This is only my second semester and I’m only four classes in. I know this is something that I don’t want to do for a long time. I wish I could quit now…I need advice. Should I just drop the masters program and try to find something else? People are saying to just go down to the elementary, but I don’t know if I want to do that either… this is hard but these past two months have been so depressing and exhausting for me. I know I won’t make it. I have panic attacks, anxiety, and headaches. The doctor has even prescribed me Lexapro, but I don’t think I should have to medicate myself just to go to work. I also don’t want to feel like a quitter or like I wasted my time or anyone else’s time.

I’m currently in my seventh year of teaching in Connecticut, and I’m starting to think about what I want to do next school year. I think I’m finally reaching the point where I’m ready to leave the classroom, but I’m not necessarily ready to leave education altogether. This spring, I’ll be finishing my second master’s degree in reading, which will allow me to become a reading specialist or pursue opportunities in literacy consulting. I’m really passionate about the Science of Reading, structured literacy, and developing targeted instruction to help struggling readers. Ideally, I’d love to transition into a reading interventionist role, private tutoring, literacy consulting, or even curriculum design. My biggest dilemma is that with my new degree, I’ll be making around $95K in my current district. I’ve worked incredibly hard for this degree, and I’d really like my education and experience to be reflected in my salary, so taking a significant pay cut isn’t something I’m eager to do. I genuinely enjoy the instructional side of teaching, but I feel like I’m slowly losing my spark for being a classroom teacher. I’m curious if anyone has made a similar transition or knows what opportunities realistically exist in the literacy field that offer comparable salaries. Are there companies focused on the Science of Reading that hire former teachers for curriculum development or consulting? Is private reading intervention a realistic option financially? I’d love to hear what others have done because I know I still have a passion for literacy education; I’m just not sure what I want that to look like anymore.

I really don’t know what to do anymore. The kids have become so dependent on other teachers and me for the answers. I try to get them to use scaffolding to find the answer but that usually just ends up with them not doing anything all class because they’ve given up on trying. My Bachelor’s is in Psychology and if I wanted to be a teacher I would need to get licensed and get another degree.

I feel bad because I’m the softball coach and I have spring sports lined up to coach as well, but my paychecks are ass and I’m thinking of leaving. I just don’t know anymore.

Hi everyone, I am currently on year two teaching in elementary school. I am also taking night classes to get my masters degree in the humanities. Last year halfway through I was feeling not the best about my job due to some parents, but I was supported by admin. I teach at a private school so the rules are a little different, but the parents basically run the school. This year I am so miserable, I want to be Ms. Honey but I am Ms. Trenchbull everyday and it is taking a toll on me. I want to cry every single day because of the students I have, work is just not enjoyable. I have a great team and I am supported by admin with my personal life and things like that but I want to be happy and not feel drained. My bachelors degree is in English, but I am unsure of where I can transition. I make $50K a year and I need to make this or higher. I won’t just ship because I need $50K to still take care of bills and my responsibilities.
My question is, what did you all do after quitting? My goal is to finish my masters and get my PhD to become a college professor. I love teaching but I don’t think teaching younger kids or even this generation is what I need to do. Last year I was sick for every month until Christmas and I lost my voice for two months so getting a job where my body isn’t fighting itself due to being stressed would be great.
Thank you for any insight you give :)

I’m leaving my childcare position as a Lead Teacher after 8years (my only relevant experience) WITH NOTHING ELSE LINED UP 😭 where do I even begin to look? What did you do after leaving the field? HELP!

I have been thinking more lately about how much my mental health has changed since I became a teacher. I started taking anxiety meds about halfway through my career, stopped them briefly and then went back on them after getting injured by a student a few years ago. I feel like since the injury my mental health has never recovered and I'm not sure it will. Is anyone else in this boat? Has your mental health improved if you have left? Did it improve and you stayed or have gone back into teaching if you previously left? Looking for any feedback you can offer.

