1….2……3…..ME? (Guest Post)

May is Mental Health Awareness Month.  I have a very good friend that not only grew up on a farm, but she now is a farmer's wife.  She works for our area mental health clinic and last year she shared some startling statistics about farmers.  Today, she talks about other mental health issues within any population.  Please read and share this one even if you are never shared a post before!!

It’s time to talk.  There is a certain stigma attached to mental illness.  This stigma brings up images of people being whisked away to mental institutions in strait jackets. In reality, situations like this are the exception, not the norm.  Unfortunately, though, many people do not seek treatment for mental illness due to this stigma. 

The faces of mental illness look just like you or I.  According to a national study, one in four adults will struggle with some form of mental illness this year.   When was the last time you were in room with four other people?  Who is that forth person?  Is it your child, your farmer, your parent, or is it you?

Simply stated, mental health represents the ability to successfully cope with daily life and the challenges it brings.  Mental illness represents factors that make this difficult, like depression or anxiety.  Mental illness can be both short and long term. 

Rarely is mental illness outwardly visible.  

Mental illness may be present in that person who seems to have everything going for her.  It may look like that hopeless feeling that the farmer feels after a freeze destroys his wheat crop, and this feeling does not go away.

Mental illness may also look like that new mother who looks into the eyes of her newborn son that she has wanted so much and cannot figure out why she feels extreme sadness instead of joy.

Mental illness is an illness, just like having Diabetes or Hypertension.  

It is not who the person is, it is what they have.  As in most illnesses, it can be treated by mental health professionals, and treatment is very effective.

I write this about a week following a suicide that has rocked the agricultural community.  The event is difficult for most people to understand, and it will always be.  Though no one can truly speak for the experience of the person involved, often people who complete suicide have been suffering alone for some time.  Perhaps they were afraid of losing friends or jobs if it was discovered that they sought treatment for a mental illness.  As a community, we have to work together to build an environment where people understand that they are not alone in this battle and that treatment is not something to fear.

The suicide rate for the American farmers is double the rate of the rest of the American population.  

People who engage in agricultural professions make the list of the top ten professions most likely to have successful suicide attempts.  There are many reasons cited for this, including that agricultural professions tend to be solitary professions, people have no control over income influencing factors like the weather, and the high physical demands of the professions.  As a farm wife, mother, and daughter I find this pretty alarming.

Warning Signs

Often, there are several warning factors that a person may be contemplating suicide.  These include:  increased substance use, heightened anxiety, hopelessness, withdrawing from people, engaging in risky activities, dramatic mood changes, and the sudden desire to “tie up loose ends”.

 

The best thing that you can do when noticing these signs is talk to the person about them.  Often, this is what it takes for someone to seek help.  You can also contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255, or your local Community Mental Health Center.  If you believe that a person is an imminent danger to themselves or someone else, contact local law enforcement.  You might just save a life.

  Remember 1…2…..3….ME.  The challenges of mental illness affect all of us, either directly or indirectly at some point in our lives.  It is time to talk about it.

Want to read more about suicide?   Read from one farmer who turned away from suicide and his tips to do the same to kids when he speaks and from Big Sky FarmHer and her battle with Postpartum Depression.-KFM

Mental Health and Farmers-Guest Post

 May is Mental Health Awareness Month.  Farmers have one high stress job.  I have a very good friend that not only grew up on a farm, but she now is a farmer's wife.  She works for our area mental health clinic and today she shares some startling statistics about farmers.  Please read this one!!

Farming and agricultural jobs are considered to be one of the most dangerous jobs in the United States.  This danger is not just about getting hurt in the field!  Did you know that the suicide rate of agricultural workers is between two and three times greater than the national average?

Being a farm daughter, wife, and Mom who also works as a mental health professional for a Community Mental Health Center, I find this statistic especially alarming.  Equally alarming is the fact that the mental health of agricultural workers and their families represents one of the most neglected areas of research and service provision.

When looking at the national average for suicide completion rates, non-farm males make approximately five suicide attempts, while farm males make only three.  For women, those not involved in farming make twenty five attempts to the farm woman’s three.  Most of you can probably give the name of a farmer that you know who took his or her own life.

Why is this happening?  The environment that a farmer works in is very conducive to stress, which if not handled appropriately, can lead to more severe mental health issues.  As I type this, it is May 3, and it snowed yesterday.  The weather is beyond anyone’s control.  Farmers are often one freeze/rain/windstorm, etc. away from a total crop failure, no matter how hard the farmer worked.  

Many people involved in agricultural professions are aging.  In 2007, the average age of the principal farm operator in the US was 57.  As people age, they find themselves unable to do some of the physical labor that they once could.  This creates challenges in any profession, especially on the farm.

Also, if you think about many of the farmers you know, they have one hobby and this is farming.  Farming is often more than a profession; it is a way of life.  What happens when that person is no longer physically able to work on the farm.  I will often hear my Dad say of others, “When he can’t farm anymore, he will die”.  This statement is true on many levels.  

Agricultural professions often tend to be solitary professions.  Most farmers don’t spend much time talking with others about their feelings.  Any signs of sadness or anxiety can be perceived  as weakness in the eyes of the farmer, and as we all know, farmers are not people who want to be seen as weak.

Access to health care is another issue in rural areas.  In many parts of the country, your nearest mental health center is farther away than your nearest hospital.  Top that off with the stigma surrounding mental health treatment.  Very few people getting mental health services are clinically “insane”, but popular culture fails to recognize this.  Many farmers also lack health insurance coverage that will reimburse for mental health services.  Medicare and commercial insurances to cover some services, however the copay for these services can be difficult to pay, especially when finances are already tight.

So, what can you do about this?   

Often, people show many signs of suicide before acting.  These signs include:   

• talk of harming one’s self,  
•  expressions of feeling hopeless, 
• saying things like “everybody would be better off without me”, 
• sudden need to tie up loose ends, and 
• contacting friends and relatives to say goodbye.  

 It is important to recognize these signs in the farmers you know.

Most importantly, though, be sure to have conversations about mental health matters with your loved ones!  Often times, this is what encourages someone to get help for themselves!  If you are worried about them, have them call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline or refer them to you local Community Mental Health Center.  Mental health treatment works! 

From a fellow Kansas Farm Mom to you, don’t let your favorite agricultural worker suffer!

Thank you so much to Kelly for sharing this with everyone!  Please use her advice and help those that need it.  If you need help, call and get help it will not be seen as a sign of weakness.  It takes a strong person to admit when they need help.  Kelly also wrote a second post 1,2,3 is it me?

Don't believe her that farmers only know how to farm?  See what we do when we aren't in the fields here, here and here. 

Check out another farm families story of dealing with depression at Cow Spots and Tales here.
Big Sky FarmHer also shared her story about Postpartum Depression.



This is the second post I have done that could truly save a life.  Please share with you friends and check out my post of HELLP Syndrome.
- A Kansas Farm Mom