Tips for managing spring stress

Spring is the worst.

Hot take, I know, because spring is also the best (obviously) . The woody crops and peonies waking up. The ranunculus. Oh, the ranunculus! Flower sales finally starting after a long, lean winter and plenty of cash going out the door. The sunshine (before you start recoiling from it, as I do every summer).

But I realized, maybe 4 years into farming full time, that I’d never feel centered or grounded or ‘on top of things’ in the spring. There are always too many competing priorities, impossible timelines, waiting, waiting and more waiting for the ground to thaw or dry, followed by the impossible crunch-time rush of getting all kinds of plants into the ground all at once. And one million other things to do.

We talked about the ‘Spring Overwhelm’ the other night in one of my group coaching sessions, when one farmer brought her own particular bag of overwhelm to the (proverbial) table to be aired and hopefully alleviated, if only just a little. What followed was an open and raw conversation on the topic and the feeling of constantly pushing the damn rock up the hill and being pushed down, little by little, again and again. We came out the other side of it with some tangible strategies for moving forward during this challenging time. I’ve employed many of these during many seasons, and can honestly say that my Springs don’t hit as hard as they used to. Here are the top five.

1) Remember that it’s a countdown.

It wasn’t until the first time that I truly accepted what a tailspin I was in during spring, that I could identify it as a real time of stress, that necessitated different strategies than normal. The first step is to expect the stress, live through it, and remember that it’s a finite experience. It will end. It will end soon (depending on your climate and location, that might be a few weeks before Mother’s Day or a few weeks after). (Hi to my New Zealand people - this if of course fall for you - I didn’t forget about you, I love you and let’s please plan my visit real soon, ok?).

If you can remember that you only have to live through this for another few weeks, it gets easier. There’s a real light at the end of a real tunnel.

2) Baby yourself.

You’re not going to be your smartest self, you most energetic self, your strongest self, or your most high-level self right now. You might not always go high when they go low. You just might not excel at being a partner or a mom or just straight up a person.

But that’s ok. Refer back to tip #1 and remember, you’ll get through it. Make more lists for yourself than normal - and remember to cross off even the smallest, dumbest things so that you can see that you’re actually making progress. In fact, make lists and limit them - no more of staring at lists you’ll never get through. If you have 5 - 10 main tasks every day (which is reasonable, by the way), anything additional you get done it just icing on the cake.

Make yourself a bed time. Order takeout (remember the vegetables) for your family and set an alarm for yourself to drink water ever hour. Make decisions and plans for yourself when you find rare moments of calm, and for god’s sake, stick to them when you’re feeling overwhelmed.

3) Get more accountability.

The farmer in my program told us that she has a friend she’ll enlist sometimes to help her make to-do lists. Sometimes the friend doesn’t even have to do anything other than listen, because it’s the external accountability that helps more than the actual advice or teamwork. So, I suggested scheduling these check-ins weekly for the next month to get through this crazy time. I also suggested letting this friend know that this was a crucial, and hard time to get through, and that every bit of help was crucial and so appreciated. And what are friends for if not supporting us when they’re feeling strong and we’re feeling weak? The roles will flip back and forth and that’s just fine. People love to help people they love. So let them.

4) Be fierce in scheduling time off.

It won’t happen naturally. You won’t just happen to not work on Sunday. So make it happen. Plan the day - what you’ll eat for breakfast, where you’ll go for lunch (make a reservation so you can’t get out of it. Yes, Pizza Hut may laugh at you when you call to schedule it, but hey). Write out a little schedule of what time you’re taking your dogs for a walk or going to an afternoon movie (my favorite way to force some dead time on a hot day in a busy stretch).

5) “Dump the stock.”

I reminded my farmers that there’s often no way to stay on top of all of the projects that demand our attention in spring. So this is a great time to call it quits on things that just don’t have a chance in hell of actually getting completed. It’s ok. Some plants will die, some new or lofty projects just won’t happen until next year. You’ll miss a succession or pruning the lilac in time or revamping a corner of the field.

The farmer in the hot seat mentioned that she had a bunch of trays of stock that she just could not find the time to get into the ground. I jumped in and reprimanded ‘Yes! That’s a great example. Just dump the stock.”

So, my friends. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel this spring on your farm. Baby yourself. Get some extra help and accountability. Take a breather. Cut corners. And dump the damn stock.