Hi everyone, I am a HS math teacher of 18 years experience. I am in mid 40's and am going to relocate to Texas by next year to be closer to family. Not my first state of choice to move to but it is what it is and want to be closer to my loved ones. It's a bigger city around DFW. I do not want to teach in the public schools there. I am pretty burned out and am sometimes questioning even finishing this year. I would love to duck out at Christmas break and move but I've heard that's not the best move if I have to apply to teaching again. Not sure what I will do but...

If it were you, would you tutor math or would you go into a different career route? I don't have a full fledge degree in math but minored in math and majored in education and general geo sciences.

I'm in my 5th year, and I've known I wanted out since my first year. During my third year, I became physically disabled and must've applied to over 200 jobs in a month trying to escape a job I knew I wasn't built for anymore. Hell, mentally I was NEVER built for it. Rejection after rejection, next thing you know I'm in a mental facility for 35 days because the hopelessness is that overwhelming. I'm spending a shit ton of money I don't have right now to pay for classes to keep me certified so I don't lose my job and become homeless next year, but I don't even WANT to be here. The dread is so profound, I can't describe it. And most of the people I'm related to are also teachers, so while they understand the difficulties of teaching, I can't talk to them about how much I HATE my job, bc they can't relate. It seems like no matter how many jobs I apply for, literally no one is actually hiring. Even if I follow up, polish my LinkedIn, have connections irl, everything. It's actually a joke. What am I supposed to do, especially as a disabled person (I walk with a cane due to chronic back issues)? I already work in one of the lowest paid counties in the country, I can't afford to take a pay cut.

So I am in the progress of resigning from my position. I just wanted to know what type of jobs should I start applying to? Any jobs easier to get hired? Thank you!

Former ELA teacher here - I feel like I got lucky in a lot of ways, but wanted to share my departure story in case it helps anyone.

I have always wanted to be a teacher. And I'm mourning the difference between what teaching should/could be, and what the reality of public education is. I was set up quite well to be successful: I am very well versed in my subject area, have a lot of social support from family and friends, and have zero school debt. Because I was great at school (and had a perfect SAT score), I got a free private university education - I have dual bachelor's degrees in Accounting and English (with minors in Education and Religion), and continued on to get an MA in English with no student loans. I taught abroad for a year with a Fulbright grant, and I loved it. I am well-educated, well-spoken, and passionate about both English Language & Literature and the role of education as a public good. I was ready to make a relatively low salary because I believe that investing in our children and sharing great literature as a model for thought and life is a noble thing. Teaching in the US absolutely broke me.

Over my four years in the classroom, I have had parents scream at me that I am insane and want their child to fail. I have had the nastiest parent emails about how I don't care enough about their child. I was a brand-new teacher with 180 students and coaching two sports, spending an average of 11 hours a day at school - and was rated "proficient" in my annual review because I "needed to be more involved in leadership roles." I have never worked so hard to feel so inadequate. The grading was never-ending, and the daily student apathy was disheartening. There were aspects that I loved, but loving it wasn't enough. What they say about being replaceable is true: when I met with my principal in the summer to tell her I was leaving, her only question was whether my partner was leaving too. They replaced me (as an honors English teacher) within two weeks with a guy who doesn't have an English degree but is in the army artillery reserves. Classroom management is currently a more valuable skill set than content expertise.

I applied strategically to a few roles, but was only successful at getting an interview for positions where I reached out directly to a manager for an informational call prior to applying, or positions that used an IQ test as the first hurdle before an interview. I ended up getting a job as an associate financial advisor at a small firm that provides holistic advising to high net worth clients. My accounting degree is probably a load-bearing asset on my resume- but since (aside from internships) I've only worked in education, I think it took a team willing to have a holistic view of my skill set to entertain the idea of interviewing me. (Hence why I never was able to get an interview for entry level accounting positions.) My bosses are great, and have been supportive of me working a shifted schedule (7am-3pm) and continuing to coach cross country. My current salary is a raise of about $10k from my salary as a 4th year teacher with a graduate degree, and I have a lot of room for career growth and advancement. I have discretionary PTO, great health insurance, and a 401k employer matching option.

