TAUGHT

Send us Fan Mail

Is teaching truly a long-term career, or a highway to burnout? Hear Michelle's candid reflections on her journey through the educational system, as she grapples with the unrealistic five-year mastery expectation and the crushing weight of chronic stress. She opens up about the pivotal role her school community, family, and faith played in her difficult decision to take a medical leave from a profession she loves, shedding light on how systemic issues in education can impact all school staff, not just teachers.

Read the Episode Transcript on the TAUGHT website. 

Connect with host Amy Schamberg on LinkedIn

Explore:

• Learn more about the Total Worker Health® approach from NIOSH
• Discover Amy’s wellness workshops, coaching, and consulting at amyschamberg.com
• Check out the book that started it all! Taught: The Very Private Journal of One Bad Teacher by Melissa Lafort  — Available on Amazon

Want to Be a Guest on TAUGHT?
We're always looking to elevate expert voices and real solutions. Email [email protected] with your name, title, and a brief description of your perspective or experience in education or workforce wellbeing.

Need Support Right Now?
For immediate mental health resources, visit HealthCentral or connect with a licensed provider in your area.

Send us Fan Mail

What happens when your passion for teaching turns into overwhelming stress and anxiety? Join me, us on the season two opener of "Taught the Podcast," where we uncover the harsh realities of educator burnout. This episode features Michelle, a first-year special education teacher and former dean of students, who shares her powerful story of battling anxiety and panic attacks while striving to make a difference in the lives of children and families. Michelle's candid account sheds light on the daily challenges faced by special education teachers and offers hope and solidarity to those navigating similar struggles.

Michelle's Instagram: @handle_your_day

Read the Episode Transcript on the TAUGHT website. 

Connect with host Amy Schamberg on LinkedIn

Explore:

• Learn more about the Total Worker Health® approach from NIOSH
• Discover Amy’s wellness workshops, coaching, and consulting at amyschamberg.com
• Check out the book that started it all! Taught: The Very Private Journal of One Bad Teacher by Melissa Lafort  — Available on Amazon

Want to Be a Guest on TAUGHT?
We're always looking to elevate expert voices and real solutions. Email [email protected] with your name, title, and a brief description of your perspective or experience in education or workforce wellbeing.

Need Support Right Now?
For immediate mental health resources, visit HealthCentral or connect with a licensed provider in your area.

Send us Fan Mail

Burnout can feel like a never-ending cycle, but what happens when we shift our perspective and realize we have choices? Join us on "Taught" as I share my own battle with teacher burnout. Alongside Amy, a certified functional medicine health coach, we explore what it truly means to build resilience, not just as a reactive measure but as a proactive approach to well-being.  We draw from a former podcast guest's experience, and through the lens of Tracy's social-emotional learning expertise, we discuss the challenges and the necessity of intervention before teachers reach their breaking point.

Episodes mentioned in today's episode:
Tracy's Part 1:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2093647/15203241
Tracy's Part 2:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2093647/15243624
Burnout: A Journey Towards Resilience with Amy Schamberg
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2093647/15397720
Burnout: A Journey Towards Resilience with Amy Schamberg 2
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2093647/15544311

Read the Episode Transcript on the TAUGHT website. 

Connect with host Amy Schamberg on LinkedIn

Explore:

• Learn more about the Total Worker Health® approach from NIOSH
• Discover Amy’s wellness workshops, coaching, and consulting at amyschamberg.com
• Check out the book that started it all! Taught: The Very Private Journal of One Bad Teacher by Melissa Lafort  — Available on Amazon

Want to Be a Guest on TAUGHT?
We're always looking to elevate expert voices and real solutions. Email [email protected] with your name, title, and a brief description of your perspective or experience in education or workforce wellbeing.

Need Support Right Now?
For immediate mental health resources, visit HealthCentral or connect with a licensed provider in your area.

Send us Fan Mail

Have you ever wondered why teacher absenteeism is skyrocketing and how it impacts our education system? Join me, Melissa LaFleur, as I unravel the complex web of reasons behind this issue, from the challenges of professional development and childcare to the lingering scars left by COVID-19. Drawing on my personal journey and frustrations as an educator, I share insights from my story "Taught" and critique the unfair blame placed on teachers for financial and academic setbacks. This episode is a heartfelt call for genuine conversations about teacher burnout and the urgent need for systemic support.

