Rural America Is Having A Mental Health Crisis, This Farmer Is Fighting It

One night in 1992, farmer Jeff Ditzenberger walked into an abandoned house near his farm in Monroe, Wisconsin and lit it on fire. He had no intention of walking out alive. But as the walls caught fire around him, he changed his mind. And he walked out.
The house burned to the ground, and Jeff served nine months in jail for arson. He also got help for post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.
When Ditzenberger reflected on what drove him to attempt suicide, he said it was in part because he had no one to talk to in his rural farming community about his problems. People he approached either didn’t care or didn’t know how to talk to respond.
Ditzenberger tried talking to a therapist but found it difficult to get an appointment.
“It was the same thing every time I called,” he said. “‘Well, we can get you in in a few weeks. ’Well, I can't wait a few weeks. I need to get in now.’”
Lack of access to quality mental health care is a problem in rural communities across the U.S. In a 2018 Ball State University survey of rural mental health professionals, 95 percent said they can’t meet the needs in their communities.
In 2015, Ditzenberger started a support group called Talking, Understanding, Growth and Support - or TUGS - to informally get farmers and other rural people together to talk. Ditzenberger hopes it can help overcome what he says is a stigma around talking about mental health among farmers.
It couldn’t come at a better time. Rural counties have the highest rates of suicide in the country, according to a Centers for Disease Control study published in July.
VICE News got a chance to meet Ditzenberger and some of the farmers he who say he’s helped them open up about their mental health struggles.
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[@VICENews]

Lack of access to quality mental health care is a problem in rural communities across the U.S. In a 2018 Ball State University survey of rural mental health professionals, 95 percent said they can’t meet the needs in their communities. WATCH NEXT: This Is What Life Of An Incel Looks Like - bit.ly/2nUSM2Q

[@legacyfaithministries5539]

VICE News My name is Patrick, I have tried to take my life, after retiring from law enforcement, yet at the same time I grew on a ranch and worked farms and ranches for twenty plus years. I am offering to help and to be someone for these folks to reach for. Part of the reason I was pushed to that point was from loosing the properties that I had purchased from selling my farm ground. I reaching out a hand to help someone through this. Please contact me

[@titomlm]

Thanks for nothin, Farmers & Merchants built this country and fought for it time and time again, but as usual, they are also the first ones to get chewed up and spit out like used tobacco. But that’s ok. We take care of ourselves, and maybe someday y’all might actually learn to give a shit. But don’t cry bc the rest of us won’t hold our breath until you do. God bless. 💯⚖️🦅

[@ashkitt7719]

@Karen Reed Ok Ayn Rand. Maybe if you want them to vote for your candidates don't advocate for their democide.

[@JosephFuller]

In parts of Asia farmers are often belittled as poor, uneducated and unimportant people. As I asked a group of students recently, "You eat food, do you not? From where does that food come? Since all of your food comes from farmers and you need to eat food to stay alive, shouldn't you respect them more? Aren't they the most important part of our society?"

[@alexgunawan98]

In capitalist world, Nope. because gov subsidy, make food look cheap. so do their farmers.

[@gregkoenig9200]

There is a stigma in society that we are just simple farmers. No understanding of our fight to survive in a messed up business often caused by poor govt policies made by people who dont understand

[@Onlinesully]

@@gregkoenig9200 I just want to tell you that I don’t feel that way about farmers, and I never did. But I understand that you are saying that this is the impression you are getting generally, and that’s just not so good.

[@EmilyGloeggler7984]

@@gregkoenig9200 You also forget the fact that living rurally does not work for everyone, even when well prepared. Those people realize that, despite the claims of country lovers, the rural areas and countryside come with their own myriad of undue stresses and problems and the people in those communities are often not as friendly as many would presume, in fact, there are judgmental people in the countryside as there are in the cities and I say this as someone who used to live rurally and now am a city person and I do personally prefer the city environment for its more relevant opportunities which work for me. Now with that said, for those who want to live rurally, just go in knowing - if you think all your problems will go away if you leave the city, think again. Not all of my problems left when leaving the countryside but I learned to acknowledge what works for me and what doesn’t, and sometimes money is not an option to stay in either area - be it country or city. So something to think on that.

