Mental health struggles and rising suicide rates among farmers are becoming an alarming concern across rural America.
A recent CBS News feature spotlighted the issue—and one of the voices in that report was Jolie Foreman, co-founder of Shelby County Cares.
She told Missourinet that northeast Missouri has one of the highest suicide rates in the state.
“Yeah, Montgomery County, it actually ranks number one in the state for suicide deaths,” said Foreman. “In Macon County, overall is I think 5th. And when it comes to firearms, they’re one and two.”
Foreman told Missourinet there’s a financial piece that adds to the issue.
“There’s a lot of generational farms and that plays into it too,” said Foreman. “If you do feel like you’re going to be the one that loses the land that you know, your great grandparents fought so hard to keep in the family, there’s a lot of added pressure.”
Foreman said getting farmers to seek help isn’t easy.
“Their fixers,” said Foreman. “They don’t want to ask for help. So now there is a therapist that is in house in Shelby County. So, a lot of farmers particularly don’t have the best insurance. Some don’t have any insurance. And then all of our donations go to help pay for those therapy services.”
Foreman said that in Shelby County, there’s just one therapist for roughly 6,000 people—a gap her group, Shelby County Cares, is working hard to close.
Below is a list of resource guides highlighting some of the services and tools available across Missouri.
Suicide Prevention and Crisis Support
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline Dial 988 (24/7, free, confidential) Text or chat via 988lifeline.org – Connects you to trained crisis counselors. You can press “1” for Veterans or “2” for Spanish.
Crisis Text Line Text HOME to 741741 for 24/7 text support.
Missouri Suicide Prevention Network (MSPN) mospn.org Statewide coalition offering training, education, and prevention resources for communities and organizations.
Behavioral Health Crisis Line (Missouri Department of Mental Health) 1-800-811-4760 Connects callers to their local Community Mental Health Center.
Farmer & Agricultural Mental Health Resource
AgriStress Helpline for Missouri 833-897-2474 (833-897-AGRI) — 24/7 AgriStressHelpline.com Specifically for farmers, ranchers, and their families. Staffed by professionals trained in agriculture-related stress.
Farm Aid Hotline 1-800-FARM-AID (1-800-327-6243) farmaid.org Provides financial, legal, and mental health support to farm families nationwide.
Missouri Farm Bureau – Farm Stress Resources mofb.org/farmstress Includes local counseling info, peer stories, and signs of farm stress.
American Farm Bureau – Farm State of Mind farmstateofmind.org National initiative addressing mental health in agriculture with videos, guides, and conversation starters.
Missouri Department of Agriculture – “Mental Health Resources for Farmers” agriculture.mo.gov/focusonag/mentalhealth.php Practical tools, financial stress info, and wellness support for farm families.
University of Missouri Extension – “Taking Care of You” extension.missouri.edu/takingcare Workshops, self-care programs, and community education for rural well-being.
Copyright © 2025 · Missourinet
