Stress Management To Overcome Environmental Impediments

TECHNIQUES FOR FARM STRESS MANAGEMENT

STRESS

Stress is defined as the adverse reaction of the people to excessive pressure or other types of demand placed on them (Jone Parry, 2005).

Why should we be bothered about stress and stress management?

Because stress results in numerous costs to the:
Individual Family Work community And, Society at large.

Thus, Its Important For Organizations To Address Stress And Related Issues

Stress!!!
Stress is a daily part of all our lives Actually, good stress is quite beneficial to ones

overall health.
It is only when stress is negative (distress) and

prolonged or very intense that it takes a toll on health and well-being.

Emotions + Farmer = Emotional Farmer

The real secret is how to harness and use

emotions attached to your desired experiences, and how to melt away the emotions attached to your limiting beliefs, values, judgments and memories.
Desired experiences

Emotions

Limiting beliefs, values,

judgments and memories
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 The current farm economy is again causing

distress levels to increase and farmers need to practice stress management skills routinely and seek assistance if they are having difficulty managing their stress. Market prices, government regulations, and weather disasters are difficult to control, but farmers do have control over their own behavior.

Common Agriculture Stressors

Living with Tight Money, Feeling like Hired Labor, Heavy Work Load, Farm Greater Priority than Family, Relationship Issues,

Lack of Control over Natural World

Machinery Failures, Poor Teamwork,

Time Pressures:
Differing Time Commitments

Common Agriculture Stressors

Receiving Criticism from Family, Disagreement over Spending, Not being Involved in Decisions, Not being on Own, Taking More/Less Risk than Others,

Lack of Adequate, Affordable ,

Accessible Child Care, Media Portrayal of Agriculture Industry, Farm/Home Role Conflicts, Generational Communication Difficulties,
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Common Agriculture Stressors

Family/Business/Ownership Dynamics, Marketing Decisions, Meeting with Bankers, Rising Input Costs, Excessive Paperwork,

Farm Transfer,
Constant Attention to Business, Inadequate Access to Health Care

Services for Mental & Emotional Stress due to Geographic Location

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Identity Challenge
Major challenge in dealing with stress in

agriculture industry is many farmers carry strong sense of identity This identity can be compromised by reaching out for help in any form
Yet, we know farming is one of the most stressful

careers in the country

No matter how strong ones sense of identity is,

stress will always present itself somewhere; physical, emotional, psychological, behavioral
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Symptoms of Stress
Emotional Symptoms: Excessive worry, apathy, withdrawal, depression, helplessness and hopelessness, nervous Physical Symptoms: Headaches, difficulty sleeping, weight loss/gain, frequent colds, extreme fatigue, upset stomach, muscle tension Behavioral Symptoms: Excessive drinking/smoking,/eating extreme mood change w/o apparent reason, outbursts of anger/aggression, irritability Psychological Symptoms: Inability to concentrate, difficulty in decision making, memory loss
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So, How can you manage this stress?

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Managing Stress
1. Meditation

Increase happiness, increase inner peace, lowers stress, increase mental clarity

2. Outdoor exposure get into nature 3. Exercise

Decrease life shortening and aging stress hormones

4. Friends close communion with group

members

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Managing Stress
5. Pets

Simple petting can lower heart rate, decrease stress and anxiety, and lower blood pressure Apart from being stress busters, the pets which can be reared in coconut farms can also be a source of income generation. Examples piggery, rabbit rearing, duck rearing, goats, quails, decorative birds etc.

6. Proper diet 7. Balancing life activities

Family, work, health, friends, leisure, spirituality

8. Time management
Set priorities and stick to them Dont allow others to distract you Delegate responsibility to others
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A More Effective Way of Understanding Stress

Stress is not a problem as we are often

told It is not about being broken, nor about being weak, it is actually an adaptive function Actually a good thing!

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Stress is Information!
Stress is actually just our bodies way of

communicating with us
Stress, or pain, is simply the bodys way of

communicating with us that something needs attention Something is not right here, something is not in alignment with you Our body is giving us hints as to areas in our lives that need attention

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Hence,
Listen to your stress and work upon it!!!

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THANK YOU!!!

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