Klinic Community Health says attitudes toward mental health are changing but farmers tend to be less likely than the rest of the population to reach out for help when dealing with stress.
Dealing with Stress will be among the topics discussed as part of the 2018 Manitoba Swine Seminar slated for tomorrow and Thursday in Winnipeg.
Sylvia Massinon, the Public Education and Training Coordinator with Klinic Community Health, notes surveys conducted by the University of Guelph have found farmers face high rates of stress, anxiety and burnout.
Klinic Community Health is a community health agency that operates services out of our Winnipeg and Brandon locations. Out of Winnipeg we offer counseling, health services and education and out of our Brandon location, that’s where our Manitoba Farm, Rural and Northern Support Services operates out of. They offer specialized support for farmers.
We see that the awareness of the program is fairly high in Manitoba but that stigma still exists and help seeking behavior, so actually reaching out for help to a counselor or therapist or mental health professional, those kind of help seeking behaviors actually remain lower than the general population.
There’s a few factors that contribute to that such as pride, independence and stigma as well. Some of the good news is that we actually see some of those attitudes changing amongst farmers, especially younger ones and they’re seeing some of the benefits to talking about and caring for their mental health.
Sylvia Massinon-Klinic Community Health
Massinon says anyone interested in getting information for themselves or for a loved one can call the toll Manitoba Farm, Rural and Northern Support Line at 866-367-3276, they can speak to a counselor through an online chat at supportline.ca or visit the Manitoba Farm, Rural and Northern Support Services at ruralsupport.ca.
