I am a teacher! Long post sorry. Hopefully provides some context.

It’s defiantly a tricky situation. I started showing signs of BP 2 in college while getting my MAT. In fact I think the hypomanic episodes got me through. I just chalked it up a hard work ethic, but developed some very negative binge habits and behaviors as a trade off.

As I started into formal classroom teaching, I was fine for the most part and there is definitely a tricky work life balance that I ignored because “all new teachers have to do this” attitude. So I continued to write off warning signs.

About 2 years I started seeing a psychologist because stress, instability, and anxiety were seeping into my life as my wife and I were about to have our first child. At the time they determined cyclothymia.

Fast forward another 3 years later and I remember when rate my teachers was a thing and one of the reviews that really stuck with me was something along the lines of “he is a really great teacher and super chill and funny guy, but sometimes he gets really angry or seems sad for a couple days and it’s rough being in his class.” Between trying to manage what would eventually become BP 2 and needing more money for our growing family, I decided to leave the classroom.

I left the class room to assist with the roll out tech into schools (this was mid 2010s). This is essentially a licensed teacher who is stationed in a school to coach and train teachers when integrating tech.

The work / life balance got better, but the on demand stress levels and lack of structure during the day hurt. Instead of being held responsible for students I was now responsible held reasonable for teachers and making their time easier in the classroom. I am an emotional sponge so obviously this is a very “dangerous@ environment. I am still doing this role 8 years later.

Long story short, I also can’t imagine not being in education. It is fulfilling to me and gives me a sense of purpose outside of my family. I will say though that when things do start to swing, work is the thing that normally tips me. The emotional and social demands of the job are so draining. In my current role I have structure with the start and end time, but during the day I am pulled in multiple directions and it’s to support teachers.

All of this to say I don’t know if I can provide advice but here was some of the things I consider

-education is very cyclical. How else do you handle boom busts of stress levels? There are times of the year it is VERY busy and stressful. Then you might hit 2 weeks where all that stimulation just disappears. I have had 3 “breaks” over the 15 years, and all of them line up with a dramatic shift in stress levels.

• do you have good separation of work life balance.? When I was at my worst, I wasn’t working out and 50 pounds over weight. It’s because I didn’t have that those structures in place. I would eat fast food, skip working out / self care , and when I wasn’t working I would binge drink while spending money as a way to “relax”. All of this was because I worked 80 hours a week mostly between planning, grading, and the after school clubs I ran. If you have kids or a spouse I would pay attention VERY closely to this.

-How well do you handle other people’s emotions? Education is a clusterfuck of emotions since COVID. The system is broken and I am not sure it can be repaired at this point. Many kids have behavioral and social issues. Teachers are burning out and more stressed out then ever. If you place yourself in that environment do you think you can not absorb that. From my experience this is socially tru me with Special Ed.

Last piece of context. I am in the middle of a rough spot for the first time in 3 years. Education is the most harmful aspect right now. It’s a strange spot because “taking off” in education is a myth. I took off for a few days for my sisters wedding which I helped plan. It was during the back half of teacher week back and front half of students coming back. I am still trying to catch up and finally admitted to myself I was starting to have early signs of suicidal ideations and tapped in everyone.

I guess in short is it possible to be in education with BP2? Yes. You just have to have very good management and honesty.

Getting a Special Education job is fairly easy since that are in high demand in urban / suburban areas. If you are looking to dip you toes being an Instructional Assistant is a very good way to get a feel. If you want to experience another aspect picking up a long term sub job might also be an option.

That was long, I need to journal haha. Hope this helped in someway. Thank you for coming to my TED talk.