[@apuapustaja1958]

@@alexgunawan98 "in capitalist world, Nope." it wasn't the KKKapitalists who drove the Kulaks to their shallow graves you nitwit

[@Calyx]

I wouldn't wanna be a farmer. I grew up around farms maybe not in such a hugely remote place as the rural US but still. The amount of hard labor that goes into farming, any form of farming, the insane cost of machinery and maintenance, and the fact that you are heavily depending on weather, seasons while hopefully avoiding crop/animal diseases only to be selling your product at a loss. It's a hard life and it's completely understandable why people feel so lost and alone. And it doesn't matter what side of politics you're on, we should leave politics out of discussions like these. Farmers are important. We all need them. But nobody seems to care about them.

[@BAP3221]

Calyx that's why they made the website farmersonly.com. so you find another farmer to date and you don't have to date your sister anymore.

[@Calyx]

What does dating have anything to do with it? Getting your bone on doesn't really make the problems disappear. Even people in relationships can feel lonely and secluded.

[@kirabarsmith9353]

I have no idea how these people survive while our country is in the stranglehold of multi-national corporations on every level.

[@BAP3221]

Kira Barsmith it's a matter of family tradition. They feel the pressure to continue what they're families have done for generations. There's even a bigger pressure knowing you have to feed the nation.

[@ninjafruitchilled]

I'm sure that's tough, but it also kind of distorts the market. It means they are willing to slog through years and years of losing money. Things would change faster if more of them gave it up.

[@ronduchamp2418]

@Mark Smith Yes, and corporations control the markets and the farmers, hence the original post.

[@Sonyag1]

And Trump is making it worse with trade tariffs. All the while telling his voters that "everything is better. Making American Great Again". Does this video look like Trump made "everything better"? Farmers have enough stress just dealing with the weather while farming. Trump rolls in and throws another uncertainty on top of it all. I really hope rural America wakes up in 2020 and gets rd of Trump. He has not made anything "great again", but rural America's misery.

[@Swansen03]

@N A the US is not a capitalist system anymore. corporate fascism

[@elegantlywasted5447]

The comments here are so immature Farmers are unappreciated yet we all need them They work really hard and have been screwed by Monsanto and the government It doesn’t matter who they voted for This has been going on way before trump

[@gerib.4093]

I have not read other comments yet. But , my respect to you for your support🌹

[@elegantlywasted5447]

JB JG I don’t think those yuppie farmers markets represent real farmers

[@JosephBristoldatguy]

Elegantly Wasted funny thing is most Farmers land is land that belongs to freed slaves... So is this karma?

[@JosephBristoldatguy]

Drunk Bastard they were promised Land when freed... Take time to educate yourself.

[@DrunkBastard]

lmao no they weren't, they were promised slavery to the system like everyone else as opposed to slavery to private persons within the system

[@ellioteslander3046]

This is good journalism Vice.

[@dewilew2137]

Elliot Eslander they do occasionally surprise me with something profound

[@epicrabid1857]

@Austin Martín Hernandez yeh

[@ashkitt7719]

Humanizing those who are of a different culture from you should be a thing whether it's Palestinians or rural Americans or anything in between.

[@Fazzelgaming]

So america spends 600 billion $ on the military but cant let a farmer talk to someone when in need? is this logical?

[@BAP3221]

Mr. Turkey money has always come first.

[@isunlloaoll]

That 600 billion $$$ is not all going into military. A huge portion of that money goes to arms dealers who then gives money to the politicians that helped pass the budget. So the military and wars are just a huge money laundering campaign for elites of this country. Same goes for our education and healthcare systems. Our gov't is just there to make money for the elites, while maintaining a basic civic harmony and peace.

[@JosephFuller]

No, but we need a Space Force 'cause it's a good idea.