* For this episode chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10 more days of work. However, it should be noted that it is 10 or more days in an academic year.
** And...the news agency Bloomberg is mentioned a few times. Many news agencies are reporting the same things. It just so happened that both articles used in this episode were from Bloomberg and it should be acknowledged that the journalism is professional and makes valid points. ...just not any from a teaching perspective...

Sources for this episode:

NEA News: Beyond Burnout: What Must Be Done to Tackle the Educator Shortage
https://www.nea.org/nea-today/all-news-articles/beyond-burnout-what-must-be-done-tackle-educator-shortage

Education Week: Teacher and Student Absenteeism Is Getting Worse
https://www.edweek.org/leadership/teacher-and-student-absenteeism-is-getting-worse/2022/07

Frontline Education: The Big Picture of Teacher Absenteeism
https://www.frontlineeducation.com/solutions/absence-time/resources/teacher-absenteeism-white-paper/

Are Teachers Absent More? Examining
Differences in Absence Between K-12 Teachers
and Other College-Educated Workers
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED638941.pdf

Why Are Teachers Missing So Much School?
https://www.educationdaly.us/p/teacher-absenteeism-epitomizes-our

The substitute teacher shortage: Research reveals why it warrants more news coverage
https://journalistsresource.org/education/substitute-teacher-pay-student-achievement-research/

Absent Teachers Risk Costing American Schools $4 Billion a Year
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-06-06/absent-teachers-risk-costing-american-schools-4-billion-a-year

Struggling Students Need Their Teachers to Show Up
https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-04-12/michael-bloomberg-learning-loss-and-the-scourge-of-absent-teachers

Unesco: Absenteeism
https://policytoolbox.iiep.unesco.org/glossary/absenteeism/#:~:text=Teacher%20absenteeism%3A%20is%20%27any%20failure,Z.%3B%20Shirom%2C%20A

Read the Episode Transcript on the TAUGHT website. 

Connect with host Amy Schamberg on LinkedIn

Explore:

• Learn more about the Total Worker Health® approach from NIOSH
• Discover Amy’s wellness workshops, coaching, and consulting at amyschamberg.com
• Check out the book that started it all! Taught: The Very Private Journal of One Bad Teacher by Melissa Lafort  — Available on Amazon

Want to Be a Guest on TAUGHT?
We're always looking to elevate expert voices and real solutions. Email [email protected] with your name, title, and a brief description of your perspective or experience in education or workforce wellbeing.

Need Support Right Now?
For immediate mental health resources, visit HealthCentral or connect with a licensed provider in your area.

Send us Fan Mail

Recording lectures on psychedelics—why does it matter? Join us for a candid conversation as we navigate the challenges of teaching controversial subjects in today’s classrooms. I share my firsthand experiences and concerns about the implications of students recording sensitive discussions, and we scrutinize the shifting societal norms that have made open debate increasingly difficult. With insights from Dr. Lichter, we emphasize the essential role of argumentation in education and the need for a supportive educator community to reclaim open and meaningful classroom dialogues.

Show references:

Solubility Rules - Lichter Roll                                          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iWkyOPjbSQ

Psychedelic Outlaws by Joanna Kempner PhD https://www.joannakempner.com/psychedelic-outlaws

Spark by John Ratey M.D.
http://www.johnratey.com/

** I referenced a university class on happiness--It is Dr. Laurie Santos and she teaches at Yale!  

Read the Episode Transcript on the TAUGHT website. 

Connect with host Amy Schamberg on LinkedIn

Explore:

• Learn more about the Total Worker Health® approach from NIOSH
• Discover Amy’s wellness workshops, coaching, and consulting at amyschamberg.com
• Check out the book that started it all! Taught: The Very Private Journal of One Bad Teacher by Melissa Lafort  — Available on Amazon

Want to Be a Guest on TAUGHT?
We're always looking to elevate expert voices and real solutions. Email [email protected] with your name, title, and a brief description of your perspective or experience in education or workforce wellbeing.

