Episode Description:
Women on the farm face a unique set of stressors. Not only are they actively engaged in the farm business, but they also have vital roles in the household and with the family. Brenda Mack and Shauna Reitmeier are featured in this edition of TransFARMation. Brenda is an assistant professor at Bemidji State University and is a mental health consultant. She grew up on a farm at East Grand Forks, Minnesota and is married to a Crookston farmer. Shauna is the head of the Northwestern Mental Health Center at Crookston and was also raised on a farm.
In the TransFARMation podcast, Mack said we need the ability to say no. “Oftentimes as women, we’re asked to do things in the community or church or in the family. We feel guilty for not saying yes. We’re helpers and we know it needs to get done; it is okay to say no.” There may be signals when farm stress becomes overwhelming for family or friends. “People don’t show up at different activities or the farm is looking a little more disheveled, it gives us an awareness to start asking questions,” said Reitmeier. “Be there as support, not with judgement.”
Brenda and Shauna co-host the Cultivating Resiliency webinars, which are available on the American Agri-Women website https://americanagriwomen.org/.