[@ankan54]

and three times more are going to healthcare, for medicaid specially

[@ummimconfused]

Where's the profit in that?

[@dachel18able]

I grew up on a rural western wisconsin family dairy farm as well. This video hits home... hard... :( My Dad would lose his mind and go in mental fits because everything would go wrong and break down. We didnt have the insurance to cover anything either... when he had his 2nd stroke, we had to sell the farm and everything. I was 13 at the time and remember that helplessness feeling like it was yesterday... thank you ViceNews for interviewing these farmers.

[@exeuroweenie]

That's too much for a 13 year old to have to deal with.Hell,it's too much for your parents.

[@ryanporter2492]

This is an absolute eye opener! Great job on getting this story out there

[@davidcousineau1397]

Thank you, Jeff. You are gold. Thank you farmers. The whole world would be nothing without you.

[@nickpalazzi2121]

I needed this. I really did. I'm 40 years old, and I saw decline my entire life on my dream of being a farmer dying until we had to sell. The loss of it has led to some serious mental issues that nobody understands. This video hits the nail on the head. Maybe now I can understand and try to rebuild.

[@etwothec]

short glimpses of what our farmers and other regular folk in our country are going through really help get perspective. I live in LA and have no ties to farming but am really glad I know more about brothers and sisters struggling in rural America.

[@Fazzelgaming]

So America is "liberating" other countries but cant even help its farmers? start at home before going overseas

[@edbuckley1670]

i care more about helping struggling Americans than Israel and iraqi freedom.

[@parkerc9816]

@Aliza Levinberg yes protecting a terrorist state is totally what we should be doing.

[@leorickt.9604]

There is MONEY to be made by starting wars.

[@ashkitt7719]

Also the Republicans want city people to suffer while the Democrats want rural people to suffer. We need a party for all workers regardless of origin and identity.

[@CasterOilCamerata88]

@@ashkitt7719 too bad America has indocrinated it's people with decades upon decades of propaganda telling them that "socialism is the downfall to western society".

[@AshFarlow]

Same happened in the 1980's here in the states. My mom was in Oklahoma back then. There was a farmer killing them self everyday. No money no help nothing for them. Same as now.

[@gerib.4093]

This area of country was absolutely breath taking. I was there for my visit wth my son. My husband surprised me for a visit. God bless him. We went through Tomah Amish Country I was humbled.

[@cognitivedissonancecamp6326]

Vice, Thank You for producing this and bringing awareness to such an overlooked issue. 👏🏿👌🏿🙏🏿

[@jeffreym68]

I'm so glad he survived and got help. Self-medicating with alcohol is very common, and certainly doesn't help with depression. Society needs to do better to support folks who have been raised to be self-sufficient.

[@maiconjunior2303]

And yet we have money for a space force

[@Snowboarder54688]

Space force?

[@melissaCgreenwood]

Gotta save all them future rich people when the current ones are done ruining this planet, they'll need a new one.

[@sync232]

It would be stupid to ignore programs of strategic importance.

[@blacktea65s]

Space Force is actually an important matter in the future. Protecting assets in space like vital satellites are no joke.

[@Pescasaurus]

Trump doesn't give one you know what about mental health

[@satorimystic]

Looking for the right bandage for a wound doesn't address the cause of the original insult, nor do much toward prevention. Treating symptoms is good, but only understanding the cause can lead to prevention.

[@Jake_Steiner]

Somebody help us! We're alone, broke, frustrated, and struggling! We can't pay the bills, we are secluded, and we can't find wives! Young small farmers like myself are hanging on by a thread and need help badly!

[@jd-py5nm]

finally a good solid piece from vice. this issue needs to be addressed and improved a local farm town near where I live has the highest suicide rate in our state its so sad mostly teens and older males its weird cause there is a sense of community

[@Alexandra_Wolf]

Jeff is a good man. He is using his pain to help others. There is nothing more noble than that. I can’t imagine being in these rural areas where they tell you to sip a beer to calm down your anxiety or escape.

