"Farm families are experiencing pressure, conflict and uncertainty," said Don Bower, an Extension Service human development specialist with the University of Georgia College of Family and Consumer Sciences.

Feelings of frustration and helplessness can lead to intense family problems. "If left unresolved, these feelings can lead to costly accidents and deaths," Bower said.

Farming Is Stressful

Farming is among the most stressful and dangerous occupations. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health recently examined 130 occupations. It found laborers and farm owners had the highest rate of deaths due to stress-related conditions like heart and artery disease, hypertension, ulcers and nervous disorders.

The National Safety Council lists agriculture and mining as the two most hazardous occupations in the country. "Yet farmers are the most underinsured group of workers around," Bower said, "especially with regard to health and disability insurance."

Farming Is Changing

Farming is also changing fast. Once largely a physical occupation, farming is demanding more thought. Farmers now manage large sums of money and tackle new technology in machinery and equipment. To stay competitive, they must know the best production and management strategies.

Some farmers thrive under all the pressures, while others crumble. Researchers have identified three key factors for managing stress.

"First, individuals vary in their capacity to tolerate stress," Bower said. "While part of an individual's stress tolerance is inborn, a crucial part depends on the quality of skills practiced. Coping successfully once makes it easier the next time."

A second factor is feeling in control, the expert said. Successful stress managers know how to accept what they can't control, like weather and markets. They concentrate on solving problems within their control.

The third factor involves the attitudes, perceptions and meanings people assign to events.

"A person has to perceive a situation as stressful or threatening to experience stress," Bower said.

Recognizing Early Warning Signs

Farm families need to recognize early warning signs of stress so they can protect their health and safety, Bower said.

Rising blood pressure, rapidly beating heart, clenched teeth, aching neck and shoulders, sweating hands and feet and churning stomach are clear warning signs.

"If you ignore your body's physical signs of stress and strain too long, you invite real problems," Bower said. "Hypertension, declining health, accident proneness, serious illness, nervous breakdown or coronary heart disease can result."

Bower encouraged farm families act at the first sign of stress.

"Before farm families can manage stress, they have to know when they are experiencing it," he said.