Rural America is made up of hard working, strong individuals who take pride in raising food for themselves and the world. With that comes stress of managing a farm and family life. People in agriculture are not immune to mental health challenges, but may feel isolated or that they lack resources to find help, says Karen Funkenbusch, director of Missouri’s Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance program.
“That makes it especially important for people in rural communities to be aware of challenges friends, neighbors and acquaintances might experience in their everyday lives,” she says.
Sam Polly says he sees stressed-out farmers, ag industry professionals and colleagues through his work as a pesticide applicator training coordinator for University of Missouri Extension, but taking time to lend a listening ear or offer a kind word can make a difference.
During May, Mental Health Month, Polly and Funkenbusch offer 10 tips to lighten the load for others:
1. Encourage breaks. Set the example by taking a 15-minute walk occasionally. Ask a coworker to join you on a “walk-and-talk.”
2. Just say no. Set boundaries and accept that others have them also. Learn to say and accept “no.”
3. Check your judgment. “Offer a nonjudgmental listening ear,” says Polly. “Let them know they are not alone, and thank them for having the courage to face their challenges.”
4. Be the example. Encourage others to show kindness by setting an example. Lift others up by jotting a message on a sticky note and leaving it on a windshield, computer screen or mirror.
5. Accommodate. When possible, build flexibility into your work and home environment.
6. Give grace. Before your colleague even arrives at work, they may have already done a day’s work: getting kids to school, cooking breakfast, throwing in a load of laundry. They might have had to deal with forgotten homework or lunch money, a flat tire, an escaped pet. Before you add to their anxiety, pause and remember that employees are people whose days sometimes get off to a rough start. Ask yourself if their performance is helped or hurt by how you react, and give grace where you can, says Funkenbusch.
7. Put elephant on the menu. Step back and break tasks into manageable portions. Think about, “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”
8. Start the day with gratitude. When you see a coworker struggling, suggest that they write down three things they are grateful for each morning. Make it a morning habit to think of three things or people you are grateful for while you brush your teeth.
9. Seek awe every day. Take a walk and relish in the little things like icicles on the barn, the smell of freshly cut hay, spring flowers, fall color or the bawl of a newborn calf. Polly calls it “medicine for the mind.”
10. Use available resources. Find resources in the Mental Health Toolkit, from MU Extension and the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Center, at http://muext.us/MentalHealthToolkit
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