<p>Mental illness is one of the primary complaints of teachers. The research assessed psychiatric symptoms and emotional memory in Brazilian basic education teachers compared to a non-teachers group. This is a quantitative cross-sectional study and its data were collected online between September and December 2021 using the Snowball Sampling technique. The study participants were 225 non-teachers and 191 teachers. The instruments used were: the Sociodemographic data questionnaire; the Event Impact Scale – Revised; the Anxiety, Depression, and Stress Scales; and the Emotional Memory Test. Teachers had higher scores for psychiatric symptoms than the non-teachers group. Being a teacher, having physical health problems, and having fewer years of study increased the chances of developing psychiatric symptoms. The analyses indicate a difference in emotional memory between teachers with and without stress. The recommendation is to take actions that welcome teachers at school and develop policies to assist teachers’ health.</p>