Wellness for Educators

Lori Maxfield
  • 5.0 (6)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Updated Biweekly

“Wellness for Educators” is a podcast featuring Lori Maxfield, a retired teacher from central Pennsylvania. It is a place where educators feel valued and appreciated for their service to the future generation. "You need to be well to teach well. "That is the motto. Health and wellness is important for all educators. They need to take time to take care of themselves. This podcast will be updated monthly during the school year. (August- May) Wellness for Educators will provide tips to help educators experience life beyond the classroom.

  1. 1d ago

    Episode #24 Season 4 Be A Bridge Builder

    Send us Fan Mail Walls go up fast at school. Bridges take courage, patience, and a decision to keep connecting even when it would be easier to shut down. As we open season four of Wellness for Educators, I’m sharing the mindset that’s guiding me into the 2026-27 school year: become a bridge builder, because you need to be well to teach well. I tell the story of doing something that genuinely scared me, climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and why that kind of bravery translates to classrooms and staff rooms. We talk about leaning on colleagues, mentors, friends, and family, and how a new school year is your clean slate to adjust what didn’t work last year. If you want practical teacher self care, this starts with small choices: breathe, stay calm, set clear expectations, and refuse to take every tough moment personally. We also dig into one of the biggest drains on educator wellness: difficult relationships. I share ways to build connection with disruptive students and how to work toward unity with coworkers you don’t always see eye to eye with. You’ll hear the “radiators vs drainers” idea for protecting your energy, plus a reminder to look for tiny joys you might be missing. I also introduce you to Frida, a 100-year-old “radiator” who models warmth and encouragement, and I wrap with a lighthearted teacher survival kit you can keep in your back pocket. If this gives you a boost, subscribe, share it with a fellow educator, and leave a review so more teachers can find support. What bridge will you build first this year? Thanks for listening!

  2. May 27

    Episode #23 Season 3 Finish Strong And Rest Well

    Send us Fan Mail We close out season three by naming the real stress of the final school weeks and choosing a mindset that honors what went right for us and our students. We also pull together the most practical wellness takeaways from the season so we can step into summer with more rest, more joy, and less burnout.  • end-of-year stress reframed through gratitude, student growth, and small wins  • simple connection habits like board games and phone-free time  • resilience through determination and support systems  • healthier food choices and cutting back on processed foods  • the power of silence for nervous system reset  • doable self-care steps and using insurance perks  • fitness snacks, posture, and core focus for sustainable movement  • courage, clarity, and community that turn dreams into reality  • supporting student anxiety while protecting educator energy  • summer recovery through rest, play, nature, and laughter  • using leftover energy to organize, donate, and prep for next year  If you have a friend who you think could benefit from this podcast, please pass it along.  Until that time, please practice self care.  Thanks for listening!

  3. May 6

    Episode #22 Season 3 How Teachers And Administrators Build A Stronger School Team

    Send us Fan Mail Negativity can feel like background noise in a school building, but it quietly drains the people doing the work. I sit down with Matthew Palmer, an elementary assistant principal in South Carolina, to talk about educator wellness from a leadership perspective and to name what many teachers feel but rarely say out loud: schools run best when we stop criticizing roles we don’t fully understand and start acting like one team. Matthew shares what challenges him most as an administrator, especially the moments when an early childhood teacher is doing everything possible for a struggling student and still feels overwhelmed. We dig into the “priceless moments” that keep educators going, why small gestures matter more than big one-week celebrations, and how daily appreciation can shift a school’s culture. We also tackle difficult parent interactions with a clear, practical takeaway: if a situation is getting tense, stop emailing and pick up the phone or meet face to face to prevent misunderstandings and rebuild trust. We reflect on post-pandemic changes in student behavior, particularly in pre-K and kindergarten, and what schools can do with early intervention and stronger behavior supports. Matthew also explains how learning walks and peer observations can strengthen relationships, spread great teaching ideas, and replace comparison with encouragement. We close with real-world self care for educators, including boundaries, movement, letting go of late-night replaying, and a mindset shift that sticks: are you living a “get to” day or a “going to” day? If this conversation helps you, subscribe, share it with a colleague, and leave a review so more educators can find the support they deserve. Thanks for listening!

