You love school counseling.

You believe in the mission.

But right now, it just isn't feeling right.

If you’ve been wondering whether you’re burned out, questioning if you can make it through another year, or feeling disconnected from the work you once loved... this episode is for you.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why April and May hit school counselors especially hard
• The difference between burnout and professional fatigue
• Five evidence-based strategies to protect your energy, motivation, and heart
• Why now is not the time to make big career decisions

Forget about self-care clichés. We need to talk about real tools to help you finish strong- and remind you why you started in the first place.

Whether you're tired, frustrated, or just not feeling like yourself at work...

You're not alone. And you're not broken.

Let’s talk about how to keep showing up without burning out.

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⭐️ Want support with real-world strategies that actually work on your campus? We’re doing that every day in the School for School Counselors Mastermind. Come join us! ⭐️

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Our goal at School for School Counselors is to help school counselors stay on fire, make huge impacts for students, and catalyze change for our roles through grassroots advocacy and collaboration. Listen to get to know more about us and our mission, feel empowered and inspired, and set yourself up for success in the wonderful world of school counseling.

Hang out in our Facebook group
Jump in, ask questions, share your ideas and become a part of the most empowering school counseling group on the planet! (Join us to see if we're right.)

Join the School for School Counselors Mastermind
The Mastermind is packed with all the things your grad program never taught you IN ADDITION TO unparalleled support and consultation. No more feeling alone, invisible, unappreciated, or like you just don't know what to do next. We've got you!

Did someone share this podcast with you? Be sure to subscribe for all the new episodes!!

⭐️ Want support with real-world strategies that actually work on your campus? We’re doing that every day in the School for School Counselors Mastermind. Come join us! ⭐️

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Ever meet another school counselor and realize halfway through the conversation…
you’re not doing the same job at all?

It’s not your imagination!
Right now, the title "school counselor" covers very different realities- and depending on which kind you’re seen as, your future in this profession could look very different, too.

In this episode, we’re uncovering what’s really happening inside our profession:

• The three types of school counselors showing up on campuses today- and the hidden risks each one faces
• The national shifts happening right now (from chaplains replacing counselors to SEL being banned in some states)
• Why your professional identity matters more than ever, and what happens if you don't define it for yourself
• How to start building skills that make you harder to replace, even when the system keeps changing

Because good intentions won’t protect your job.
Being the go-to for assemblies, spirit weeks, or “positive messaging” campaigns won’t protect your role either.

Only real skill, clarity, and strategic leadership will.

If you're ready to stop hoping the system fixes itself- and start protecting the work that actually matters- this episode is for you.

Sources Consulted:

• Selected legislative bills related to school counseling, accessed via LegiScan (including AL HB 583, TX SB 559 and HB 1122, PA HB 249, IN SB 523, MS HB 286, HB 566, HB 371, HB 1533, WV HB 3507, and NV AB 298), April 2025
• American School Counselor Association (ASCA) website, accessed April 2025
• Alabama School Counselor Association (ALSCA) website, accessed April 2025

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Our goal at School for School Counselors is to help school counselors stay on fire, make huge impacts for students, and catalyze change for our roles through grassroots advocacy and collaboration. Listen to get to know more about us and our mission, feel empowered and inspired, and set yourself up for success in the wonderful world of school counseling.

Hang out in our Facebook group
Jump in, ask questions, share your ideas and become a part of the most empowering school counseling group on the planet! (Join us to see if we're right.)

Join the School for School Counselors Mastermind
The Mastermind is packed with all the things your grad program never taught you IN ADDITION TO unparalleled support and consultation. No more feeling alone, invisible, unappreciated, or like you just don't know what to do next. We've got you!

Did someone share this podcast with you? Be sure to subscribe for all the new episodes!!

⭐️ Want support with real-world strategies that actually work on your campus? We’re doing that every day in the School for School Counselors Mastermind. Come join us! ⭐️

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Behavior charts. Consequence ladders. ABC data.

They’re everywhere- and school counselors are often expected to be in the middle of it.

But what happens when the behaviorist framework you're handed feels completely misaligned with your counseling instincts?

What if you’re tired of being the “behavior person” when all you want is to help kids feel safe and understood?

