Perriam’s family has long been committed to agriculture and to highlighting the sector’s role in New Zealand, whether it is her uncle John’s much publicised escapades with the elusive Shrek or her sister’s rising profile as a rural media voice.
Elle’s contribution to the sector comes in her Will to Live rural mental health campaign that will culminate in her 2019 Speak Up tour visiting 14 provincial towns, providing a seminar for discussion of and solutions to farmers’ mental health issues.
Perriam talks excitedly and passionately about her plans for the tour that will kick off next winter, a typically quieter time for most farmers and also one when dull, wet weather can have rural moods at a low ebb.
Her enthusiasm and passion for getting young farmers, in particular, engaged in a nationwide conversation about their mental health was sparked from the depths of personal despair at the loss of her boyfriend just over a year ago to suicide.
It was a loss that came out of the blue for anyone who knew him, with aftershocks of grief and loss that ripped from his immediate family and through the wider community.
“It prompted me to try and pull something positive from this experience, to try and reach out to younger farmers, shepherds and farm workers who are now a greater proportion of the people appearing in rural suicide statistics,” she says.
The State of the Rural Nation Survey released in early October highlighted the younger generation (18-39-year-olds) of rural New Zealanders are most affected by an overall elevated level of rural stress and anxiety.
Perhaps surprisingly, 85% in this age bracket said they felt more stress in the past five years, significantly more than those over 55.
So a focus for Perriam’s campaign is to encourage this younger group of farmers to feel comfortable talking about their mental health state, encouraging them to seek more help and not necessarily have that help coming from online counselling.
“It is a case of encouraging them to seek help from whatever source proves most effective, either through positive personal activities or by talking and interacting with others who can empathise with their issues.”
“Earlier on the statistics tended to highlight an older group of farmers who were affected as owners or managers.
“But the numbers show it’s this younger group really affected and when it comes to young rural males in particular, you simply are not going to get them ringing an 0800 hotline for help. I know Will simply would not have done that.”
With research showing young rural respondents less likely than their urban counterparts to consider talking to a health professional Perriam is keen to engage people who might be approachable and helpful in rural communities to talk to the gatherings.
“That could be another farmer, maybe a stock agent who has been through such an experience, they could be something of an ambassador for the issue in that area.
“We also intend to have a mental health expert on the mechanics of depression and anxiety speaking.”
Perriam admits she has been overwhelmed by the level of support she has received.
Initially hoping to reach about $15,000 in donations to support the campaign she has hit $20,000, got some wheels under her to publicise it and had many people approach her with their first-hand experiences. She has also secured some solid corporate sponsorship from Ruralco and AllFlex.
The extra funding has enabled her to push the coverage out to 14 meetings and to include Kaikoura and Northland in the tour.
“We want to be able to have them within close distance of where people are farming, keeping travel time down and have them in a relaxed atmosphere like the local pub.”
A travelling companion for Perriam and mascot for the campaign is Will’s big black Huntaway, Jess. Jess took centre stage at the Will to Live campaign launch at Hunterville during the Shepherd’s Shemozzle and has joined her at rural events inlcuding A&P shows this spring.
She says the process of organising her campaign has been a healing part of dealing with her loss and a huge step to pulling something positive from that loss.
MORE:
www.pledgeme.co.nz/projects/5842-will-to-live-speak-up-tour-2019
