How do I stop burning out from special education paperwork and caseloads?

You came into this to help children, and instead you spend your days fighting forms and a caseload no one person could carry. That gap between why you started and what fills your hours is exhausting. The burnout you feel is not a sign you are weak. It is a sign the load is too heavy. You will not clear the paperwork by working harder or faster. The system is built to hand you more than one person can hold. So the real question is not how to do it all, but how to keep something left for yourself and the kids. Pick the work that actually reaches a child, and let the rest be merely good enough. Perfect forms help no one if you burn out and leave. Protect one evening this week. Ask, out loud, for the support you are owed. You matter to those students, and you cannot pour from an empty cup.