In this episode, I'm naming the tension between behaviorism and trauma-informed care, and why school counselors are so often stuck in the middle. We’ll explore how to hold both structure and compassion… and how to begin stepping back into the role that actually reflects your training.

If you’ve ever felt caught between compliance and connection, this one’s for you.

[00:00] Why behavior plans feel off for counselors

[03:00] Behaviorism basics (and why it still dominates)

[06:45] Trauma-informed care: the “can’t,” not “won’t” lens

[10:00] Can you hold structure and compassion?

[14:00] Real-life examples: escape and attention-seeking

[16:30] The problem isn’t just strategy—it’s your role

[17:30] Three frameworks that actually work

[20:00] How to stop being “the behavior person”

[24:00] Four ways to shift the narrative

[27:00] Final encouragement + your next step

References

Barth, R. P., Lee, B. R., Lindsey, M. A., Collins, K. S., Strieder, F. H., Chorpita, B. F., Becker, K. D., & Snowden, L. R. (2004). Evidence-based practice in mental health services for youth. The Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research, 31(2), 213–233. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02287377

Berger, E., Green, S., & Dalton, L. (2019). Educator perceptions of trauma-informed care in schools: A qualitative study. School Mental Health, 11(3), 483–496. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-019-09323-z

Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2010). Treating traumatic stress in children and adolescents: How to foster resilience through attachment, self-regulation, and competency. Guilford Press.

Greene, R. W., Ablon, J. S., & Goring, J. C. (2003). A transactional model of oppositional behavior: Underpinnings of the Collaborative Problem Solving approach. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 41(11), 20–25. https://doi.org/10.3928/0279-3695-20031101-08

Overstreet, S., & Chafouleas, S. M. (2016). Trauma-informed schools: Introduction to the special issue. School Mental Health, 8(1), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-016-9184-1

Perry, B. D. (2006). Fear and learning: Trauma-related factors in the adult education process. In S. Johnson & K. Taylor (Eds.), The Neuroscience of Learning and Development (pp. 123–142). Jossey-Bass.

Perry, B. D., & Szalavitz, M. (2017). The boy who was raised as a dog: And other stories from a child psychiatrist’s notebook (3rd ed.). Basic Books.

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network. (n.d.). Trauma-Informed School Strategies During COVID-19. https://www.nctsn.org/resources/trauma-informed-school-strategies-during-covid-19

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Our goal at School for School Counselors is to help school counselors stay on fire, make huge impacts for students, and catalyze change for our roles through grassroots advocacy and collaboration. Listen to get to know more about us and our mission, feel empowered and inspired, and set yourself up for success in the wonderful world of school counseling.

⭐️ Want support with real-world strategies that actually work on your campus? We’re doing that every day in the School for School Counselors Mastermind. Come join us! ⭐️

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You’ve been looped into a student’s behavior.
The teacher wants it fixed.
Admin wants a behavior plan.
And now everyone’s looking at you.

If you’ve ever found yourself thinking, “I don’t even know where to start,” this episode is for you.

We’re walking through the full behavior intervention process, from collecting ABC data to building a real Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP), so you know exactly what’s involved, what your role should be, and how to stop being the person everyone hands it off to.

You’ll learn:

• What actually makes a behavior plan effective
• Where school counselors fit into the process (and where we don’t)
• How to avoid the “throw spaghetti at the wall” method of intervention
• Why consistency- not quick fixes- is what really moves the needle

This episode won’t give you a one-size-fits-all template.

But it will help you understand the full picture, speak the language of your behavior teams, and start showing up like the professional you already are.

Resources:

American School Counselor Association. (2022). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors. https://schoolcounselor.org/ethics

Chandler, L. K., & Dahlquist, C. M. (2015). Functional assessment: Strategies to prevent and remediate challenging behavior in school settings (4th ed.). Pearson.

Shahan, T. A. (2022). A theory of the extinction burst. Perspectives on Behavior Science, 45(3), 495–519. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40614-021-00297-z

U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance. (n.d.). What Works Clearinghouse. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/

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Our goal at School for School Counselors is to help school counselors stay on fire, make huge impacts for students, and catalyze change for our roles through grassroots advocacy and collaboration. Listen to get to know more about us and our mission, feel empowered and inspired, and set yourself up for success in the wonderful world of school counseling.

