Opinion Articles

*Drought: Counting the Psychological Costs
By Colleen Wilson
Colleen Wilson is the manager of Centacare Newcastle's Counselling and Therapy Service. Centacare Newcastle, the official welfare agency of the Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, is a recognised provider of counselling through the Department of Family and Community Services Family and Relationships Services Program.

Centacare can provide free drought counselling in Maitland, Singleton, Muswellbrook and Taree. For further information, phone (02) 4961 3155.

The community is well aware of the financial cost of drought. Its impact is experienced daily in the increased price of food on the supermarket shelf and we're told often enough of its implications on the nation's trade figures. Much attention is also given to the drought's impact on the environment - with soil erosion, salinity problems and the ever-present risk of bush fires part of our every day reality. But what about the much less talked about psychological costs of drought?

Our farmers are known for their resilience. Farming is often a lone occupation, but farmers build their own support network within their family, friends and community. Drought, fires and floods are an inevitable part of the ongoing cycle of farming. Planning for adverse times is strategically calculated into farmers risk management practice. However, the current drought is severe and the associated stress on our usually resilient farmers, their families and their local communities is enormous.

When drought management plans fail, farmers often blame themselves. Priding themselves on being able to buffer the challenges nature serves them, they can begin to question their professional competence. The drought can challenge their identity and their sense of self which are so closely connected with their occupation and the way of life they value dearly.

The drought-associated loss of income can cause extreme psychological and ongoing stress to individuals, couples and families. Counselling statistics collected during the 1994-1996 drought found loss of income was the major source of stress for men.

Compounding the emotional and psychological impact of the drought is the farmers awareness that the stress is not over when the rain eventually falls. They know it will take many seasons to restock and recover lost income from failed crops. As their debts mount, the loss of income can potentially lead to loss of property for the farmers and their families. High unemployment in rural areas can result in families having to move to find work, forcing major adjustments to lifestyle.

The Federal Government has acknowledged the need to offer counselling support to rural families through its provision of funding for drought relief counselling through the Department of Family and Community Services Family Relationship Services Program. Counselling can help families deal with the emotional stress and strain associated with drought.

Ongoing psychological stress can put the individual at risk of developing mental health problems such as depression and anxiety. Symptoms of stress often remain untreated as farmers struggle to cope with the day to day tasks of drought management.

Self-medication is often the first line of treatment when under psychological stress. The struggle to cope can lead to increased use and abuse of alcohol and other drugs. While this behaviour might be thought to bring about initial short term relief, in the longer term the problem escalates. The costs of substance abuse for families and the community are enormous.

The often used coping strategy of simply working harder can lead to physical and emotional fatigue. There is a depletion of personal resources and increased feelings of inadequacy. With the deterioration of mental well being and, as feelings of helplessness and hopelessness rise, the risk of suicide can increase.

Increased incidences of domestic violence can occur as the pressures on couple and family relationships rise with tensions in the household. Feelings of powerlessness, irritability and mounting anger are often directed towards family members who try to offer support.

Family relationship breakdown is often a hidden consequence of drought. Normally the prime source of support, the family network becomes another source of enormous psychological stress. This changed reality can cause family members to experience feelings of grief and loss. Counselling statistics from the 1994-1996 drought show that the major reason women attended counselling was their concern for family relationships and the risk of family breakdown.

Children are also caught up in the stress both within the family and within their community. The psychological impact on children is a major concern as they are less equipped to deal with emotional stress. They too can begin to show the symptoms of depression and anxiety as they watch their parents struggle to manage on a daily basis.

Children need to feel safe and secure in order to thrive and develop. They need to experience the security of knowing their parents are in control and can keep them physically and emotionally safe. The drought impacts on their previously carefree environment. More than likely their school friends are exposed to the same stress and strain and their sense of normality can be severely shaken.

Yet, despite or perhaps because of these very real psychological and emotional pressures, the drought crises can potentially provide an opportunity for farming families to stop, reassess priorities and develop alternative coping strategies with the support of family, friends, the local community and (when appropriate) professional counsellors.

* This article was published in The Newcastle Herald, 6th February 2003.