Need Support Right Now?
For immediate mental health resources, visit HealthCentral or connect with a licensed provider in your area.

Send us Fan Mail

Burnout is a buzzword, but what does it really mean for university faculty today? Dr. Lichter reveals the complexities of educator burnout, especially in higher education, sharing his experiences in university classrooms. We discuss the increased stress levels among students, rising anxiety, and the phenomenon of "quiet quitting." Grading systems, student motivation, and work-life balance—these are also the hurdles educators face daily. Dr. Lichter and I touch on societal factors affecting student resilience and discuss the importance of balancing professional and personal lives. Additionally, we navigate the intricate world of politics in education, stressing the need to keep political beliefs separate from the classroom to preserve the core mission of teaching. Tune in for a thought-provoking discussion aimed at reclaiming the essence of education.

https://www.campussafetymagazine.com/news/college-faculty-burnout-the-statistics-and-solutions/132000/

Read the Episode Transcript on the TAUGHT website. 

Connect with host Amy Schamberg on LinkedIn

Explore:

• Learn more about the Total Worker Health® approach from NIOSH
• Discover Amy’s wellness workshops, coaching, and consulting at amyschamberg.com
• Check out the book that started it all! Taught: The Very Private Journal of One Bad Teacher by Melissa Lafort  — Available on Amazon

Want to Be a Guest on TAUGHT?
We're always looking to elevate expert voices and real solutions. Email [email protected] with your name, title, and a brief description of your perspective or experience in education or workforce wellbeing.

Need Support Right Now?
For immediate mental health resources, visit HealthCentral or connect with a licensed provider in your area.

Send us Fan Mail

Can chronic stress really lead to burnout, or are we simply not managing our stress properly? This episode promises to answer that by exploring both the subtle and glaring signs of chronic stress and burnout that often go unnoticed. Through my personal journey as an educator—where frustration and burnout culminated into writing the story "Taught"—we highlight how easy it is to be blindsided by these stressors. Amy Schamberg, a certified functional medicine health coach with a school psychology background, joins us to shed light on the physical and emotional changes that signal chronic stress and why it's crucial to recognize these symptoms early.

If you are interested in following or contacting Aline (the Pilates/yoga/fascia guru that I mentioned in this episode), go to her Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/aline.amaralmelo/
And you can also search for her @aline.amaralmelo

Read the Episode Transcript on the TAUGHT website. 

Connect with host Amy Schamberg on LinkedIn

Explore:

• Learn more about the Total Worker Health® approach from NIOSH
• Discover Amy’s wellness workshops, coaching, and consulting at amyschamberg.com
• Check out the book that started it all! Taught: The Very Private Journal of One Bad Teacher by Melissa Lafort  — Available on Amazon

Want to Be a Guest on TAUGHT?
We're always looking to elevate expert voices and real solutions. Email [email protected] with your name, title, and a brief description of your perspective or experience in education or workforce wellbeing.

Need Support Right Now?
For immediate mental health resources, visit HealthCentral or connect with a licensed provider in your area.

Send us Fan Mail

What happens when teachers are stretched so thin that they become stand-ins for parents, mentors, and counselors, all while battling burnout and stress? Together with licensed counselor Melissa Anthony, private practice owner Sarah Monares, and wellness consultant Amy Schamberg, we tackle the hard-hitting issues of bullying within the educational hierarchy. Discover the challenges of seeking support from leadership and the isolating nature of these struggles, as we advocate for systemic change and robust support for our educators.

This is the second part of a two-part discussion. The first part is Episode 16. 

Read the Episode Transcript on the TAUGHT website. 

Connect with host Amy Schamberg on LinkedIn

Explore:

• Learn more about the Total Worker Health® approach from NIOSH
• Discover Amy’s wellness workshops, coaching, and consulting at amyschamberg.com
• Check out the book that started it all! Taught: The Very Private Journal of One Bad Teacher by Melissa Lafort  — Available on Amazon

Want to Be a Guest on TAUGHT?
We're always looking to elevate expert voices and real solutions. Email [email protected] with your name, title, and a brief description of your perspective or experience in education or workforce wellbeing.