Hang out in our Facebook group
Jump in, ask questions, share your ideas and become a part of the most empowering school counseling group on the planet! (Join us to see if we're right.)

Join the School for School Counselors Mastermind
The Mastermind is packed with all the things your grad program never taught you IN ADDITION TO unparalleled support and consultation. No more feeling alone, invisible, unappreciated, or like you just don't know what to do next. We've got you!

Did someone share this podcast with you? Be sure to subscribe for all the new episodes!!

⭐️ Want support with real-world strategies that actually work on your campus? We’re doing that every day in the School for School Counselors Mastermind. Come join us! ⭐️

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We’ve got to stop calling it "defiance" when it’s actually dysregulation.

In this episode, we’re pulling back the curtain on what ADHD really is- and why the strategies we often use in schools aren’t cutting it. You’ll learn:

• Why ADHD isn’t a behavior problem (and what it actually is)
• The critical difference between knowing and doing
• Why worksheets, clip charts, and “just try harder” don’t work
• What school counselors can do instead to actually help

If you’ve ever had a student who “knows the rules” but can’t seem to follow them, this one’s for you.

And if you’re tired of seeing kids punished for things they haven’t learned how to manage yet?

You’re in the right place... Let's go!

Resources:

American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing.

Barkley, R. A. (1997). ADHD and the nature of self-control. New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Barkley, R. A. (2011). Executive functions: What they are, how they work, and why they evolved. New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Brown, T. E. (2013). A new understanding of ADHD in children and adults: Executive function impairments. Routledge.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022). Data and statistics about ADHD. https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/adhd/data.html

Quinn, P. O., & Madhoo, M. (2014). A review of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in women and girls: uncovering this hidden diagnosis. The primary care companion for CNS disorders, 16(3), 27250.

Shaw, P., Eckstrand, K., Sharp, W., Blumenthal, J., Lerch, J. P., Greenstein, D. E. E. A., ... & Rapoport, J. L. (2007). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is characterized by a delay in cortical maturation. Proceedings of the national academy of sciences, 104(49), 19649-19654.

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Our goal at School for School Counselors is to help school counselors stay on fire, make huge impacts for students, and catalyze change for our roles through grassroots advocacy and collaboration. Listen to get to know more about us and our mission, feel empowered and inspired, and set yourself up for success in the wonderful world of school counseling.

Hang out in our Facebook group
Jump in, ask questions, share your ideas and become a part of the most empowering school counseling group on the planet! (Join us to see if we're right.)

Join the School for School Counselors Mastermind
The Mastermind is packed with all the things your grad program never taught you IN ADDITION TO unparalleled support and consultation. No more feeling alone, invisible, unappreciated, or like you just don't know what to do next. We've got you!

Did someone share this podcast with you? Be sure to subscribe for all the new episodes!!

⭐️ Join the School for School Counselors Mastermind today to become the school counselor you were meant to be. ⭐️

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In the previous episode, we talked about what happens when a behavior referral isn’t really about the student- and how counselors can shift out of the “removal service” role and into real consultation.

But what if that doesn’t feel realistic?

This bonus episode tackles the pushback:

• What if your admin expects you to remove students, no questions asked?
• What if your teachers are too burned out to reflect?
• What if you barely have time to breathe, let alone consult?

We’re walking through the most common objections counselors have and how to shift your role anyway, one step at a time.

If last week’s episode made you think, “That sounds great, but it won't work on my campus,” this one’s for you.

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Our goal at School for School Counselors is to help school counselors stay on fire, make huge impacts for students, and catalyze change for our roles through grassroots advocacy and collaboration. Listen to get to know more about us and our mission, feel empowered and inspired, and set yourself up for success in the wonderful world of school counseling.

Hang out in our Facebook group
Jump in, ask questions, share your ideas and become a part of the most empowering school counseling group on the planet! (Join us to see if we're right.)

Join the School for School Counselors Mastermind
The Mastermind is packed with all the things your grad program never taught you IN ADDITION TO unparalleled support and consultation. No more feeling alone, invisible, unappreciated, or like you just don't know what to do next. We've got you!

Did someone share this podcast with you? Be sure to subscribe for all the new episodes!!

