SEPTEMBER 2022
Farming is one of the most dangerous and physically challenging occupations. It is also mentally and emotionally challenging. Economic, social, and environmental forces can be major sources of stress for farm families and rural communities. In a recent Capital Times article by Blake McCoy, ‘It’s OK to not be OK’: Farmers open up about mental health concerns, farmers, researchers (like UMASH’s Florence Becot), and other agricultural representatives start a conversation about the importance of mental wellness and the reality of farm stressors.
We’re not going to resolve the mental health challenges until we address the underpinning factors that shape that universal experience of mental health challenges…addressing those issues of mental health and really digging at the root causes and addressing them is important from the standpoint of not only the current farmers, but also from the future. How can we support agriculture?
Click the link below to read the article, and check out the resources and contact information below. As farmer Jeff Ditzenberger reminds us,
“It’s OK to not be OK. You matter.”
MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES
National
- National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: (800)-273-8255
- Avera Farm and Rural Stress Hotline: (800)-691-4336
- Resource Guide for Farm Crisis Support (Farm Aid)
- Farmer Resource Network Request for Assistance (Farm Aid)
- Mental Health in Rural Communities Toolkit (Rural Health Information Hub)
- Additional Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Resources (Rural Health Information Hub)
- Veterans Crisis Line
- Make it OK
- Farm Crisis Center
- Rural Resilience: Farm Stress Training
- Talk Saves Lives (American Foundation for Suicide Prevention)
- Resources for Implementing Suicide Prevention with Employees (Workplace Suicide Prevention)
- Farm State of Mind (American Farm Bureau Federation)
- TransFARMation A podcast about farm stress (Red River Farm Network, Minnesota Department of Agriculture)
- Cornell Small Farms Program: Building Farm Resilience During COVID-19 (Cornell College of Agriculture and Life Sciences)
- Agricultural Workers and Mental Health 2017 (National Center for Farmworker Health)
- Managing Farm Stress (Michigan State University)
- Mental Health Resources for Farmers (AgCountry Farm Credit Services)
- Supporting Farmers’ Mental Health: Understanding Farm Culture and Farm Family Dynamics Training course for behavioral health providers about the mental health needs of agricultural communities (University of Wisconsin – Green Bay)
Recursos en Español
- La Salud Mental (Al Final de la Página) (Mental Health America)
- Los Trabajadores Agrícolas (Debajo de “Mental Health”) (NC Farmworker Health Program)
Iowa
- Iowa Concern Hotline: (800)-447-1985 (Iowa State University Extension and Outreach)
- Resources to Cope with Farm & Rural Stress (Iowa Farm Bureau)
- Finding Answers Now (Iowa State University Extension and Outreach)
- Farm Stress Resources (Iowa State University Extension and Outreach)
- Farm and Ranch Wellbeing – Farm Stress (Iowa State University Extension and Outreach)
- Iowa NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness)
Minnesota
- Minnesota Farm & Rural Helpline: (833)-600-2670
- Or text: FARMSTRESS to 898211
- Ted Matthews: (320)-266-2390
- Monica McConkey: (218)280-7785
- MN Farm Suicide Survivors Support Group (Monica McConkey)
- Coping with Farm and Rural Stress (MN Dept of Agriculture)
- Stress and Crisis: Get Help Now (MN Dept of Agriculture)
- TransFARMation A podcast about farm stress (Red River Farm Network, Minnesota Department of Agriculture)
- One-on-one assistance with financial, legal, and social issues (Minnesota Farm Advocates – Minnesota Department of Agriculture)
- Minnesota NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness)
- Rural Mental Health Support Program (Richard Tunell – Lake Superior Community Health Center)
- Mental Health Resources for Farmers (AgCountry Farm Credit Services)
North Dakota
- Farm and Ranch Stress (North Dakota State University Extension)
- Farm Stress Fact Sheets: Stress Management for Farmers/Ranchers (North Dakota State University)
- Mental Health Resources for Farmers (AgCountry Farm Credit Services)
- No-Cost Counseling Services for Farm and Ranch Families (Jamestown Regional Medical Center)
- Find Your Local North Dakota NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness)
- Jamestown Regional Medical Center collaborated with The Village Business Institute to offer web-based counseling at no cost to the agricultural community. The program is called Agricultural Workforce Assistance (AWA) and includes up to three free sessions of counseling support. To access the services, call (800)-627-8220 and ask for web-based counseling with The Village AWA. More information is available at www.TheVillageFamily.org
South Dakota
- Avera Farm and Rural Stress Hotline: (800)-691-4336
Wisconsin
- Wisconsin Farm Center 24/7 Farmer Wellness Hotline: (888)-901-2558
- Prevent Suicide Wisconsin
- Suicide Prevention Coalition of Iowa County (also serves Crawford, Grant, Lafayette, Richland, Sauk and Vernon counties)
- County Crisis Lines (Prevent Suicide Wisconsin)
- Harvest of Hope Fund (Madison Christian Community)
- Wisconsin Farm Center (WI Dept of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection)
- Wisconsin NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness)
- Supporting Farmers’ Mental Health: Understanding Farm Culture and Farm Family Dynamics Training course for behavioral health providers about the mental health needs of agricultural communities (University of Wisconsin – Green Bay)
- Mental Health Resources for Farmers (AgCountry Farm Credit Services)