  4. Apr 8

    Episode #21 Season 3 Put The Phone In The Bucket And Breathe

    Send us Fan Mail Phones, pressure, and rising anxiety are not abstract trends. They’re showing up in real classrooms, in real kids, and in the adults trying to support them without burning out. I sit down with Dr. Dana Sarvey, a double board-certified child, adolescent, and adult psychiatrist, to get clear on what’s happening to youth mental health and what educators can realistically do next. We start with a practical question schools face all the time: what’s the difference between a child psychologist and a child psychiatrist? Dr. Sarvey breaks down training, roles, neuropsych testing, and prescribing, then connects it to what she’s seeing most often in her practice, especially depression, anxiety, panic, and OCD that frequently overlap. We also talk about seasonal mood changes and why some students look like different people once routines shift and the weather improves. Then we take on the big, uncomfortable topics: the increase in psychotropic medication for kids and teens, what the numbers actually show, and why medication is only one slice of a much bigger treatment plan that includes therapy and strong environmental supports at school. We also dig into social media and adolescent mental health, including research on depression, self-perception, and academic impact, plus concrete guardrails and why delaying exposure can matter. Along the way, we reflect on the lifelong imprint teachers leave and how to help students regain perspective when perfectionism and competition take over. If you found this helpful, subscribe, share with an educator or parent, and leave a review so more people can find Wellness for Educators. Thanks for listening!

  5. Mar 4

    Episode #20 Season 3 Leap To Switzerland, Teach With Heart

    Send us Fan Mail What if a single yes could reshape how you work, live, and care for yourself? We sit down with Kelly Donovan—middle school physical and health educator and well-being coordinator at International School Basel—to trace her leap from Pennsylvania to Switzerland and the lessons she carried across oceans. From the first spark in Mexico City’s international classrooms to a serendipitous invite that opened a door in Basel, Kelly shows how courage, clarity, and community can turn a dream into daily life. We explore the emotional arc of moving abroad—the honeymoon highs, the homesick lows, and the steady rise into adaptation—and the practical supports that made it real: a city voucher for German classes, cross-border routines, and rituals that keep family close. Inside school walls, Kelly walks us through SEE Learning, the Social, Emotional, and Ethical Learning framework developed at Emory University. The team began by training teachers in cognitively based compassion practices, proving that student well-being sticks when adults embody it first. The rollout spans early years to grade 12, aligning language, habits, and goals around compassion, resilience, and systems thinking. We also dig into the culture that sustains hard work: leadership that values the person behind the teacher, real holidays with zero email pressure, and a ski week in the Alps that forges trust and grit. Kelly offers a clear path for educators curious about working overseas—mindset shifts, where to find roles (Search Associates and TES), and how to navigate partnerships, logistics, and fear. She closes with daily wellness anchors—movement, rest you don’t have to earn, cooking at home, and the simple act of noticing—as tools any teacher can adopt, anywhere. If this conversation sparks your own leap of faith, hit follow, share with a colleague who needs hope, and leave a review to help more educators find their way. Thoughts from Kelly below: SEE Learning Search Associates TES klc9793@gmail.com  Thanks for listening!

  6. Feb 4

    Episode #19 Season 3 Small Habits, Big Energy: Rethinking Fitness For Busy Educators

    Send us Fan Mail The school day starts before sunrise and ends long after dismissal, and somewhere between lesson plans and parent emails, your back is tight, your energy is low, and sleep keeps slipping. That grind doesn’t have to be your baseline. We invited Pilates and fitness specialist—and former professional dancer—Lane Groser to help us build a smarter, simpler path to feeling strong, mobile, and rested. Lane traces her journey from the studio to coaching and shares a clear framework any educator can use: train your heart with cardio, protect muscle and bone with strength, and safeguard ease with mobility and balance. She cuts through the noise about protein rules and trend-chasing and returns to fundamentals that fit a busy life. You’ll learn posture cues you can use at your desk today—stack ribs over hips, sit on your sit bones, keep a gentle core tone—so your back stops doing all the work. Lane also reframes “core” as a 360-degree system where abs and back share the load, reducing tension and improving alignment. Motivation gets a makeover with three practical methods to beat procrastination: the cleaning method to spark momentum, the boundary method to anchor sessions between fixed events, and the five-minute method to lower the start barrier. We dig into stretching and balance for injury prevention and aging well, and we close with a candid look at sleep. Lane offers a realistic target of eight to nine hours, a calming gratitude wind-down, and a simple fix for early wake-ups: go to bed earlier and give your body the opportunity window it needs.You’ll leave with tools you can use tomorrow: small movement “snacks,” short strength sessions at home, posture resets between classes, and a kinder weekly review using your wearable. Stronger alignment, steadier energy, and better sleep help you teach with patience and joy. If this helped, follow the show, share it with a colleague who could use a boost, and leave a quick review so more educators can find it. Check out Lange Grosser Fitness www.lanegrosserfitness.com instagram.com/lanegrosserfitness facebook.com/lanegrosserfitness Thanks for listening!

