Coping Tools for Farmers and Ranchers

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 Reach out to someone you trust — a family member, peer, pastor, lender, Extension professional, or mental health provider. Your feelings are real, common, and understandable, and talking sooner than later can protect your health, your relationships, and your operation. 

• If immediate danger → Call 911 or go to the nearest ER
• National AgriStress Helpline for Farmers — 1-833-897-2474
• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline — Call or text 988

Farmers are price takers, not price makers —   yet you often shoulder blame for what you can’t control: unpredictable markets, family disagreements, health challenges, and the quiet shame of financial struggle. Guilt doesn’t fix it; it only adds weight.  Self-forgiveness is how you lighten the load and make space to move forward.

Steps to Practice:

1. Acknowledge what happened. State the facts without blaming yourself.
    
2. Separate the event from your identity. You’re not the weather, the market, or the debt.
    
3. Feel the feelings. Let them move through instead of burying them.
    
4. Find the lesson. Ask what you’d do differently next time.
    
5. Speak to yourself with kindness. Use the same tone you’d use with a neighbor you care about.
    
6. Make amends or adjust behavior. Apologize or take one small corrective step.
    
7. Release it. Pray it out, breathe it out, or write it out. Forgiveness is a practice, not a one-time event.

You can’t pour from an empty bucket. Say “no” to extra commitments when needed, protect quiet hours, and create personal financial policies. Boundaries reduce guilt and decision fatigue and protect both your peace and productivity. 

Limit exposure to news, market reports, or social media when they raise anxiety more than they help. Protect your mental space,  you’ll make clearer, calmer decisions. 

Stay hydrated, eat something nourishing, and get rest when you can. Your body is your first piece of equipment,  maintain it like your best tractor. 

Farming is physical and repetitive. Even a quick shoulder roll in the tractor seat helps circulation and reduces tension. 

Walk for yourself, not for chores. A short, mindful walk helps your brain breathe and lowers stress before it piles up. 

Inhale for 4 counts, hold for 7, exhale for 8. Repeat four times.
This simple rhythm tells your body, “I’m safe,” and helps calm the stress response. 

Writing gets emotions out where you can see them. It helps organize your thoughts and reduce the mental clutter that comes with worry. 

Connection is medicine. Shared meals, chores, or prayer time reduce isolation and remind you that you’re not alone in this work. 

Talking things out prevents emotional buildup.
Try saying, “I don’t need you to fix it,  I just need you to listen.” 

When the days feel long, notice what is working,  a healthy calf, a fixed fence, a kind word from a neighbor. Recognizing progress builds resilience. 

Healthy distraction restores balance. It gives your mind a break from constant problem-solving and worry. 

Farming can become your whole identity. A hobby like woodworking, fishing, or painting reminds you there’s life beyond production and profit.