⭐️ Join the School for School Counselors Mastermind today to become the school counselor you were meant to be. ⭐️

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You get the call:

“Can you come get this student?”

But when you walk in, it’s clear- this isn’t really about the kid.

It’s about stress. Dysregulation. Maybe even burnout. For the adult.

And if school counselors keep stepping in without asking bigger questions, we’re not solving the problem… we’re just keeping the cycle going.

In this episode, we’re talking about:

• How to tell when a referral isn’t about student behavior
• The Five-Minute Behavior Consult you can use with teachers today
• How to support staff without becoming the fixer
• Why this shift protects your energy- and your job

If behavior support is starting to feel like your full-time job, this episode is for you.

00:00 Introduction: The Daily Struggles of School Counselors

02:10 Understanding Adult Dysregulation in Schools

07:17 Identifying Signs of Adult-Induced Student Behavior Issues

11:30 The Five Minute Behavior Consult: A Solution-Focused Approach

17:35 Implementing Change Despite Administrative Challenges

21:00 The Role of School Counselors in Shaping School Culture

24:40 Elevating the Role of School Counselors

References:
Gallup. (2022, June 1). K-12 workers have highest burnout rate in U.S. Gallup News. https://news.gallup.com/poll/393500/workers-highest-burnout-rate.aspx

Schwartz, S. (2022, June 15). Stress, burnout, depression: Teachers and principals are not OK right now, new data confirm. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/stress-burnout-depression-teachers-and-principals-are-not-doing-well-new-data-confirm/2022/06

Steiner, E. D., & Woo, A. (2021). Job-related stress threatens the teacher supply: Key findings from the 2021 State of the U.S. Teacher Survey (RR-A1108-1). RAND Corporation. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1108-1.html

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Our goal at School for School Counselors is to help school counselors stay on fire, make huge impacts for students, and catalyze change for our roles through grassroots advocacy and collaboration. Listen to get to know more about us and our mission, feel empowered and inspired, and set yourself up for success in the wonderful world of school counseling.

Hang out in our Facebook group
Jump in, ask questions, share your ideas and become a part of the most empowering school counseling group on the planet! (Join us to see if we're right.)

Join the School for School Counselors Mastermind
The Mastermind is packed with all the things your grad program never taught you IN ADDITION TO unparalleled support and consultation. No more feeling alone, invisible, unappreciated, or like you just don't know what to do next. We've got you!

Did someone share this podcast with you? Be sure to subscribe for all the new episodes!!

⭐️ Join the School for School Counselors Mastermind today to become the school counselor you were meant to be. ⭐️

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You’ve been asked to read a Social Story to a student—again.

And if you're being honest… you’re not sure it’s actually doing anything.

In this episode, we’re taking a closer look at the research behind Social Stories:

• Where they came from and what they were actually designed to do
• What the peer-reviewed literature says about their effectiveness (and what it doesn’t)
• How they can support emotional regulation... if you use them the right way
• The time frame for change (hint: it’s slower than you think)
• What to say when someone insists you “just need a social story”

Plus, you’ll get practical guidance on when and how to use Social Stories, and a free downloadable cheat sheet to help you back up your decisions with confidence.

If you’ve ever wondered, “Is it me… or is it the tool?”—this episode is for you.

Bonus: Grab the printable Social Stories resource pdf here

00:00 The Social Story Dilemma

01:49 Origins and Purpose of Social Stories

03:08 Research Findings on Social Stories

09:02 Emotional Regulation and Social Stories

11:44 Practical Advice for School Counselors

21:20 Conclusion and Resources

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Our goal at School for School Counselors is to help school counselors stay on fire, make huge impacts for students, and catalyze change for our roles through grassroots advocacy and collaboration. Listen to get to know more about us and our mission, feel empowered and inspired, and set yourself up for success in the wonderful world of school counseling.

Hang out in our Facebook group
Jump in, ask questions, share your ideas and become a part of the most empowering school counseling group on the planet! (Join us to see if we're right.)

Join the School for School Counselors Mastermind
The Mastermind is packed with all the things your grad program never taught you IN ADDITION TO unparalleled support and consultation. No more feeling alone, invisible, unappreciated, or like you just don't know what to do next. We've got you!

Did someone share this podcast with you? Be sure to subscribe for all the new episodes!!