[@bendover-yr4oq]

People have no clue unless you are farmer how much work this takes I mean it’s 5am till sundown 7days a week 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

[@rhizopus683]

ben dover It truly is. I worked at a family owned farm 2 months ago to see the work that goes into operating a farm and it was exhausting. I have a lot of respect for the farm owners and workers.

[@ParalysedGekko]

I hope the tariff policy is the solution you all hoped for when you voted baby boss into office.

[@ummimconfused]

I farmed in Abrams. It's no joke. Back breaking work sun up to sun down and then some for little pay. Everyone just tries to act tough and drinks their pains away. It's a shit life.

[@mdtaylor2274]

That's so true. But maybe you should change your name from Ben Dover to something more mature 😂

[@grantshouse9229]

Hell yeah! I'm an 8th generation farmer.

[@rdsc.455]

"IT'S OKAY TO BE NOT OKAY, you are not alone,,,wow !!👍

[@mikeaskme3530]

I feel bad for these people, but i also want people to understand that this problem is not just a farmer problem its a nationwide problem from the urban to the rural, and the only way it will get better is if both groups stop voting against their economic interest, and community interest.

[@rhijulbec1]

Rural areas are historically ignored for everything. I'm in Canada and we lived in a very rural area for 25 years. Everything was worse/more expensive. Medical care ~ one dr for over 1,200 people Hospital = 1 hour drive Ambulance = minimum 20 minutes from us Hydro ~ double what they pay in the city. My equal billing in our rural home was $300/month We now pay, 10 years later, $140/month. Plus our power went out if even the smallest cloud went overhead because, again, hydro infrastructure just sucked. Internet/cell/satellite services~zero reception for cell phones, internet we were still on dial up 12 years ago and tv was through antenna only. All services ~ garbage collection, recycling, infrastructure etc either were not covered by taxes or were basically ignored. We took our own garbage and recycling to the dump. When the closest one closed we drove 30 minutes to the next nearest one. Roads were just terrible. Pot holes everywhere some like small sink holes not repaired for 3 years. The farmers around us had it much worse. I'm not even sure why they bothered tbh, except it was all they knew and loved it. Rural Canada, rural US it's no different. We are ignored. Period. I'm not saying it was not a good life-if you didn't mind paying 21st century prices while getting 1980' services. We loved our house, our land, the privacy, the sense of community, everyone pitched in if you had troubles etc but there were times it seemed the cost of living an idyllic life was too high.

[@rhijulbec1]

@Aliza Levinberg Couldn't agree more. Deer eating apples in my back yard. Flock of wild turkeys in our yard clucking away. The mournful sound of loons on the water. A beaver that swam by our dock every day and would smack his tail if we smacked the water to say hello. A grey heron who perched on our dock in the morning. Ducks squabbling like an old married couple across the canal. Ravens nesting under the bridge close to us. HUGE dock spiders *shudder* I miss it all deeply, every day. We now live in a city. We had to move because of my health. And I hate it. The sirens, the traffic, the noise, the filth, hundreds of people everywhere. It's an assault on the senses. Urban living sucks. I'd be back in my home by the water~even with all the negatives, in a heartbeat, if I weren't so gd sick now. Don't get old. It's not for the weak. Jenn 💖 in Canada 🍁

[@randomvideosn0where]

It's not like someone was out to get you. It would not be practical to keep ambulances as close in the country as in the city, because in the city they are always busy picking someone up but if there were that many in the country they would spend most of their time sitting around while the 5 people within 15 minutes go about their life. Electric costs more because they need to install and maintain lines all the way out to a few people where in the city that line is shared by 100x the population (same with internet). In the country there is way more road per person than in the city so it doesn't get repaired as much, and if it was the cost per person would be huge.