  7. Jan 7

    Episode #18 Season 3 New Year, Healthier Habits For Teachers

    Send us Fan Mail A fresh year doesn’t magically create more time between classes, meetings, and grading—so we built a smarter way to pursue wellness that fits the real school day. With health and wellness consultant Dayna Gowan, we dig into practical strategies teachers can use right now: finding hidden insurance perks, shaping a sustainable self-care routine, and bringing simple, joyful energy back into daily life. Think free mindfulness apps through your insurer, short info sessions that boost benefits awareness, and small habits you can actually keep when afternoons get stacked. We also zoom out to the district level. If you’re the person who wants to make wellness real for your campus, Dana lays out a clear path: secure leadership buy-in, involve HR and the benefits team, and recruit a few site advocates to meet regularly. Start small with a wellness corner, add low-lift walking challenges, and ask leaders to participate publicly so culture follows action. Budgets help, but momentum matters more; consistency, clear communication, and visible wins keep people engaged. On the personal side, Dayna’s SELF framework—Sleep, Exercise, Love for yourself, and Food—translates self-care into doable steps. Protect your bedtime, choose movement you enjoy, practice compassion, and stop skipping meals. We even play with mindset: “Find the fun in the mundane” turns routine tasks into a spark of joy, breaking the tunnel vision of burnout without slipping into toxic positivity. Wrap it all together with one habit per quarter, and by year’s end you’ve stacked real change without the crash. If this conversation gives you a nudge, share it with a colleague who needs it, then hit follow and leave a quick review. Your support helps more educators find tools, perks, and hope to teach well—by feeling well. Be sure to check out Dayna's podcast, Improvly Speaking Dayna Gowan Speaker & Facilitator of Fun at Improvly Speaking  | W |   | improvlyspeaking.com E |   | dayna@improvlyspeaking.com Thanks for listening!

  8. 12/03/2025

    Episode #17 Season 3 Finding Silence Amongst the Chaos

    Send us Fan Mail What if five quiet minutes could reset an entire day? We close the year with a focused, practical guide to finding calm in a loud season—especially for teachers who spend every hour juggling decisions, emotions, and endless distractions. Rather than adding another task to your to-do list, we build a small, sustainable habit that creates big returns: a short window of morning silence that lowers stress, resets attention, and restores patience. We unpack why silence is more than peaceful—it’s powerful. Research points to lower cortisol and parasympathetic activation when we pause the noise, and that matters in December when finances, social obligations, and grief often collide with shorter daylight. We share plainspoken steps to make the practice stick: wake a touch earlier, flip your phone face down, set a five-minute timer, breathe or repeat a grounding mantra, and name five things you’re grateful for. If mornings are hectic, we offer creative plan B options, from a no-audio commute segment to carving out a quiet nook with earplugs or a closet beanbag. Throughout, we connect this practice to the classroom. A clearer mind increases tolerance, deepens listening, and helps you respond rather than react—to students, colleagues, and the everyday frictions of traffic, grocery lines, and holiday expectations. You’ll hear reminders from past guests about how movement and journaling can pair with silence, plus realistic planning tips for the night before to protect your calm at sunrise. Start with twice a week, notice what changes first—focus, patience, or gratitude—and let the habit grow from there. Be well to teach well, and find joy in the journey. If this conversation helps, share it with a colleague who could use five minutes of quiet today. Subscribe, leave a review, and tell us where you’ll make space for silence this week. Thanks for listening!

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About

“Wellness for Educators” is a podcast featuring Lori Maxfield, a retired teacher from central Pennsylvania. It is a place where educators feel valued and appreciated for their service to the future generation. "You need to be well to teach well. "That is the motto. Health and wellness is important for all educators. They need to take time to take care of themselves. This podcast will be updated monthly during the school year. (August- May) Wellness for Educators will provide tips to help educators experience life beyond the classroom.

Information

  • Creator
    Lori Maxfield
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    24
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Wellness for Educators
  • Show Website
    Wellness for Educators