Going Live!

So you know I’ve got a podcast going. It’s fun. A new episode drops here every other Wednesday.

The stories and solutions the teachers come up with in each episode are

true and amazing.

But now I’ve got something else going on.

Instagram Live.

Truly, I am too old to be doing live events on social media. But I believe there’s a need for it. That is, many teachers are in dire straits. They are overwhelmed, anxious, hopeless, angry, despairing, burned out. They need a place to go to talk about that truth.

Those negative feelings.

Feelings most teachers don’t want to talk about. Because those feelings are not acceptable. Because they’re not loving and caring and selfless and good. Teachers are supposed to be positive and upbeat and always focused on what’s best for their students.

Sorry, all. I call

bullshit.

You might be a teacher who believes negative feelings suggest you’re bad at your job. You might be super-good at the emotional labor required to put on a happy face all the time. But that doesn’t stop you from being human.

And being human entitles you to have appropriate responses to your reality and to other people’s behaviors. When those appropriate responses are “negative,” you are entitled to wonder about their meanings. Because those negative emotions ARE meaningful and can help you re-align your life and relationships.

All this to say: Come visit my Instagram Live event this Wednesday, 2/9, from 4:15 - 5 p.m. (And every other Wednesday from then on. 2/9. 2/23. 3/9. Etc.) Drop in. Write a comment in the chat box. Or a question in the question box. Or just watch and listen. The point is to give teachers a place to feel their negative feelings and wonder about them. Not to vent. To channel those negative feelings into relieving, effective action. Try it. Maybe you’ll see what I mean.

(You have to have an Instagram account to join. Once you’ve got that set up, go to teachingthroughemotions and click on the profile icon at 4:15. That’ll take you straight to the Live event.)

I don’t know how to convince teachers that diving into their negative emotions with the proper support will inevitably lead to wisdom and relational attunement. I’m hoping Instagram Live will help. Please join me and see what you think. And feel.