As we continue to vaccinate our most at-risk Iowans and monitor the newest COVID-19 variants, a support arm for residents, COVID Recovery Iowa, is still busy helping them navigate these uncertain and unsettling times. Ag and Rural Behavioral Health Specialty Coordinator, Jason Haglund, is also a fifth-generation Iowa farmer who lives between Boone and Ogden and is very in-tune with some of the specific challenges in that area.
There is a natural ebb and flow to stress and anxiety in agriculture during so-called normal times. Haglund says, for some, that stress has been greatly exacerbated by the pandemic and adverse weather conditions such as a drought and a derecho.
One of the major outreach components of the organization is letting people know it is okay not to be okay right now and to help them gather the tools to work through this.
The sheer length of this pandemic is taking an emotional toll on many individuals, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) polls revealing that Iowans are experiencing anxiety and depression at three to four times pre-pandemic levels. Haglund conducts special speaking events and partners with Farm Bureau as well as Iowa State University Extension and Outreach to create programs targeted to the rural and ag communities. Haglund’s is just one niche area in the entirety of program services offered by COVID Recovery Iowa. He says they also provide one-on-one assistance well beyond his area of expertise.
Haglund says they will be continuing their work, helping Iowans through the long-term implications of the pandemic for some time. More information and a link to COVID Recovery Iowa resources can be found below.
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COVID Recovery Iowa: https://covidrecoveryiowa.org/
