Farmstrong

"You're 100% responsible for 50% of your wellbeing at the workplace, and your workplace is 100% responsible for its 50%." Last month, the Forum hosted a Mental Wellbeing at Work webinar with Dr Dougal Sutherland from Umbrella Wellbeing, and Gerard Vaughan from Farmstrong, to talk about how to navigate the challenges of leading the workplace in the current economic environment. Watch this video to learn three takeaways from their conversation on how leaders can support the mental wellbeing of their people - and themselves.

“I was in my early 20s, milking about 260 cows and working day in, day out, all hours of the day and half the night, and it reached the stage where I turned up for milking one morning feeling so exhausted that I told the guy working for me ‘I’m going back to bed for a couple of hours’. I didn’t wake up until the next day! I was just doing way too many hours. When you’re that tired, you’re running round in circles achieving nothing. That was my first real wake-up call.”- Tararua dairy farmer Mike Burmeister

A new rural women’s group that meets for dinner dates has proven to be a massive hit among south Marlborough locals. “Connecting with others is essential for good mental health and in rural areas it can be a bit harder to connect due to remoteness and a lack of local bars or cafes that you can just pop down to. Wellbeing and thriving and feeling your best is something I’m passionate about and it feels so wonderful to see how much joy the dinner dates have brought to people.” - Nadine Hickman #CommunityIsWhatWeCreateTogether #MHAW2024

"Strong communities mean strong people and strong people mean strong communities. If we have a strong community, it means we have more people engaging and connecting and looking after themselves. That provides a lot of support and reassurance for those who might need it. That’s how you build rural resilience. That’s what drives it for me." #CommunityIsWhatWeCreateTogether #MHAW2024

This week is Mental Health Awareness Week and the theme this year is 'Community is what we create together'. Throughout the week, we'll be sharing articles that celebrate community and emphasize the importance of staying connected. Whether it's with friends, family, mates, or your team, having a strong sense of community around you, helps support mental wellbeing 💙

It's now just been over a year since Farmstrong Scotland was launched. Back in 2018, a group of Scottish farmers approached Farmstrong to help set up the programme in Scotland after hearing New Zealand farmer and author Doug Avery give a wellbeing talk in Scotland. “The main difference between Farmstrong Scotland and Farmstrong New Zealand, is that our programme is also for crofters. Crofting is a system of landholding which is unique to Scotland and is an integral part of life in the Highlands and Islands. More than 750,000ha of land in Scotland is crofting tenure, with approximately 33,000 people living in crofting households.” - Farmstrong Scotland's programme director Alix Ritchie. Read more about Farmstrong Scotland and the work they're doing in helping farmers look after their wellbeing and normalise conversations about health and wellbeing. https://lnkd.in/gsTSXKau

“You’ve gotta have fist-pump moments during the day. It might be that the dog is running really well, it might be a joke that someone tells you or a bit of good fencing that you’ve worked on. Just something that makes you smile and keeps you going,” James Bruce (Wairarapa sheep and beef farmer) and Corrigan Sowman (Golden Bay dairy farmer) share some top tips on how they get through the winter slog.

Cambridge dairy farmer Marc Gascoigne says it’s an absolute honour to share his story publicly to help others who may be struggling. The 58-year-old Farmstrong supporter has appeared as a guest speaker on behalf of Farmstrong at different rural events including the Fonterra Farm Managers Conference, an Anexa Vets event, Strawberry Growers NZ Conference, Cambridge Neighbourhood Support, an ANZCO Foods event and a Farmstrong Scotland event in Scotland. He says it’s always humbling to hear positive feedback from people in the audience and to know he’s helping others. “People often come up afterwards and it’s a good opportunity for me to listen to what they are saying and for them to get things off their chest and for me to point them in the right direction. Getting people thinking about doing something about their situation or even just planting a seed in their mind is a positive step forward.” https://lnkd.in/gGF8JUaF

"I’m a great believer that a positive attitude is vital whether you’re farming or rowing Cook Strait. I just focused on the little things, the shape of the waves coming at me, keeping my balance, one stroke at a time. And the next thing I knew, I’d rowed 30ks in 4 hours and 45 minutes." - Jamie Strang (Wairarapa Farmer) 76-year-old Jamie accomplished a great feat last week, rowing the Cook Strait all whilst advocating for rural mental wellbeing. You can contribute to his fundraising efforts on his givealittle page here: https://lnkd.in/gpk-uz8Z

We don't know about you, but we're still laughing from the recent Bitches' Box shows recently. Here's a glimpse of the Gladstone event - see if you can spot yourself! Thank you once again to all those who came along to the shows. After a tough year it was great to see so many of you having a good laugh, catching up with your community and having a well-deserved night off. Thanks to Frank Productions for capturing the essence of this awesome event for us 💙 New Zealand Rural Support Trust