2026 Fall Farm Outlook Lincoln Daily News Oct 2026 Page 29 positions to connect farmers with available resources. Understanding farm life is particularly important. Telling a farmer simply to work fewer hours, take a vacation or stop worrying about the business may not be realistic when crops need to be planted, animals need to be fed, or the family's financial future depends on the farm. Assistance is more likely to be useful when it recognizes those realities. Recognizing When Someone Needs Help Family members, friends, and others who regularly interact with farmers may notice changes before the person asks for help. Withdrawal from other people, expressions of hopelessness, dramatic mood changes, increased substance use, talking about being a burden or talking about death are warning signs that should be taken seriously. Immediate assistance is available throughout the country through the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. A person who is struggling emotionally can call, text or chat with 988. Family members and friends who are worried about someone can also contact 988 for guidance. For the Families Left Behind When someone dies by suicide, family members and friends are often left with grief complicated by questions that may never have clear answers. One of the most difficult emotions can be guilt. Those left behind may replay conversations, events, and warning signs, wondering what they missed, whether they should have noticed something or whether they could have done something different. These feelings can occur after a suicide, but feeling responsible does not mean a person was responsible. Suicide is rarely the result of one event, one conversation or one person's actions. The circumstances leading to a suicide can be complicated, and even the people closest to someone may not fully understand what that person was experiencing. Working through grief and guilt can take time. It may involve accepting that some questions will never have complete answers and allowing yourself to grieve without continually judging what you did or did not do. Talking with family members, a counselor, a support group, or others who have experienced a suicide loss can help. There is no single correct way to grieve. Sadness, anger, confusion, and guilt can all be part of that process. Remembering the person, talking about the
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MzExODA=