[@rhijulbec1]

@@randomvideosn0where I wasn't aware I was implying "someone was out to get" me. That kind of ridiculous paranoia wasn't part of my thought process at all! I was simply stating factual information in response to the video~that rural areas are historically under serviced and under funded. I KNOW the whys regarding health services. I KNOW the reasons for the hydro, internet and other services being expensive. You're not imparting any knowledge I'm not familiar with. Other than to somehow pull from that entire post that for some reason you think I was of the belief it was a personal insult against me. I've not had a comment so egregiously misunderstood before. Congratulations. Jenn 💖 in Canada 🍁

[@adventurelife9677]

Grew up in an area like this hell I still live in the most rural state in the lower 48. You are taught from a very young age that you have to take care of yourself and can't rely on anyone. When a friend used to complain everyone would say something like "buck up buttercup" or "suck it up Nancy". You were taught that if something was hard you just had to keep on until you were through. This mentality is necessary for areas like this as it reflect the reality but is really damaging in the cases of mental illness.

[@perrycrozier8805]

The handwriting was on the wall about dairy farming 30 years ago. U either get big or u get out. Once u get big, u have to keep getting bigger. Love from a Wisconsin farmboy cheesehead.

[@everettduncan7543]

We need to break up these big factory farms...they're pushing out small farmers here in MO too. And last year our legislature allowed people to pollute the land with CAFO poop

[@aaronlawler1415]

Good piece. It's really cool that this guy took matters into his own hands and created a way for others to get help. No training, no funding, just made it happen. The problem isn't solved but he's empowered others in his community.

[@ken6857]

How about the US takes a play from Canada’s play book and implement a Quota system so dairy cycles are equalized. This would enable farmers to stop worrying and focus on what they do best!

[@Senura101]

Job well done sir 👍

[@TheSmashingDoc1]

farmers are the most important one of the most hard working people in society, and deserve to be treated like that.

[@jeffyurek4342]

Some of the comments amaze me. How can someone see a fellow human being struggle and poke fun at them. I sold my farm over 20 years ago because of low milk prices and it’s hard to admit because I struggled with depression. Men are taught from a early age to be tough and don’t complain. Farmers are often isolated on the farm and don’t communicate with anyone. Who can you talk with? You don’t want to admit to your neighbor your struggling because your embarrassed and don’t want them to know your problems. Banks don’t care, they just want the money. It’s just hard and sad and nobody really knows until they go thru it.

[@AngelekaL]

I went to the state fair today and have an entirely new perspective on farmers. I can’t imagine the stress and hard work they go through daily.

[@501stlegionnaire]

as soon as the guy in the bar said... the people who know are often far away..I started thinking about how setting up a discord for these people could help... just farmers and vetted experts that quickly exchange ideas, solutions and create a new type of social interzction that they often give up because of their hard work

[@mr5elfde5truct]

I wish they would have gone more specifically into the economics of why net income is tanking in the farming industry. Why? Are they all undercutting eachother? Is there an over saturation of produce/ dairy? What's going on?

[@Alexandra_Wolf]

This is one of the only good things about the internet. That we can have therapists who are good either work with people far away or pro Bono work.

[@bsqwahlE]

Wow. What brave men and women; you sought help for yourselves and you give help to others who deal with mental illness. Additionally you publicize your struggles with a genetic disorder that many perceive as a personal weakness. Again, wow.

[@jomama5186]

We NEED to take better care of our farmers. They are SERIOUSLY important !!!!

[@lynnjohnson1239]

It's heartbreaking to imagine what these farmers and their families are going through.

[@cathiker]

The good, decent people of this country are being screwed. Regardless of political party. This makes me so sad.

[@ashkitt7719]

You're way better than the psychopathic "empathetic" libs in the comments. These libs are why I'm doubling down on socialism.

[@buddyleewoods2327]

God bless the farmers . They work on a very thin margin day in & day out , 365 .

[@werebilbyj4449]

This is happening to farmers everywhere. I am in Australia and our farmers suicide rates are quite high also. Deregulation of the dairy industry has alot to do with what is happening here. The monopoly that the big supermarkets have over the farmers and them having to waste 2 thirds of the crops they have worked tirelessly to plant and raise. All because it doesn't meet size requirements. There is alot wrong that needs to be fixed that could definitely benefit farmers. Stop buying the cheap damn milk if you can. Spend the extra 2 bucks and get the one made and packed by a farmer.

