Statewide Iowa — Farmers are traditionally the first to jump in and help when a neighbor is in trouble, but farmers may be very slow to help themselves, especially when it comes to their mental health and dealing with stress.
Dr. Kimberly Lansing, a rural medicine specialist with the Gunderson Health System, says spring planting season looms in Iowa, what may be one of the most difficult times of the year for farmers and too few will seek counseling to cope.
A University of Iowa study finds suicide rates were 45% higher for people in rural areas, and farmers stood out as having even higher rates compared to the general population. The University of Iowa study found farmer suicide rates for the Midwest were three times the national average. Help is available through a variety of resources, including the Iowa Farm Bureau and the “988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline”. Lansing says farming is an exceptionally difficult career path, with continual challenges from the weather, equipment, labor, and the commodities markets.
Some farmers have been on the same land for generations and she says nobody wants to be the one who loses the farm. Social isolation can be a real problem for farmers, Lansing says, and we need to learn to lean on each other more.
Lansing says farmers need to consider how quickly they’d rush to help a neighbor in need.
The Gunderson Health System includes a hospital in West Union, and clinics in Fayette, Decorah, Waukon, Lansing, Postville and Calmar.
