“How can I deal with first-day anxiety?” Teacher Anxiety and Managing a Classroom with Confidence

Teaching through Emotions: Teacher Mental Health · Oct 29, 2026 · 48m · transcript

When I first worked as a therapist in a local public mental health agency, I tended to wake up around 4 a.m. every workday. With the jitters. Or, more generally, with inescapable anxiety about the coming day. What would come at me? Could I handle it? Did I actually know what I was doing?

It is of course normal to feel this way about jobs that involve humans, who are so unpredictable! First-day jitters are no exception. But so are second-day jitters, and third-day, and eightieth-day jitters. Stuff can happen in a classroom (and therapy office) that suddenly throws you off your game and shakes…