Agricultural Stress In NE Montana

No one is a stranger to stress and all the ways it affects our lives - even more so in recent years. The pandemic, recession, and continued cultural polarization has deeply impacted everybody- possibly in ways we may not fully grasp for years. However, not everyone had that global stress compounded with environmental factors like rural farm communities have coming into back-to-back drought years. As of April 1, the Milk River Basin, which covers 23,800 sq mi from southern Alberta to Nashua, is at 68 percent of normal precipitation and the Glasgow marker is hovering between 51 to 70 percent of normal. Such climate variation seriously affects farmers, ranchers, and their communities. Behavioral health is #4 of the top five health problems related to agricultural work. Substance use and suicide are devastating examples caused by life stress in its many forms. Suicide rates among male farmers are even higher than the general American male population, which leads national suicide rates.

Stress is especially difficult to cope with when there aren’t clear separations between stressors. Northeast Montana’s “hard winters, hard people” births a cultural strength in resilience. Being able to know and rely on your neighbors when you need an extra hand isn’t something every community can boast. That said, the accompanying mentality of “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” is not supported by evidence nor is it sustainable in the best of circumstances. That is not to discount the immense personal determination present, but rather to acknowledge the limitations of personal control in times of stress.

Stress is defined as bodily or mental tension because of factors that disrupt internal balance. It is an active process that triggers physiological response to compensate for the present threat. Because stress responses require active resources from us, wear and tear accumulate on our systems that may be manageable in the short term but reach a point where the quality and amount of effort the body is capable of falls short. This wear and tear, or allostatic load, presents in physical ailments and impaired behavioral health. Body and mind don’t work independently from each other, but in tandem. Think about your mood when you have a headache or how your body feels after a difficult conversation. The role of stigma limiting people getting help when in need cannot be understated. It is not a personal or moral failing to be anxious, depressed, struggle with alcohol or drug use, or any other behavioral health concern.

In tense moments, being able to slow down to rest feels like a distant dream or even a waste of what fleeting time is open for the situation at hand. Different ways to address work/life stress may take surprisingly little time out of the day- mere minutes if not moments. Strategies can be breathing exercises, consistent physical activity, or personal rituals that allow decompression and reflection. Stress management skills cannot fix drought, calving difficulties, weather, or other issues, but they can help mitigate the toll. However, a significant part of stress relief is rest. Taking the time to process your internal experience, cool down, and reorient, limits the time and resources lost trying to push yourself through an extra layer of barriers. It’s more efficient to get as much out of the way up front before it becomes unmanageable.

Rural and frontier communities that relate to this experience are, by definition, few and far between, adding another barrier to accessible support or resources. Those resources are still available and can be found through the MSU Extension office/Facebook page and online at AgriSafe.org. Both organizations have dedicated sections of their websites addressing financial and behavioral health concerns felt by agricultural workers. Data showing rural communities struggle with mental illness and substance abuse at higher rates in smaller populations is also data that confirms you are not alone. Reach out today- for yourself and another.

It takes a special cut of people to love and endure this work that everyone on the planet depends on, and you still get to depend on other community members. If you’d be willing to help someone else, it’s a good bet they’d be willing – even wanting - to help you. The truly indispensable resource is each other. Talk to your friends, family, and neighbors who know what it’s like out here.

Just like 911 is the nationwide emergency call number, 988 is a 24/7 mental health crisis number handled by National Suicide Prevention Lifeline counselors.

If you’d like to share a story of resilience or to help end the stigma surrounding behavioral health, consider submitting an anonymous entry to Stories from the Strong at valleycarecoalition.com/submit-a-sfts.