YOUR BUSINESS
l a n o i g e R mental health D
BY SAM GRUBIŠA REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT OFFICER, VEGETABLESWA
uring times of crisis, we need to pull together! We need to support each other! We need to remember who we are and why we do this! Yes, it puts money in our pockets, sends our kids to school and puts food on our tables, but for most of us…it’s in our blood!
We need to remember who we are and why we do this!
3 SEEKING support is not a weakness…it’s a necessity.
The call of the land is strong, I can personally attest to that, but I know the people who work it are stronger. With the hardships we are facing during this trying time of the ‘COVID New World’ we need each other more than ever. Only those with dust on their boots and dirt beneath their nails know how truly hard life on the farm can be, but they also know they wouldn’t want any other life! That said, the path that precedes the bite of the ‘Black Dog’ can be followed like a well-worn dirt track. From childhood boys are taught to keep their emotions in check. To be tough. That if there is a problem, you get on and fix the damn thing…don’t waste time talking about it. As they grow into men and have families or take over the family business, the burden of being the protector and the provider grows; so does this amour of silence. With the passing of time, the obligation of responsibility escalates and the ability to reach out fades. It is the refusal to
crack under pressure, the decades of masculine calibration, the self-imposed silence that leads to the point of no return. It is this silence that isolates and denies options, leaving ending a life as the only choice. Men in regional and rural areas are found to suffer more from negative mental health pressures, issues and outcomes in comparison to those in metropolitan WA. There are a number of pressures that work to deteriorate the mental health of males in rural and regional areas; these include ongoing financial insecurity, social isolation, over-working and environmental stressors (e.g. weather and natural disasters impacting productivity and therefore livelihood).
The most horrifying statistic is that two thirds of farmers who take their own lives, are the owner/managers of agricultural properties aged 55–64. This is of particular concern to the likes of myself, as I know you guys, I’ve worked alongside you guys and we can’t afford to lose the wealth of knowledge many of the men lost to mental health take with them. However, what they take with them is nothing compared to the loss felt by those left behind. The crop is not the only living thing that needs your attention in times like these, so do your neighbours, your mates and most importantly yourselves. Seeking support is not a weakness…it’s a necessity. We can’t lose blokes like you…we’d all bloody starve! For a better understanding of how men are ‘wired’, check out Episode 147 of the WA Real podcast, hosted by our very own Bryn Edwards; or visit https:// wareal.com.au/
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WA Grower WINTER 2020
