When Isabelle Blackwood was in middle school, her Kansas farming family was devastated when her oldest brother Ian died by suicide.
Blackwood, who is now a high school senior in Clay Center, responded by learning about the mental health struggles among agricultural professionals, especially men. They often work in isolation, compounding the struggle with mental illness, and face a higher risk of suicide.
Blackwood has since made it her personal mission to raise awareness about the risk of untreated mental health issues and reduce the stigma of seeking professional help. As a speechwriter in local FFA competitions, she shared that message.
“All the men in my life are in the ag community,” Blackwood said. “I didn’t want to lose another man in my family.”
A local nonprofit organization heard Blackwood’s endeavor and followed suit. The Clay Counts Coalition — an organization dedicated to improving the well-being of Clay County residents — is launching a new program designed to help its farming community better deal with the stress and depression that stems from a difficult profession.
Lori Martin, community mobilizer for the Clay Counts Coalition, said agricultural professionals are tough and resilient, but that also makes them less likely to seek help.
“They’re very proud and they’re very private.” Martin said, “but they are also under a tremendous amount of stress.”
The coalition’s Farmer to Farmer program wants to change that by promoting mental health awareness and hosting events that allow farmers to gather and feel more comfortable about seeking help. It’s also working to increase access to mental health resources.
It’s the latest effort to join other local governments and organizations that want to address a significant problem. Kansas research shows men in farming jobs are more than three times as likely to die by suicide than other male workers.
Blackwood said she feels relief that rural groups like Clay Counts Coalition are taking mental health seriously. But she said there is a long road before the stigma is reduced completely.
“This is just one step forward,” Blackwood said, “when we need to be making thousands of steps forward.
There is hope that things are changing. Will Stutterheim, a therapist and psychology instructor at Fort Hays State University, said he’s seen a gradual increase of awareness among rural farming communities.
Stutterheim, who grew up on a farm in northwest Kansas, worked as a therapist in rural parts of Kansas for many years. He said it’s common for farmers to experience stress from a volatile industry because so many factors of their profession are out of their control — like drought and the fluctuating price of grain.
Farmers can also spend many hours of the day isolated in what is largely a solitary profession. That can lead to farmers dwelling on their stress without relief.
“Putting yourself on an island in a tractor, going around in circles all day long,” Stutterheim said, “may not always be the best for people who are ruminating.”
