‘It got so bad that I called my sister to say goodbye’ – depression and anxiety in farming

As a DCU study finds that farmers face significant mental health issues compared to the general population, two farmers reveal the extent of their struggles – and how they turned things round

Shay Concannon working on the farm in Co Galway. Photos: Ray Ryan

Azmia Riaz

For most of his adult life, Shay Concannon spent every waking minute on his family farm in Galway — sometimes on days when he fell out of love with being a farmer.

“I was always on the farm,” he says. “If I wasn’t milking cows at certain times of the day, I’d be getting a phone call from my family asking ‘What’s wrong with you?’.