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Before you can support others consider the following:

-    Is your battery effectively charged?
-    Are you in a space of understanding, empathy and acceptance?

Dr Bill Howatt of Howatt HR says that we may be required to help others at some point in our life and it can range from helping with chores on the farm when labour is tight to being there when someone is experiencing a difficult time.

If you are looking for support, it is important to name what you need as other people are bad at predicting or guessing what we actually need.   Be mindful of what you may need from other people.

When we provide support to others, we want to resist the urge in telling people what they need.  Providing support has a bigger impact on our brain’s stress response than receiving support.

There are various types of support.

1.    Emotional Support gives us the feeling we are being cared for by others.
2.    Esteem Support is developing a sense of competence.
3.    Network Support allows us to feel like we belong to a group.
4.    Tangible Support is helping someone through a crisis.
5.    Information Support is providing advice and guidance.

Know your boundaries when providing support.  Do not try to diagnose or be a health professional and most importantly be aware of compassion fatigue as it inhibits our ability to have empathy for others. 

Offer the person to call the Farm Family Support Center (1-844-880-9142 or https://www.workhealthlife.com/) if you feel you may not be in the place to support others as they need or if they need professional support.

Positive impacts on your health and well-being when you feel supported:
 
-    Decrease in chronic disease
-    Increase in reward activation
-    Increased in mental fitness
-    Increased happiness
-    Increased sense of purpose
-    Lower levels of stress
-    Increased quality of life
-    Increase in pay it forward
 
When providing support, be sure to listen to those around you, remove fear, acknowledge others in public, and conduct regular structured check-ins.

Reflections of the Day:
1.    What is the way you most commonly support people?
2.    What is the way you most commonly like to receive support?

Submitted by Farm Safety Nova Scotia