[@TBONESIDEOFLIFE]

Many farmers struggle, and society fails everyone who dies by their own hand. life stays on a balance until it teeters and life is lost from it. it's more than just farmers and the workers, it's a story of us all yet told to be truly understood or even told...

[@ShortArmStrongArm]

Good job. I’m a farmer. I have clinical depression. I know that killing myself fixes nothing, tho. I’m here to talk.

[@jimbob5808]

This isn't a farmer problem. It is a society problem. The US has higher healthcare, education, and housing costs coupled with low wage growth makes this a society problem. The old work harder and you will get ahead is BS to most people. A LOT of people work hard. But A LOT of those hard working people can't provide the basics: food and housing. In Oklahoma, everyone wants to point to immigration as the problem. Why? I think because they want make the fault external. "It's those illegals fault my job is awful." I think they should be looking inward on fault. Education in this state is awful. The funding to education is so low. What kind of teachers are going to get when you pay them and they still need to get a second job to meet their financial obligations? Money can't solve everything. Until teachers are not working second jobs to survive, it should be the top priority. But education should be looked at as a solution instead of building a border wall. Good portion of Oklahomans feel the border wall is the solution to the unemployment or under employment problem. My two cents.

[@gillianbandy2080]

I agree but you can’t deny that there is a crisis at the border. The illegal immigrants are costing our country between $2-$19B (US Government Accountability Office, ) yearly to support. Education receives around $70-80B yearly. If we could cut down on illegal immigration funding and re-direct that money to education, those salaries would go up. That won’t happen unless we patch the leak at the source. The flood will only cause more damage if the government doesn’t do anything.

[@ghostlightinthegreenroom]

All these farmers are heroes. I'm curious to know if demand for milk and animal farming will go down throughout time, what will happen to all these cattle farmers.

[@thomasmackelly7685]

"We just dont have money for universal healthcare." - Spaceforce Director

[@parkerc9816]

@youtubeShadowBan how exactly are you going to defend satellites, remote controlled suicide devices? Ground to orbit missiles? Air to orbit missiles? Because last I checked rail guns are banned and no one has created a laser system that can actually blow shit up.

[@LD-vr1yq]

Yes vice this is real content

[@CowboySJ]

As a single middle age rancher, I relate. Drove to town a few times for mental health, didn't help. But my stock needs me, so the bottle it is

[@Burninfox1]

Damn

[@chetana9802]

lots of love

[@gerib.4093]

God bless you all!

[@bozo7769]

*thanks for the food, farmers* ☺

[@nhunghoang9872]

so touching for an excellent video

[@Ada-tv7zl]

Jeff is a gem!

[@H.B.Fishing.]

I wish I lived closer to y'all to be able to visit and share ideas with y'all about mental illness. You tube is very helpful about recognizing what a panic attack is and how to overcome them. Walking and just good breathing techniques can help. I'm wanting to try and start a group that meets up and talks about these issues of today with covid. God bless all of you.

[@ShortArmStrongArm]

Suicide ends no sadness. It only transfers the pain to someone else. Please talk to someone. Anyone.

[@treyebillups8602]

It's sad that these people, the backbone of our food supply, are unable to access professional help

[@amazonqueen5694]

professional help is not all its cracked up to be some times it does not even work.

[@olivyae3057]

This is an honest question, not meant to be offensive, but I grew up in a highly religious household, and when I felt depressed, my family would always tell me "Go pray. God will take care of it." Where are the religious communities? I thought rural America was most likely to be religious; is that changing?

[@Khymeira]

Did that work for you? Did praying take care of your depression?

[@olivyae3057]

No, it didn't work for me, and trust me, I tried. I became an atheist for a while, but now I consider myself agnostic. But that's only _my_ experience. I used to hate religion, and there are parts of it that still annoy the shit out of me, but I can see that religion can serve as a supportive community for people who have faith, to help one another, etc. I'm just curious; has that dissolved in the rural community? I'm not assuming you're an expert. I just want anyone who potentially is an expert to throw a bone my way.