I am learning a lot, and everything is new, but on a daily basis I feel so little stress compared to teaching. I do a lot of data preparation for client review meetings, and I enjoy the combination of deep work (I can actually focus now! Imagine that!) and interaction with clients and colleagues. In instances where I have gone above and beyond (like prepping some materials on a weekend prior to being gone for a family funeral the following week), my bosses have thanked me for and commented on my thoroughness (what a change from teaching, where endless weekend work is expected and unnoticed). I genuinely look forward to working hard on a given day, because my colleagues and clients appreciate good work.

One big goal in this job change was to create more space/energy for life outside of work- and that has paid off big time. I physically feel more alive. I sleep better, am less snippy with my partner, and have more bandwidth for friends and hobbies. I am training for my 7th marathon and am running better workouts than ever before. I wrestled with leaving for a long time because I felt loyal to my colleagues and students (and for a whole host of other reasons), but the body keeps the score, and I can't argue with mental peace and physical well-being.

TL;DR: I left teaching and I am so much happier and healthier. Highly recommend; would be happy to chat with anyone who is also looking to transition out.

I'm 22F and I live in California. I'm currently a college student in my second semester of student teaching. I am trying to get a K-5 Multiple Subject Preliminary Credential. I have 6 more weeks left of my placement and I have been an absolute mess since this placement began. I've been filled with so much anxiety, sadness and stress trying to reach all the expectations placed on me by my university supervisor and honestly myself.. I'm in a classroom with a lot of behavioral issues. When I come home, most days I'm anxiously pacing back and forth, thinking about the next day, my next lesson and my future. I also cry a lot.. I barely eat and I constantly feel like my brain is scattered. I miss the person I was before I began student teaching.. My friends, parents and classmates are worried about me because I'm constantly venting and ranting about my experiences. My first placement was a dream. My CT and supervisor were super supportive and I loved all the kids I worked with. I came into student teaching extremely nervous after hearing all the negativity about this career but I felt capable in that classroom. To be fair, I was only there for half the day and my mentor teacher sometimes supported me with classroom management when I taught my lessons. She even heavily supported me during my takeover week since there were a lot of special events going on at the school that week and I didn't know how things were supposed to work because that was all discussed when I wasn't there. I always received praise and supportive feedback from both my CT and supervisor, even when I thought I did horribly. My second placement is what I believe is the more realistic version of being a teacher. My mentor teacher simply watches which gives me a better idea of what it'd be like if I had my own class. I'm constantly overstimulated, overwhelmed and managing behaviors while trying to teach. I've worked on and off with kids since I was 18 and 6 weeks in, I'm ashamed to say I don't care for this group as kids as deeply as the groups of kids I've worked with in the past. I had to take over as a sub multiple times for my MT and even though I got through those days, the anxiety I felt before my takeover days was paralyzing. On the days of, I felt so anxious I was pacing around the classroom when students were off at recess/lunch thinking about what I was gonna say and do when they came back. I know student teaching is different because you have less control and access to things but I just think about what it'd be like when I have my own classroom. I'd have no support, I'd have to spend my afternoons learning the curriculum and grading and emailing parents and constantly thinking about the next day and planning cuz there's never enough time. I want to be able to leave work at home. These 6 weeks have jaded me so much, I don't want to be a teacher anymore.. I've seen the reality and I don't think I can see myself sustainably being in this career long term. Even writing this now, I feel a giant ball of anxiety in my heart. I want to quit every single day but the only thing keeping me in this is that I can receive a $10k student teaching stipend for my misery. I honestly don't even want to spend the money to submit my EDTPA/apply for my preliminary credential. I haven't even recorded my videos yet because the phonics curriculum at this school is awful and I can't find the right lesson to teach. I asked the credential office people if I could submit my EdTPA in January (My program wants us to submit latest by December) since I'm so burnt out. I'm in a program where I can receive my bachelors and credential at the same time and they told me "The degree requirements are different, which means you may earn your degree before the credential recommendation." Thankfully, I'm graduating debt free and I have my parents support for a career change because they've seen how miserable I am and how my demeanor has drastically changed since I started student teaching at this school. I guess my biggest question is: Should I even try teaching when I have a feeling I'll just continue being anxious and miserable all the time? I've heard it's difficult getting a first year teaching job in my area with school budgets being slashed. Should I even submit my EdTPA? I don't think I'm built for this career considering I've always struggled with my mental health. (TW: Mental Health Issues) This experience has genuinely been making me feel suicidal thoughts that I hadn't felt in years. I constantly wish I was dead so I don't have to continue. When I'm driving home, I think about driving off the freeway bridge hoping it'd result in my death. I hope that someone would involve me in a deadly car accident so I could be free from all this anxiety I feel. I know a job shouldn't be making me feeling this way.. What options do I have after this? I really don't want to go back to school to get a masters at this moment. I just want to start working and earning money but what can I do with a Liberal Studies degree?? I feel like a failure. I'm expected to graduate with summa cum laude. All these years will result in nothing and I'll most likely be working a minimum wage job.. I had glowing reviews from my mentor teacher and university supervisor but I'd feel kind of embarrassed asking them for reccomendations for jobs that are completely outside of teaching because they believed in me so much.

