There can be a lot of stress involved in farming, and worries over the economic situation are adding to it.
Such worries are not exclusive to farmers, of course. They’re more or less universal. Anxiety about debt, credit availability and the status of investments are keeping some people awake at night.
This has spawned all sorts of advice on managing stress and maintaining mental and emotional well being in the face of global financial turmoil.
An article featured in The Times Online, based in London, is typical. A recent story quotes the Mental Capital and Wellbeing Report written by the British government’s think-tank called Foresight.
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The report suggests that people do “five simple things a day to stay sane.”
1. Connect: Developing relationships with family, friends, colleagues and neighbours will enrich your life and bring you support.
2. Be active: Sports, hobbies … or just a daily stroll will make you feel good and maintain mobility and fitness.
3. Be curious: Noting the beauty of everyday moments as well as the unusual and reflecting on them helps you to appreciate what matters to you.
4. Learn: Fixing a bike, learning an instrument, cooking – the challenge and satisfaction brings fun and confidence.
5. Give: Helping friends and strangers links your happiness to a wider community and is very rewarding.
After reading the Times article, Western Producer Brandon reporter Daniel Winters devised a five-point list for farmers.
1. Feed the cows.
2. Fix the leaky hydraulics on the tractor.
3. Don’t go for coffee with depressing old farts. Talk to the cows instead.
4. Repeat.
5. Don’t watch the news or open your third-quarter pension statement.
Maybe one or the other list will work for you, or perhaps a combination of both.
If you’re inclined to adopt a few items from the first list, and develop relationships, be curious and help some friends, we hope you can assist us with a project.
We would like to know the ways you re-use or repurpose items on the farm. Stuff like using old tractor tires for water troughs, or using derelict equipment as a windbreak, or making halters out of old twine.
Farmers are the original recyclers, out of necessity and out of frugality. Your recycling activities could be part of an upcoming special edition.
You can e-mail your ideas to me at barb.glen@producer.com, or call me at 1-800-667-6978 or mail a letter and/or photos to Western Producer newsroom, Box 2500, Saskatoon, Sask., S7K 2C4.
