Farm Stress Management
Farm families are the backbone of America, providing important commodities like food, grains, and they are a significant component of our national economy. Having healthy farms and healthy farm families promotes environmental stewardship, cultural legacies, and rural community growth.
But farm families are feeling the pressure of an inconsistent and unreliable economy. Finances, legal issues, and physical and mental well-being are all at the forefront of agricultural concerns. Farmers have been forced to parcel off their land, file for bankruptcy, deny their children inherency rights, and take secondary jobs off the farm to provide health insurance and supplemental income to make ends meet.
These stressors can lead to mental and emotional distress, substance abuse, anxiety, depression, and even suicide.
Because of the critical role of farmers in our state and across the nation, the University of Maryland Extension has prepared this selection of assets to help farm families navigate the numerous resources available online and provide timely, science-based education and information to support prosperous farms and healthy farm families.
Choose from Financial Resources, Stress Management, or Legal Resources to find a variety of online information, guides, and tools developed to help in each of these areas. As more tools are developed, these pages will be updated to reflect current information and serve as a support for highlighting future workshops and programming.
Need Help!
If you are a farmer in crisis, or know of someone in need of immediate assistance, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline dial 9-8-8, or dial 9-1-1, or call Farm Aid at 1-800-327-6243
Check out our current events!
Free Therapy Services for Farm Families
Six free therapy session either in person or teletherapy. We will help you set up your appointment, connect with the provider and access your session. Complete the intake form at go.umd.edu/farmtherapy and we will reach out to you.
Calling all business-owning couples in the agriculture industry!
Event: Power Couples Retreat
Date: Feb. 4-5, 2023 | Saturday & Sunday
Cost: $150 per couple (includes overnight stay and 3 meals)
Location: The Westin Annapolis, 100 Westgate Circle, Annapolis, MD
Description: A workshop for business-owning couples in the agriculture industry. For more information see the brochure (pdf) or questions and special accommodations, please contact Ryan Salsman by January 20th at rsalsman@umd.edu or 240-623-6731
Registration: https://go.umd.edu/powercouples
Check out the many resources on COVID-19. These resources will lead you to links to web and social media sites, publications, and video recordings.
Looking for timely resources, updates, and information on upcoming events?
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Learn more about UM Extension's work in cooperation with the University of Delaware Cooperative Extension in their publication Farm and Farm Family Risk and Resilience Guide to Extension Educational Programming, as well as other resources in their agribusiness toolkit.