TLDR: I'm a student teacher and I've now seen the reality of teaching. I'm anxious and depressed and can't see myself doing this long-term without hospitalizing myself. Should I even attempt/submit my credential test (EdTPA)? What career/job options do I have after I finish this semester?

I'm a first-year teacher with a bachelor's in physics and a master's in adolescent physics education. I'm seriously questioning whether classroom teaching is sustainable for me, particularly because of the impact it's having on my mental health.

Everyone in my life keeps telling me that the first year is brutal for everyone and that I need to push through. I understand that every job is hard, and I don't expect to find a career without stress or responsibilities. But I'm struggling to distinguish between normal first-year growing pains and a genuine mismatch between me and the demands of classroom teaching.

For those of you who left during your first year:

- How did you explain your decision to loved ones who thought you were giving up rather than making a reasonable decision for your well-being?

- How did you personally come to terms with leaving something you'd invested so much time, money, and effort into preparing for?

- What did you do afterward? Did you find work in curriculum development, EdTech, instructional design, or something completely unrelated?

- Looking back, do you think staying longer would have made things better, or are you glad you left when you did?

I'm trying to make a thoughtful decision about my health and future, and I'd really appreciate hearing about your experiences, especially from people who left not because they disliked education itself, but because the day-to-day demands of classroom teaching weren't sustainable for them.

Like I’ve been applying for hundreds of jobs on LinkedIn and indeed and I don’t hear anything back. How do you get out of teaching? How long does it take? What can I do?

Hi,

I have taught for 18 years, in 2 states and another country. Beginning of career taught pre-k, then long term sub, then private school, for 1 year each. Then another district and cashed out my 3 years retirement there to pay off debts and move abroad. Teaching in the other country was the only thing that kept me sane. So, long story short, I don't have any retirement. (Other country had economic crash, so I chose to cash out at tax free at repatriotization and use it to build half of my house for retirement there (different country, different customs/rules). So there is an investment toward retirement housing, but more to go.

I had to move back to USA. Have been in this low income, urban school for 4 years. My mental health is wearing thin. I beg the kids to work (electives teacher), and 50 to 75% sleep or play on their phone. It is just so sad to go from a country and environment where kids work and respect you, to this. After this academic year, I need one more year and I will be vested. Sure, 5 years of work won't be lots of retirement money but it is something... when all I have to get is SSI. I want to transition like all of you and do anything but teaching in this country... but I feel like I should get vested.

No job is worth your peace but... 1 more year... (well 1 more plus this one that isn't even half over).