Virtually every summer, my parents managed to take a holiday from the farm, usually with us children in tow, where at least for a few days farming wasn’t the main focus.
The current spell of good weather reminds me of that, as the country continues to bask in great sunshine and heat from morning till night, it seems like almost every farmer is busy saving a bit of hay.
However, the other trip that seemed to happen in our house every summer was to Carlow, to the legendary Danny O’Neill, we’d all pile into the car to spend what could be hours waiting among humans and animals in the bonesetter’s yard, for my father to have his back seen to.
With this week being Farm Safety Week, some time off from farming should be a priority for everyone in the sector. Farming is a 24-hours-a-day job for many, with livestock and weather often dictating long hours and lonely work. It’s little wonder the fatality rate in agriculture is far higher than in any other economic sector.
It’s a sector that is physically and mentally difficult a lot of the time and that’s why we have a special feature this week by Claire Mc Cormack on farming health and safety.
The current spell of good weather should be an opportunity to take stock of measures you can take to improve your health and safety.
For GAA star Darren Hughes, looking after your body is the same as looking after your cows or machines and small changes can lead to big results.
As one farmer simply points out, “if we farmers were healthier as a community, we could actually reduce the number of farm accidents”.
And the first step towards that can be very simple to make. As John Connell says, even a half-hour a day of exercise can make a huge difference to your overall well-being, both mentally and physically.
And too often, our mental well-being is ignored. But, unfortunately, as George Graham points out, there continues to be a culture of silence around mental health in the sector and those who spoke to Claire Mc Cormack on how they tackled their health issues are to be commended.
Now is the time with bright sunshine and long evenings to take the first step in tackling your mental and physical health. Don’t leave it until the depths of winter.
