20/08/2026
There’s a mental health crisis happening in our farming communities, and far too much of it is happening quietly.
Across the North East and beyond, farmers and farming families carry pressures that many of us will never fully see.
Long hours. Financial worries. Isolation. Unpredictable weather. Rising costs. The responsibility of keeping a farm going, often after generations of family have done exactly the same.
And through all of it, there can be this expectation to just get on with it….. “aye I’m fine!”
But behind the farm gates are people.
People who get overwhelmed. People who struggle with anxiety and depression. People who lie awake worrying about money, animals, crops and what tomorrow will bring. People who can reach breaking point while everyone around them thinks they are managing!!
And their families feel it too. Partners, children, parents and wider farming communities can all carry the weight when someone they love is struggling.
We need to get better at asking the farming community how they are — not just how the farm is doing.
We need to make it normal for someone to say, “I’m struggling, it’s not been easy, and I don’t know how to fix it”
And we need to make sure that when they do, there is someone there to listen.
Mental health support doesn’t always need to begin in a therapy room. Sometimes it starts over a cup of tea, leaning against a gate, sitting in the cab of a tractor or with one person simply saying:
“How are you really doing?”
If you know someone in farming, check in.
And if you’re the farmer who’s struggling quietly, please know you don’t have to carry everything on your own.
Behind every farm is a person.
Behind that person is often a family.
And every one of them matters.
Graham
Brave Journeys.
Supporting people and families across the North East and beyond. If you need help please reach out for a confidential and caring conversation.
