![\"How](\"https:\/\/elainefroese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/How-to-Develop-Stress-Resiliency-on-the-Farm-710x365.jpg\")
According to Dr. Nikki Gerrard\u2019s research on farm stress, our ability to bounce back from stress is called \u201cresiliency.\u201d How are you doing?<\/p>\nAccording to Dr. Nikki Gerrard\u2019s research on farm stress, our ability to bounce back from stress is called \u201cresiliency.\u201d How are you doing?<\/p>\n
I would encourage readers to seek out an emotional support group: folks who are willing to listen, connect with you on a regular basis, and offer you unconditional love and support.\u00a0 Who keeps your spirits buoyant and above the waterline? Do you have just 3 close friends beyond your family circle?<\/p>\n
Prairies North <\/em>magazine had a delightful article about the \u201cDelisle Pickle,\u201d a special gathering spot in Delisle Saskatchewan where tea and visiting are on the main menu.<\/p>\n In Boissevain, we now have the \u201cSawmill Tea and Coffee Company\u201d which I tell folks is our version of \u201cStarbucks.\u201d\u00a0 The effect on the community has been amazing. You can drop in for lunch, just grab a fancy coffee or tea, and visit with other folks who are hanging out. The teens play pool and eat gelato, the seniors sip drinks by the window, and many people enjoy the leather chairs and couches, having animated conversations until 11 at night!<\/p>\n Don\u2019t underestimate the power of connection via the phone, and now Skype. If you have high-speed internet, connections on Skype also allow you to have a video of the person you are talking to. If the video line is poor, you can also chat by texting in the chat box. I have a friend in New Zealand who is also a farm coach, and we really appreciate the time on Skype to encourage each other.<\/p>\n Stock up on cards, stamps, and mail a\u00a0letter to your friend, even if she lives in the same town. Remember how much fun it is to open a card instead of the pile of bills facing you. Financial strain can be brutal.<\/p>\n [Tweet “7 ways for #farmers to stay resilient against #stress.”]<\/p>\n Perhaps it is time to join a book club and get lost in a book, and then share your ideas with other women. Bible studies are another way to share the power of the written word and then spend time praying for each other. If you are in need of prayer, it is a wonderful thing to have close friends that you can ask to pray for you.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also great to praise God for the good things in your life, and not just come to conversations with the Creator about all your woes, which of course He knows about.<\/p>\n Pop the popcorn with girlfriends (or your willing hubby) and watch a really funny chick flick. The first time I watched Mamma Mia I was so tired from the harvest, I really had a tearful good laugh, and it felt great. The \u201cDancing Queen\u201d songs brought back many high school memories of fun, and I think it was a good thing to be reminded to seek out fun. Dorothy Whetter, formerly of Dand, created a delightful piano CD in her eighties, and I use her music to life my spirits when I am organizing .<\/p>\n Sharing music with friends is a great way to feel more buoyant in tough times.<\/p>\n If movies and music aren\u2019t your thing, maybe you just need to share the fun of creating something.\u00a0 Our town has a \u201cGuilty Quilters\u201d club, who are guilty of not feeding husbands when they are overtaken by the desire to quilt together. Is it time to quilt, scrapbook, crop photos or find your watercolors again?<\/p>\n Our brains are weary from worry, and we need to use a different set of neurons to create things and find some relief. When I traveled to BC, I did two watercolor postcards of the amazing fall colors and a mountain landscape. It felt good to celebrate the arrival of a printer\u2019s press at my friend\u2019s art studio and help her associates make rags for art projects. When was the last time you fed your creative side?<\/p>\n Men are at risk for depression due to sustained stress and need to find ways to keep above the waterline, too. Oprah\u2019s viewer \u201cLarry\u201d had a man cave in his garage where he watched Oprah in the privacy of his garage! We had hunters here from Wisconsin who just wanted to sit in the dark and wait for geese and then tell stories at supper. Many farmers I coach relay to me that they have forgotten how to have fun. The work on the farm is always going to be there, but the relationships may fade away if we don\u2019t intentionally connect on a regular basis.<\/p>\n The most important things in life are not things. We all want to love and be loved. We all need respect and connection. The families that bounce back from the blasts of unfortunate weather and financial stresses are the ones that see hope in communication, connection, and celebration of community.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t wallow in your worries. Connect to someone who cares about you. If you are the strong one at the moment, offer a listening ear, and a praying heart. Offer hope to those who feel they are sinking and remember that \u201chope deferred makes a heart sick.\u201d\u00a0 Choose to connect to your emotional support group and develop your resiliency.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" According to Dr. Nikki Gerrard\u2019s research on farm stress, our ability to bounce back from stress is called \u201cresiliency.\u201d How are you doing? I would encourage readers to seek out an emotional support group: folks who are willing to listen, connect with you on a regular basis, and offer you unconditional love and support.\u00a0 Who…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2166,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[112,25,74,76,334,568],"class_list":["post-2142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-family","tag-farm","tag-farm-families","tag-farmers","tag-stress","tag-stress-resilience"],"yoast_head":"\nPhone and Skype<\/h3>\n
Letters<\/h3>\n
Books<\/h3>\n
Movies and Music<\/h3>\n
Creative Projects<\/h3>\n
Men: Remember How to Have Fun<\/h3>\n
Relationships Are the Key to Resiliency<\/h2>\n