[@ThePrimo323]

No free healthcare still 🤔

[@jdaza1987]

Free healthcare!? Haha we are getting a "Space Force" instead......

[@eddenoy321]

Mark well Joe the Plumber voted for the MAGA man

[@eddenoy321]

Mark I could not vote... there was no choice. Yes the popular vote count means less and less. Crazy.

[@morgandawn6413]

Nothing is free. It all comes from somewhere. Just remember that

[@quentinbaggett9253]

You won't get health care from a farmer,

[@thaddeust.thirdiii736]

The annoying part is wealthy people move to rural areas now and make housing/land more expensive. That makes it harder for the farmer in case they ever wanted to expand their operation

[@JoseSanchez-hw2dw]

Sad to see farmers unappreciated we need farmers no farm no food in our tables my Heart goes out for those Farmers

[@Poemi10304]

Wow, so great that this guy is taking the initiative to head a support group for his community. Support groups can be more helpful to some people than traditional counseling, and it sounds like this is one of those situations. It would be even better if mental health professionals could reach out to them and help them out as well, to provide more structure and additional support in these groups. Also, it would educate professionals more about that population, so they would be more knowledgeable about their concerns and needs, and be more effective in helping them.

[@mspoints4fre123]

Wait did that one dude say he was thinking of killing his dad to get the insurance money?

[@goodnessofg-d1315]

In my Ireland We class our farmer's As the back bone of our economy. Honour and respect to all farmers. Perhaps the rest of you nations Should think like wise.

[@AmirA-zv6uk]

Sounds more like bad machinery, not mental health!

[@adriana2567]

great documentary but tooo short

[@judyjessee127]

Brother said nothing like knowing that for yourself with no help sad but true

[@KaleighMacKay]

helping people like this would be a worthy cause. I think the isolation is probably the hardest thing, I live in a city and am surrounded by to s of people I dont know, have never met, and prob wont ever meet. I feel alone and im never more than 20 ft away from someone else. I know it might sound silly, but maybe try having dinner together with the people and families of the farms and houses near by. Host a pot-luck type of dinner where everyone can come and share food, and socialize. I connect with people in this way, I show my appreciation by cooking for people I care about. If I had a bigger place, I would be hosting dinner parties all the time. I hope they all find ways to cope, their lives are hard and they feed the entire country.

[@beybslifeintheus494]

keep safe everyone

[@L.Spencer]

Thumbs up and kudos to farmers, who supply us with food. It's only going to get tougher as the climate changes.

[@rexhargrove5172]

Dammit this is brilliant. This is how mental health and social work are supposed to work.

[@aperson2730]

Powerful

[@belovedwanderer8546]

Community is everything

[@IvanSN]

This made me incredibly sad.

[@volkswag12]

OMG you guys were in Monroe Im from Monroe

[@fastcharger3314]

Farmers are killing themselves abroad as well. It’s a big problem in India and Africa.

[@clintaudette3683]

"And God, bless the plow, in the future as now. With health and long life to the farmer."

[@Onlinesully]

farmers are amazing people. it’s an enormously wide skill package that I wouldn’t be able to list. But it would include the obvious ones of growing crops and tending to animals feed and milking and foreign and storing feed, animal welfare, veterinary work, maintaining and repairing vehicles and machinery, running a household, and a lot of other things.

[@Sixty_Five_Pronghorn]

My family farms in the midwest, and as far as I know, the farming market has gone to shit

[@everettduncan7543]

@Hrishi Alda deregulation of big business led to farming companies that are taking over states like Iowa and Wisconsin

[@sergioropo3019]

Jeff Ditzenberger saved his life trying to save others'. Good for him. Way to go.

[@LiberalinOregon]

Alcohol is a depressant. Not a good idea if your depressed.

[@mroinoin]

yes and no, alcohol is a CNS depressant so it'll slow down the heart rate but the increase in dopamine and GABA-agonism is anything but depressing. Depressed people should stay away from drugs IN GENERAL because of the high risk for addiction associated w mental illness.

