Hanging onto uncertainty

It’s been a tough go for farmers these last few years with low incomes. Many dairy farmers across the U.S. have been hit particularly hard — financially, physically and emotionally — as they work 16-plus hour days, seven days a week, to care for cattle and manage their farm businesses.  Farmers work where they live. They don’t go home at the end of the day — they are already there. Coworkers can mostly be family members. They wrestle with responsibility versus control. Farmers feel responsible for just about everything, yet some things are beyond control. Farmers have multiple roles, including some have off-farm employment. Farmers feel isolated and a loss of peers and community.For farmers that are struggling, Moynihan urges them to reach out to their medical professionals. Moynihan also encourages farmers to reach out to each other and help.“I want farmers who might not be struggling quite so much to pay attention to their friends and neighbors who are having trouble,” she says. “Get over the standoffish Minnesota reticence and reach out. And if someone reaches out to you, don’t reject them. Accept the offer.”