Slaton, TX — Grant Heinrich was working at his family’s farm office when he received a text message from one of his close friends and the farmer.
Testament.
Heinrich jumped into the truck and rushed to the barn. The roads of West Texas looked like tunnels, walls of blurry crops winding around him.
“All I could think about was getting there in a hurry,” said Heinrich. “He blew the track hose and if he is late he will blame himself for the rest of his life.”
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For Heinrich’s family, suicide felt like an epidemic. He lost his uncle 24 years ago. Then one of his cousins, whom Heinrich saw as a superhero, died nine years before him. Two years later, another cousin committed suicide.
“I have witnessed too much pain for the whole family,” he said.
Over the past two decades, suicide rates have been higher in rural areas than in urban areas. And it’s getting worse.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the suicide rate is gain Rural America increased by 46% and metropolitan areas by 27.3%. Also, a rural resident is 1.5 times more likely to go to the emergency room for self-harm treatment.
For farmers, the rate is taller than – 3.5 times the general population, according to the National Rural Health Association.
Proponents suggest that because farmers face multiple economic challenges beyond their control and are reluctant to share their problems, they are less likely to seek help. , affordable care is limited in rural areas, so there may be few affordable options.
As a way of bridging the access gap, the Texas Department of Agriculture is asking the Texas legislature to sustain $500,000 annually in farmer mental health and suicide prevention programs. This money will help cover the costs of a toll-free helpline for all workers in the agricultural industry, their families, and people in their communities. The program was launched last February with a federal grant to provide spiritual and financial resources to callers.
“Some people just want to talk, maybe they’re not in an emotional crisis,” said Trish Rivera, a rural health expert at the department who oversees the program. They need to talk to someone about what they’re going through so they don’t get to that stage.”
“In the middle of the frontier”
Inevitably, Heinrich thinks of the three lost family members and wonders if he could have changed the situation. He is a poignant thought for many who have lost loved ones to suicide. Is there a magical golden hour to convince someone to stay alive?
That question, along with his grief, burrowed into Heinrich’s mind for years. It came to his mind again as he rushed towards the barn in hopes of stopping his friend.
“I was so scared of what I was going to find on foot,” he said.
He found a friend with a weapon in his hand and was able to calm him down.
“I was so grateful he was alive,” said Heinrich.
Heinrich is location manager for Pro-Agri Spraying in Surathon, a town of about 6,000 people 17 miles southeast of Lubbock. He has also become a mental health wellness advocate and helped bring the AgriStress helpline to rural communities across the state. Heinrich’s sowing and spraying business, like other industries, felt financial pressure from last year’s agricultural slump.historic drought Devastated Crops were harvested statewide, and farmers watched as the dry soil on their land was blown away.
Part of the problem, Heinrich said, is the sheer isolation that comes with living on a farm.
“You are far away from other people,” said Heinrich. I have already made a decision.”
The Farmer Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Program was created after state senator approval in 2021. Roland GutierrezA Democrat from San Antonio, he plans to support the department’s funding request this year, he said.
“There are just no mental health services in the countryside,” Gutierrez told the Texas Tribune. am.”
Initially unfunded, the department won a one-time grant from the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
The State Department of Agriculture has partnered with the AgriSafe Network, a nonprofit that has helped launch similar programs in Connecticut, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wyoming. Rivera said the goal is both to provide care and resources to those in need, and to remove the stigma of conversations about mental health in an industry that typically doesn’t talk about it.
“Farming is a culture where people don’t discuss their feelings too much, and we want to change that. We want people to feel safe asking for help.”
The department promotes programs that farmers may see, such as livestock shows, county extension agencies, local newspapers, schools, and farming groups. I am confident this will be amplified with more funding and the department will come to a legislative session.
“We will keep that message in front of our producers and make an ongoing effort to really try to change the culture,” Rivera said.
What makes this helpline unique is who is on the other end of the line. About 250 mental health professionals have all been trained in the program to understand the different stresses farmers and ranchers face. This includes weather, crop prices, tariffs and other issues.
“It’s important that anyone responding is informed and has the cultural capacity to talk about what they’re going through,” Rivera said. It’s a good resource for everyone in life.”
Rivera estimates that it has received at least 60 calls since it launched its helpline in February.Inspired by Rob Elementary School photograph In Uvalde last May, Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller opened a helpline for everyone in the community.
Heinrich believes the program will help reduce farmers’ fears of asking for help.
“Going to see a professional who isn’t your spouse or best friend is not a weakness,” said Heinrich. important”
For 24/7 mental health support in English or Spanish, call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration toll-free helpline at 800-662-4357. You can also contact a trained crisis counselor through the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988.
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