[@Onlinesully]

@@mroinoin Hi to both of you The point about alcohol is important. I was depressed for as long as I can remember but never identified it as such. and I abused alcohol to an astonishing degree. I didn’t have spirits or booze during the day. But I drank most evenings and quite a bit too. And I did so much damage to my life and relationships and mind and career. We’ve a duty to look out for friends who may be using alcohol way out of control.

[@swagtastikal3867]

This is straight truth

[@vonBottorff]

The reason the communists use the hammer and the sickle in their flags etc. is they long ago recognized a very basic problem: farmers (symbolized by the sickle) want good prices for their produce, urban workers (symbolized by the hammer) want cheap food prices. But of course they didn't unite the two groups with just flags and propaganda. The great arc of industrialization, which is entering its final phase, is driving farmers hard. The commoditization will continue -- no doubt with lots of automation, economies of scale, etc. -- until family farmers are gone, and the rural landscape looks like a bad Ray Bradbury story.

[@leahp1765]

They forgot Christian only for it.

[@vonBottorff]

@@leahp1765Explain?

[@leahp1765]

@@vonBottorff the group that are communism are Usually Christians turned atheists. So they forget the Christian part and just makes it secular. Which is a big mistake because Christians are taught to give to poor and do alms and pay workers fairly. Deuteronomy 24:14-15, “You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your countrymen or one of your aliens who is in your land in your towns. “You shall give him his wages on his day before the sun sets, for he is poor and sets his heart on it; so that he will not cry against you to the LORD and it become sin in you”. It's one of the reasons we don't get our fasting and praying answered. Read Isaiah 58. It's like required but the people who are pro them they usually turn against and thinks are their enemies.

[@christianelder4983]

There is someone that sticks closer than a brother. Jesus died for us and left the comforter here to help bear our burdens. Seek Him +++

[@brisvegas859]

use online counseling services through Skype and keep connected with other farmers on a regular basis and also look at hiring travelers, backpackers to assist in some chores to lighten the load - hope those ideas help

[@onecardshort2934]

This reminds me of the King of the Hill where Hank joins a support group for men with butt cheek prosthetics.

[@lorealmadonnamoore9828]

I could never be a farmer in America damn the greedy companies own everything.

[@ray1411]

Where are their families?

[@elizabethbennet4791]

poor guys- i swear, farming is one of the most difficult industries out there

[@ghostb1110]

reality version of Joker's scene Arthur meet with his doctor when she told him ure fine

[@johnransom1146]

So what do you think of Canada's supply management system now? There isn't the commodity prices falling and the stresses that brings. Try supply management and leave ours alone in NAFTA

[@goldassayer93555]

With the price of international bulk shipping at extremely low rates the farmers of the world all have to compete with the lowest cost producer where ever they are in the world. This puts terrible financial stress on farmers and drives them out of business. Farms that have been in business for generations are going bankrupt and this is a terrible mental blow the male farmers who are not able to feed their families and losing the generational family farm at the same time. Something must be done. That may require national tariffs that protect the farmers within a country. The cost of tariffs will be higher food prices and that is hard on the non farmers in a country. What to do?

[@JackIsNotInTheBox]

It's the isolation man. Isolated area isn't good for humans, we are social creatures.

[@Semper_Iratus]

I wish I knew some words that could help but I don’t. Get the help that you need.

[@iwrotethis4712]

But instead of helping the farmers, they are getting a space force.

[@goodnessofg-d1315]

Farmers take heed and Behold For Each Mood Is Likened To The Ever Changing Seasons Some dark or dull Other's bright or warm All Seasons Pass On by and Change Come Unto Me and Follow My Ways

[@Jengis369]

So farming is hard? Who'd have thought...

[@delprice3007]

Better support for Ag communities and their rural economies is the best answer for mental health. No more Walmart industrial farms!

[@creation1702490]

Dairy farmers wife here... I have typed many things here, and erased them all.