It’s been a while since my last blog, but family commitments, ill health and a variety of life pressures have significantly impacted upon the time and energy I require to write articles. Interestingly, I again got a first hand look at the adverse effect of sustained pressure and stress upon your ability to function optimally on a day to day basis. Having two small children and one on the way – a pregnant wife – only adds to the mix.
Many of us here in Australia are only too well aware of the terrible toll the drought has had upon farmers and their families. Unfortunately the rate of depression is much higher in rural areas, as compared to the cities, not to mention the tragic suicide toll. Unending drought, financial pressures, relationship problems, a loss of identity and an expectation that a country man or woman is bred tough and can cope with all sorts of adversity and isolation have had an incredibly detrimental and demoralising impact upon individuals and communities alike.
From my perspective, based upon my wheeling and dealing with the ‘black dog’, how you see and value yourself is an important aspect to maintaining daily mental health and wellbeing. Obviously, if how you see and value yourself is disrupted with loss of a job or career, you may find yourself struggling. Which in many respects, may explain why there is a greater prevalence of depression within rural communities, as the identity of the individual is directly threatened by the potential loss of the farm and a way of life – with the extra sting in the tail of the personal crisis being the fact that that farm may have been in the family for 4 or 5 generations, and you’re the person responsible for it’s continued upkeep and profitability.
Closer to the mark, however, may be the terrible drain or burden of continued and unrelenting stress or pressure in trying to keep the farm financially afloat. Unfortunately, no matter how hard the farmer works, the weather, the markets or both, can have a devastating impact upon the profitability of the farm. This pressure would be like Chinese water torture a thousand times magnified, and regardless of how grateful and appreciative he or she may be of the life they lead, like having your head in a vice, the pressure can slowly grind you down.
Someone once said, ‘what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger’, and there is an element of truth to that statement. But the reality is, all of us as human beings have breaking points, and it’s important that we are able to recognise when we need an extra hand to cope with different situations.
Finally, hopefully despite all the recent rain, we don’t forget the plight of the farmer. For many of them, they would require a couple of good seasons before they began to feel any respite from their particular situation. We all face challenges, but if you have a greater influence upon the potential outcome of a challenge, you’re doing pretty well. If not, which in many instances is the case for the rural man or woman with weather, banks and markets mostly dictating terms, it’s an unenviable position to be in. Hopefully, with community support and their noted resilience, they we be able to find a path through and continue to provide the much needed produce that many of us in the city may not really give a second thought to until we reach into our wallets to pay a multinational our grocery bill.
