In this episode, I have invited a dear friend of mine, Kristina Garla, to share with us about the power of language and the impact that the words we use with ourselves has on the way that we show up daily.

Kristina Garla is a meditation teacher, writer and speaker, breathwork facilitator and certified Wayapa® practitioner. Through these practices, Kristina shares the wisdom of breath, heart and earth connection.

Born on Yorta Yorta land, to Lithuanian refugees, Kristina has a special connection to where land meets water, and the healing qualities of nature. She grew up spending a lot of time swimming in muddy creeks and rivers, beautifully clear bush streams and the salty ocean.

She lives on Wurundjeri Country and her voice holds space for people to heal through meditation, somatic and grounding practices, and her published writing. Kristina is blessed with two beautiful children, who keep her humble. She collects feathers; and magpies tend to hang out with her when she meditates in her backyard. Their song brings a beautiful sense of harmony and joy to her heart.

Kristina holds weekly meditation classes, breathwork sessions, Wayapa classes, writing therapy sessions, somatic journalling workshops and regular community circles, as well as special meditation events, immersions, one-to-one coaching and intuitive healing sessions. She also publishes her writing on a blog and shares her insights through speaking and writing engagements.

Working with individuals, families, communities, early learning centres, schools, charities and workplaces, Kristina’s goal is to foster wellness in the world. She advocates for kindness and gratitude. She believes we have everything we need to nurture peace within and around us, to create harmony in our body, and foster compassion and service to ourselves and others.

Kristina peacefully insists for truth and believes in the guidance of love to change the world.

In this episode, Kristina shares the following:

• her journey to where she is today, and the work that she does in the world
• her love for words and writing and using it as a form of meditation
• the role that language plays in our lives - the way that we show up and the way that we communicate with others
• Dr. Masaru Emoto's work that he has shared in his book "The Hidden Messages in Water" - how the influence of our thoughts, words and feelings on molecules of water can positively impact us and the world around us
• what we can do to shift the language we use with ourselves, and the language that we use with others in our communities

As mentioned in the episode, Kristina and I are co-creating an in-person workshop - "Flourish and Thrive" - for teachers on Saturday, 6th May in Melbourne. If you are interested in joining us for an afternoon to reclaim your energy and time to prevent teacher burnout, we would love to have you come join us!

Book your spot via this link here!

LINKS:
Kristina's website
Kristina's Instagram

Flourish & Thrive Workshop - Saturday 6th May

1-1 Teacher Wellbeing Coaching with Paige
Paige's Instagram
Paige's LinkedIn

In this episode, I have invited the incredible Janelle McDaniel, from halfway across the world, to come on the podcast and have a chat about her teaching journey, which I find so inspiring and so fascinating, with the pivots that she has made along the way.

Janelle McDaniel is an educator who serves a high school community outside of Palm Springs, California. She has been in education for over 15 years serving in various roles. For 14 years she served as the lead teacher in classrooms for students with moderate to severe disabilities. While serving students with exceptional needs she also became a coach and mentor to new teachers entering the field.

Over a year ago, Janelle made the switch from special education to a new position in her district as a Wellness Center Intervention Teacher. She created a wellness program on her high school campus that is now a model program for other schools in her district. Through this position, Janelle has been able to bring mindfulness and social-emotional learning programs to all students on her campus. She has a passion for helping students navigate the difficult times that come up during their teenage years and providing them with tools to help manage their stress.

She is an advocate for student mental health as well as educator wellness and believes that in order for students to understand the importance of social-emotional learning and personal wellness, teachers must embody what that looks like. She has a masters degree in Education, is a certified Social-Emotional Learning Facilitator, and a 200-hour certified yoga instructor. She encourages all educators to put their well-being first and helps teachers create boundaries and set up wellness programs to help them reach their goals.

In this episode, Janelle shares the following:

• her story about stepping out of her comfort zone into a new role outside of the classroom
• the importance and the value of stepping out of your comfort zone, and not being afraid of trying new things and developing new skills within the education industry
• how she has carved out a role that is unique to her in her new role as a Wellness Centre Intervention Teacher
• the juggle of being mum, wife, teacher and coach and how she makes it work 

You can find Janelle on Instagram here.

Further Links:
1-1 Teacher Wellbeing Coaching with Paige
Instagram
LinkedIn

Teachers are stressed and burning out. That is the unfortunate reality of the world that we live in today. And unfortunately, this has a negative ripple effect out into the wider teaching community, whether it's fellow teachers, students, colleagues or parents.

Through my personal experience with burnout, and through the coaching work that I do with teachers who have taken action to lead their flourishing lives, I have created my signature "Free from Teacher Burnout Framework", which is centred around the three pillars of mindset, mindfulness and self-focus.

In this episode, I provide an overview of this framework that I use to support my clients and fellow teachers, and I break down the 3 pillars into steps that we as teachers can take to free ourselves from burnout, and to cultivate a mindful, purposeful and flourishing life.

Wherever you may find yourself on the burnout spectrum, I hope that this framework overview gives you an insight into the things that you can focus on to get yourself out of that vicious burnout cycle.

LINKS:
Book a discovery call: https://calendly.com/paigetan/30min
1-1 Teacher Wellbeing Coaching
Instagram
LinkedIn