Will’s World: The most valuable thing on your farm is you
© Richard Stanton A few years ago, I was honoured to be asked to be an ambassador for the Farming Community Network, and I readily accepted, for several reasons.
First, I obviously assumed everyone would have to start reverentially referring to me as “the ambassador”, and that I’d receive a lifetime supply of Ferrero Rocher with the role. Lamentably, neither of these things has happened yet.
See also: Farm Doctor: Sun exposure and skin cancer symptoms
About the author
Mainly, though, it’s because they’re a charity that’s extremely close to my heart.
They do incredible work supporting farmers and their families within our community, and I’m happy to help them out in any small way I can.
If you’ve never looked at their website before, I encourage you to do so, especially in these difficult times.
They offer many different forms of help, advice and assistance, including information on the recently launched “Nip it in the Bud” campaign to raise awareness of cancer risks, signs and symptoms in farming and rural communities, which is part of a UK-wide partnership between FCN and Macmillan Cancer Support.
A certain age
There are many great things about getting older in life – experience generally makes you more emotionally intelligent, you gain a total disregard for what other people think of you and your actions, and you tend to have a few more quid in the bank so you can do more of the things you want to in life.
But undoubtedly, one of the worst things is that you begin to encounter cancer – a lot – and nothing really prepares you for its impact.
Staggeringly, in the UK, more than 1,000 new cases are diagnosed every day, and it’s the cause of one in four deaths.
It’s an extremely difficult thing to talk about, let alone deal with, but we all know friends and loved ones who are either currently going through treatment, are in remission or, very sadly, have been taken way too soon.
It’s because of this that FCN has begun the campaign, and it’s encouraging farmers and people living in rural communities to Nip it in the Bud and get checked for early signs.
Unfortunately for those of us who live in relatively isolated areas, there’s often reduced access to cancer services and support due to the nature of our work and rural life, and we’re also at an increased risk of developing certain cancers such as skin, prostate or lung.
Seize the moment
We tend to put off going to the doctor, too, which certainly doesn’t help matters.
I’ve done it myself when I haven’t been feeling great – “I’m too busy to go this week, I’ll give them a call when things are a bit quieter,” I’ve said.
Of course, the fatal flaw in that line of thinking is that things are never quieter, are they?
And before you know it, a couple of months have gone by, whatever’s making you unwell has got progressively worse, you’re feeling sick as a dog, and you’re intolerable to be around.
Worst of all, your partner gets to repeatedly say: “I told you. You should have gone to see the doctor ages ago!”, and no one needs that in their life.
We can change that, though. Prolonged pains, tiredness or fatigue, which we often just think come with the territory in farming, should always be checked out as soon as possible because, if it is cancer, the sooner it’s diagnosed, the sooner it can be treated.
After all, the most valuable stock and tool on your farm is you.