Ag community faces elevated anxiety amid farm income decreases and a sluggish agricultural economy.

Farmers have a collection of resources available to help deal with mental health challenges during the downturn in the agricultural economy.

Josie Rudolphi, assistant professor of agricultural and biological engineering at the University of Illinois, outlined during a FarmDoc webinar last month the stresses today’s farmers are facing, the increasing anxiety and depression prevalence rate among farmers as compared to the general population, and important mental health resources and services accessible to the agricultural community.

It’s a stressful time as farm incomes decrease and a sluggish ag economy continues to be top of mind for Iowa’s farmers.

“We know that fluctuating commodity prices and anything related to farm finances are almost always the main stressor that people experience,” Rudolphi ex­­plained. “But with that, we also hear comments about time pressures — having too much to do or too little time to do it.

“We know that environmental conditions — whether that be too much or too little rain, natural disasters — certainly contribute to stress for producers. Things that are happening worldwide that have influence on our commodity prices and finances in general have certainly started to become more evident as a source of stress.”

Challenges also come with multigenerational farming and working with family members. When and how will I be paid? Is there time for a family vacation before harvest? Can Dad make it to the football or volleyball game? How can I best plan for harvest when it’s raining, or how will I get a crop in if it’s too dry?

“I think there are a lot of agricultural stressors that are really hard to articulate, but I think we certainly need to acknowledge these and consider how a farmer situation or agricultural producer situation is very different than some of our more typical occupational experiences,” Rudolphi said.

Ag is stressful

Rudolphi said that mental health screenings asking individuals how often they may feel symptoms of depression show that while approximately 7.3% of the general population has reported symptoms, that number increases in the ag population to anywhere from 6% to 50%.

Data from the Marshfield Clinic in Wisconsin found more than 60% of young farmers met the criteria for depression. Samples of farmers in the Midwest indicate that 30% to 50% reported depression symptoms. The spread in responses was dependent on time of year and other demographics, Rudolphi said.

Likewise, symptoms of anxiety among the general population in health screenings suggest 18.1% of adults meet the criteria of anxiety disorder, with that percentage increasing to 27% to 72% among the ag community.

Studies also show that among agricultural youth, a large percentage are experiencing similar anxiety and depression symptoms as their family members.

“The distribution between parents and adolescents was almost identical, so we see a very high correlation between adolescent mental health and adult mental health in these farm households,” Rudolphi said.

Resources available

Farm stress management initiatives are available for anyone wanting to talk through situations, Rudolphi said, including the North Central Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Center. 

The 12-state, 19-partner collaboration is working to expand resources and services to ag producers and farm workers by offering behavioral health services, training programs, telephone hotlines and support groups.

“We have participation from the 12 cooperative extensions in our region (including Iowa),” Rudolphi said. 

She specifically mentioned Iowa State University’s Concern Hotline, created during the 1980s farm crisis, that offers a place to call and talk about agricultural situations, legal situations or seek financial assistance and stress response. The toll-free hotline number is 800-447-1985.

“It’s available 24 hours per day, seven days a week, 365 days per year,” she said. “They do have a text and email option, and we see that the hotline receives upwards of 10,000 contacts per year.” 

The website farmstress.org offers 170 unique resources for assistance, including national and regional hotlines as well as training programs and support group locations.

Iowa farmers also can visit the Iowa Farm Bureau website, which offers resources to cope with farm and rural stress at iowafarmbureau.com/Stress-Mental-Health-Resources.

“I think what’s really important is to acknowledge that we all have mental health in the same way we all have physical health,” Rudolphi said. “Then we can start having conversations about what’s going on with (someone) from a nonphysical perspective ..., normalize the conservation.”