Need Support Right Now?
For immediate mental health resources, visit HealthCentral or connect with a licensed provider in your area.

Send us Fan Mail

Imagine your child experiencing unexplainable and frightening symptoms, only to be met with a series of misdiagnoses. That's the reality we faced as Tristan's peculiar behaviors were initially mistaken for ADD, generalized anxiety disorder, and even signs of Tourette's syndrome. It was only after a severe incident in fourth grade and relentless advocacy that we began to secure the proper accommodations Tristan needed. From her first tonic-clonic seizure in high school to her current role in special education, Tristan's story is a testament to the power of perseverance. We shine a light on the critical importance of individualized educational plans and the need for a more inclusive and supportive system for students with unique medical needs.

Have you ever had to advocate fiercely for yourself, even when it felt like no one was listening? This episode highlights the frustrations and relief of finally receiving a potential diagnosis for Sunflower Syndrome, a condition that had long gone unrecognized. We discuss the symptoms, challenges, and the necessity of specialized medical care. This episode is a call to action for educators, medical professionals, and parents to foster a more understanding and supportive environment for all students, emphasizing that addressing individual needs can prevent burnout and keep students engaged in their education.

Sunflower Syndrome Guide for Patients, Families, & Schools - Massachusetts General Hostpital:
https://www.massgeneral.org/assets/mgh/pdf/neurology/sunflower-syndrome-guide.pdf

Massachusetts General Hospital Pediatric Unit Information Page:
https://www.massgeneral.org/children/sunflower-syndrome#:~:text=Sunflower%20syndrome%20is%20a%20rare%2C%20epileptic%20disorder%20characterized%20by%20highly,with%20abrupt%20lapses%20in%20consciousness.

An NBC article on Sunflower Syndrome:
https://www.nbcnews.com/video/sunflower-syndrome-causes-500-600-seizures-a-day-73531461619

Read the Episode Transcript on the TAUGHT website. 

Connect with host Amy Schamberg on LinkedIn

Explore:

• Learn more about the Total Worker Health® approach from NIOSH
• Discover Amy’s wellness workshops, coaching, and consulting at amyschamberg.com
• Check out the book that started it all! Taught: The Very Private Journal of One Bad Teacher by Melissa Lafort  — Available on Amazon

Want to Be a Guest on TAUGHT?
We're always looking to elevate expert voices and real solutions. Email [email protected] with your name, title, and a brief description of your perspective or experience in education or workforce wellbeing.

Need Support Right Now?
For immediate mental health resources, visit HealthCentral or connect with a licensed provider in your area.

Send us Fan Mail

Imagine being passionate about your career, yet feeling completely drained and disillusioned. That's the reality for many educators facing burnout today. In part 1 of a 6 episode series that will come out over the next 6 months, we sit down with Amy Schamberg, a former school psychologist who redefined her life by becoming a certified functional medicine health coach. Amy shares her deeply personal experience with teacher burnout, offering a historical perspective that traces the issue back to the 70s and 80s. This episode is not just about recognizing burnout, but also about understanding the critical balance between ambition and self-care.

Show notes:

How stressed are YOU? Take the quiz and find out:
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/quizzes/take_quiz/stress_and_anxiety

Educator Resources from the Greater Good Magazine:
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/education

Want to know more about Greater Good Magazine or Greater Good Science Center? Go to this link to find out more:
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/about

Read the Episode Transcript on the TAUGHT website. 

Connect with host Amy Schamberg on LinkedIn

Explore:

• Learn more about the Total Worker Health® approach from NIOSH
• Discover Amy’s wellness workshops, coaching, and consulting at amyschamberg.com
• Check out the book that started it all! Taught: The Very Private Journal of One Bad Teacher by Melissa Lafort  — Available on Amazon

Want to Be a Guest on TAUGHT?
We're always looking to elevate expert voices and real solutions. Email [email protected] with your name, title, and a brief description of your perspective or experience in education or workforce wellbeing.

Need Support Right Now?
For immediate mental health resources, visit HealthCentral or connect with a licensed provider in your area.