6 Handling Stress on the Farm
Identifying your stressors
Farming involves many situations that cause stress. Common farm stressors are finances, weather,
heavy work overloads, and conflict in relationships.
Complete the following inventory to identify your stressors. Rate your stressors on a scale of 1 to 5.
(1 = low stress 5 = high stress).
1. Sudden and significant increase in debt load 1 2 3 4 5
2. Significant production loss due to disease or pests 1 2 3 4 5
3. Insufficient regular cash flow to meet financial obligations or for daily necessities 1 2 3 4 5
4. Delay in planting or harvesting due to weather 1 2 3 4 5
5. Media distortions of farm situation 1 2 3 4 5
6. Low commodity prices 1 2 3 4 5
7. Significant changes in type or size of farming operation 1 2 3 4 5
8. Meeting with loan officer for additional loan 1 2 3 4 5
9. Purchase of major machinery, facility or livestock 1 2 3 4 5
10. Not being considered part of the farm business by others 1 2 3 4 5
11. Taking an off-the-farm job to meet expenses 1 2 3 4 5
12. Prolonged bad weather 1 2 3 4 5
13. Problems with weeds or insects 1 2 3 4 5
14. Machinery breakdown at a critical time 1 2 3 4 5
15. Not enough time to spend with spouse 1 2 3 4 5
16. Crop loss due to weather 1 2 3 4 5
17. Illness during planting/harvesting 1 2 3 4 5
18. Deciding when to sell 1 2 3 4 5
19. Rising expenses 1 2 3 4 5
20. Government policies and regulations 1 2 3 4 5
21. Concerns about the continued financial viability of the farm 1 2 3 4 5
22. Having a loan request turned down 1 2 3 4 5
23. Farming-related accident 1 2 3 4 5
24. Government free-trade policies 1 2 3 4 5
25. Government "cheap food" policies 1 2 3 4 5
26. Metric conversion 1 2 3 4 5
27. Breeding or reproductive difficulties with livestock 1 2 3 4 5
28. No farm help or loss of help when needed 1 2 3 4 5
29. Need to learn/adjust to new government regulations and policies 1 2 3 4 5
30. Spouse doesn't have enough time for child-rearing 1 2 3 4 5
31. Increased workload at peak times 1 2 3 4 5
32. Unplanned interruptions 1 2 3 4 5
33. Use of hazardous chemicals on the farm 1 2 3 4 5
34. Dealing with salespeople 1 2 3 4 5
35. Long work hours 1 2 3 4 5
low high
