Friendship is like food. We need it to survive. What’s more, we seem to have a basic drive for it. Psychologists find that human beings have fundamental need for inclusion in group life and for close relationships. We are truly social animals. And in farming this can present a problem Obviously, there are circumstances when
Since 2018, we have been raising awareness of a serious issue facing our farming community – poor mental health. The farming industry faces many stress factors, which are placing increasing pressure on our workers and putting them at greater risk of mental ill health. These include extended amounts of time working in isolation, a blurring
In today’s blog, renowned experts Nik and Eva Speakman give us an insight into post-traumatic stress disorder, (PTSD) something that has been traditionally associated with military personnel but can be commonplace in farming. The Speakmans have studied human behaviour together for over 20 years and run their own therapy business helping people overcome a range
Smiling depression: appearing happy on the outside while feeling depressed inside. This is a dangerous condition to have and why we need to pay attention. By Olivia Remes, Researcher at University of Cambridge Smiling depression is a difficult condition to deal with. It refers to looking happy on the outside while inside feeling depressed. Internet
It’s hard to believe that this is our third annual Mind Your Head campaign but, following the past two campaigns in 2018 and 2019, noise around mental health in the farming industry is thankfully growing and people are starting recognise the impact of this issue on the industry. Mental health is one of the biggest
Welcome to Mind Your Head 2020… one week in the year when we shine the spotlight on our wonderful agricultural industry and the key element that is often overlooked when media stories are grabbing headlines… the people behind it. In our first blog of the week, our Manager Stephanie Berkeley looks at how initiatives like
Are you unsure about what Samaritans do? Take five minutes and read this as you may be surprised… Samaritans is working to reduce the number of people who take their own lives. But they’re also there for anyone who is struggling to cope with how they’re feeling. It’s a charity made up of volunteers who
Nuffield Farming Scholar and psychotherapist, Aarun Naik, and University of Liverpool researcher, Laura Phalp, have teamed up in search of hard data on farmer mental health. In today’s blog post they call on the farming community for help with this important research. Aarun says: “The issue of farmer mental health and wellbeing has long been
Award-winning broadcast journalist, founder of the Farmer In Mind Podcasts and farmer’s daughter, Rachael Brown, bravely puts pen to paper this Mind Your Head week to ask her own father to open up and share the load… Dear Dad, If only you knew how much I cared. If only you knew how much I worried.
While Young Farmers’ Clubs are often described as a social lifeline, what happens when your problems run much deeper than not winning at the County Rally? YFC Trainer Alice Giles from Bow YFC, Devon explains how NFYFC is raising awareness of mental health and where to get support… Living and working in a rural community