At the Oklahoma Farm Bureau Convention, Oklahoma Farm Report’s Maci Carter visited with Farm Bureau’s Managing Director of Member Engagement Jessica Cabrera who led a session about Cultivating Healthy Minds, which is OkFB’s farmer mental health wellness campaign.
Talking about mental health can be difficult for a plethora of reasons. Associated stigma, fear of judgment, a lack of confidence in how or what to say, fear of how people will respond are some of the hurdles that Cabrera cited for why people may not broach the topic with others.
“Even though you aren’t a clinician or a mental health professional, or a medical provider, you are still a person who is uniquely positioned to have these conversations in your sphere of influence,” Cabrera stated. “Whether that be your own family, your neighbors, friends, or another local Farm Bureau member, each of us influences our own social circles differently, so we each hold a lot of power within ourselves to make an impact and we often don’t realize it. It is important that we lean in.”
She explained that courage and confidence are not the same thing. While a person may lack the confidence to begin the conversation with someone, they can still be courageous enough to do it. She said that the more you act with courage, the more confidence you will gain.
“Farm Bureau is very uniquely positioned as well,” she added. “The whole mission of Farm Bureau is to help farmers and ranchers thrive. We want to build a sustainable future for agriculture, and you can’t do that without farmers. A person’s mental and physical wellness is important to their ability to thrive in life and in business.”
In her presentation, Cabrera listed a Superpower for Success that everyone possesses. “Our superpower is our ‘Why,’” she said. “The reason I consider this a superpower is because we can talk ourselves out of things really quickly, but if we anchor in on why it matters, then we get that extra boost of courage that we need.”
She also listed three secret weapons that people can keep in their arsenal of wellness for themselves and others: Small Gestures, Your Voice, and Teaming Up.
“Small Gestures is a secret weapon because we forget about it,” she explained. “It is simple things like making a phone call or sending a text or writing a card to somebody. Those are simple gestures that don’t cost much and hardly take any time, but they can make a really big impact.”
She explained that a person using their voice to bring up the topic of mental health and saying things in a way that normalizes the conversation. Teaming Up is based on the community spirit and how quickly things can get done when like-minded people come together with a singular purpose.
“We often get busy with our own routines and interact with the people in our lives in a certain way all the time,” Cabrera said. “Intentionality is about pausing long enough to tap into your ‘why.’ Asking why it matters for me to lean in and do something on purpose. I think we can all be intentional with a little bit of effort.”
More resources can be found at farmstateofmind.org. It includes a national resource directory, helpful tips, on-demand training, and information for people struggling with opioid misuse. “Additionally, and most importantly, I think, we have partnered with the Farm Family Wellness Alliance so that now a resource called Togetherall is available nationwide to all farm families sixteen and older, free of charge,” Cabrera concluded.
She further explained accessing Togetherall’s assistance. Click the listen bar above to hear the full conversation. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org.
