17 March 2024

Why farmers are a group at risk of developing mental health issues

Anna Donnla O’Hagan and Sandra Malone, DCU, and John McNamara, Teagasc, explain why tending to the mental well-being of our farmers is as crucial as cultivating the fields themselves.

While a very fulfilling and rewarding occupation, farming is also high-pressure and demanding, which carries numerous risks and stressors for farmers, many of which are outside of their control. Some examples of the kind of stressors that farmers face on a daily basis include tight, or absent profit margins, reliance on market prices and demands, production targets, unpredictable weather, disease outbreaks, the physical demands of the job and time pressures.

As a result, farmers are considered a group at-risk of developing mental health issues. Farmers, both in Ireland and worldwide, face higher levels of anxiety, depression and suicidal ideation than the general population. In Ireland, one in four farmers face burnout, which is a state of physical, emotional and mental exhaustion caused by long-term involvement in emotionally demanding situations. The escalating pressures on farmers are contributing to the accumulation of mental health risks.

A mental health challenge

In a survey of 351 farmers, 71% said that they would seek professional help if they were experiencing a mental health challenge. However, 54% do not know how to contact a local mental health clinic, 25% do not know where to go to receive mental health services, 24% do not know how to get the number of a suicide prevention hotline, and 22% do not know where to get information about mental illness.

The majority of farmers would seek help if they thought it was needed, but they don’t know where to go, or how to access support. Moreover, Irish farmers were found to have low ‘mental health literacy’. This refers to being informed about mental health disorders, and how to access help for those who need support.

If farmers are not aware of the signs of poor mental health, or the supports that are available, how can they recognise that they, or others, are struggling and seek support if needed? Moreover, there is also a stigma surrounding mental health and the perception that help-seeking is weak.

Barriers to seeking help

In our research with farmers and key farming stakeholders, farmers described how cultural norms can act as barriers to help seeking. This stigma can enforce these cultural norms, such as that of self-reliance, where it is perceived as ‘the norm’ to rely on oneself for help. In addition, our follow on research found that a perceived lack of farmer-centric mental health services was consistently highlighted and deemed to be an underlying reason for the low uptake of mental health services among farmers.

While farmers acknowledged the many supports, including mental health charities, helplines and counselling, they felt that these were often unsuitable for farmers. They reported a “lack of cultural literacy” from service providers which may not only discourage farmers from seeking help, but it may reduce the quality of mental health care they receive. This lack of awareness of farming and its associated difficulties, coupled with a lack of services in rural areas, further strengthen the barriers to seeking mental health support.

In the same research, farmers recognised the need for farmer-centric mental health support and suggested a variety of informal and professional support to address the limitations in current mental health service provision for farmers. For example, farmers indicated that they would like to hear ‘real life’ stories and recommended that the initiative be conducted by someone with knowledge of farming.

Skills for resilience

Following on from this, the FarMHealth team at Dublin City University developed and implemented a bespoke, evidence-based once off programme for Irish farmers. This consisted of a brief discussion entitled ‘Skills for Resilience’, which was rolled out through Teagasc farmer discussion groups. It educated farmers on how to recognise signs of poor mental health in oneself and others, how to stay healthy, and how to seek help.

Farmers were given a handout of mental health and farm-specific supports and a supplementary website that contained videos on how to recognise signs of poor mental health, how to be resilient, how to access support, and real-life stories from farmers describing their own mental health challenges and how they sought help.

This was delivered to 72 farmers (37 in the intervention group; 35 in the control group) by a health psychologist from a farming background, between September and November 2023. The results showed increases in mental health literacy, help-seeking intentions, and confidence in seeking mental health care following the intervention.

Farmers highlighted how the intervention addressed the stigma around seeking help and equipped them with useful skills for coping. Even more, 100% of farmers reported enjoying the discussion and would recommend it to others. This research highlighted how farmers can both enjoy and benefit from mental health skills training, when a farmer-centric approach is used.

As we navigate the vast landscapes of agriculture, it becomes evident that tending to the mental well-being of our farmers is as crucial as cultivating the fields themselves. Continuing to break the stigma surrounding mental health and help-seeking is vital.

Furthermore, enhancing mental health literacy among all farmers and establishing farmer-centric support systems are essential steps toward fostering resilient and thriving farming communities. The seeds of change have been sown, but it is imperative that we continue to nurture and cultivate a culture that priorities the mental health of our farmers.

This research was funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

Dr Anna Donnla O’Hagan is an Assistant Professor in the School of Health & Human Performance and Co-Investigator on the FarMHealth research project at DCU. She is a former Irish Research Council awardee. Sandra Malone is a FarMHealth Research Assistant at DCU. Dr John McNamara is National Health and Safety Officer at Teagasc.

This article, written by Dr Anna Donnla O’Hagan, DCU, Sandra Malone, DCU, and Dr John McNamara, Teagasc, first appeared on RTÉ Brainstorm.

Read the article on RTÉ Brainstorm here