Stress is everywhere, and there are many facets of our daily life where we encounter challenging times. For parents, it can be increasingly difficult to help our children navigate through these challenging and changing times when our own buckets feel dry many days. Yet suppose the ongoing resilience of farm families across Wisconsin proves one thing. In that case, it’s that many are finding ways of doing just that – helping their children navigate the landscape of uncertainties and potential stressors every day.
We all cope with stress in different ways; pushing harder, and ignoring our physical, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual needs to thrive. Or maybe the opposite: shutting down altogether and becoming overwhelmed with cycles of anxiety, depression, and fatigue. There are multiple ways that these stress responses show up in our bodies and minds. No matter what these stressors are, or where we land on the scale of coping, it’s important to remember that our response is being observed by our loved ones, by our children.
