Quick hits: No.1 favorite ice cream; ousting rogue drones; big find by NASA's Curiosity Rover; some good news

Farm Journal graphic, from IDFA National Ice Cream & Frozen Novelty Trends Survey

It's dark and rich and back in the top spot. "Chocolate is back at No. 1 among U.S. ice cream flavors, with butter pecan gaining ground and richer options continuing to rise in popularity, according to a new survey," reports Taylor Leach of Farm Journal. "After briefly ceding the No. 1 spot to vanilla in 2024, chocolate has reclaimed the lead in 2026." Michael Dykes, the International Dairy Foods Association president, told Leach, "Americans’ love for ice cream is as strong as ever." 

The Conversation graph, from Energy Information Administration data

After weeks of surging gasoline prices with no end in sight, some Americans might be wondering what all goes into the cost of a gallon of gas. Robert I. Harris, an energy economist, breaks down gas prices for The Conversation. "The price of a retail gallon of gas is the sum of four things: the cost of crude oil, refining, distribution and marketing, and taxes. . . . In nationwide figures from January 2026, crude oil accounted for about 51% of the pump price, refining roughly 20%, distribution and marketing about 11% and taxes about 18%." Harris adds that since crude oil is the biggest component of gasoline, when its price spikes on the global market, gas prices go up. 

Indiana farmers didn't appreciate drones hovering over
their livestock. (Photo by B. Dittrich, Unsplash)

In rural Indiana, some farming families are "leaning on the law" to keep unwanted drones off their lands, reports Greg Weaver of Indiana Capital Chronicle. "Hoosiers in rural Indiana say drones are unlawfully tracking deer for poachers, inexplicably flying around chicken coops, and increasingly making people uneasy." Although many Indiana farmers considered shooting down the snooping drones, they learned that wasn't legal. "So they’ve found other ways to combat the rascals. . . . Farmers fearful that drones might be spreading disease among livestock recently persuaded the Indiana General Assembly to pass a law that prohibits the devices from being used to harm or harass farm animals."

When it comes to serving up energy for hungry grids in rural Virginia, sometimes smaller is better. "The Blue Ridge Power Agency, which serves a string of nonprofit utilities in central and western Virginia, is set to go live this summer with a collection of five batteries of about 5 megawatts each," reports Elizabeth Ouzts of Canary Media. By comparison, larger batteries are typically at least 10 megawatts; however, both sizes aim to store energy when it's less expensive and plentiful. Blue Ridge Power's new batteries will "help two rural electric co-ops and the city of Salem’s utility save money" by releasing battery-stored energy "when high demand on the grid spikes prices." Unlike their larger cousins, smaller batteries are cheaper and faster to build.

NASA's Curiousity Rover spends its time exploring Mars and 
sending information back to Earthlings. (NASA image)

It's hard to be more remote than exploring for signs of life on Mars, which is what the Curiosity Rover spends its time doing. "New research published in Nature Communications details Curiosity’s latest find — never-before-seen organic compounds, including one with a structure similar to DNA precursors," reports Jake Currie for Nautilus. NASA geologist Amy Williams told Nautilus, "The same stuff that rained down on Mars from meteorites is what rained down on Earth, and it probably provided the building blocks for life as we know it on our planet." To send all those compounds back to Earth, Curiosity had to conduct a full orchestra of experiments. The Curiosity also goes by "the little robotic chemist that could."

Suicide deaths among younger Americans dipped by 11% from earlier projections. 
(Graph by Vishal R. Patel, MD,  Michael Liu, MD,  and Anupam B. Jena, MD)

And now, some really good news: "The rate of suicides among young people in the United States dropped 11% below projections, decreasing most sharply in states with a higher volume of answered 988 calls, a new study has found, reports Ellen Barry of The New York Times. The study's results, published in a research letter in The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), found that 4,372 more adolescents and young adults, ages 15 to 34, are alive today than previously projected. The study's data suggests that the federal government’s 988 suicide prevention hotline rollout, which launched in 2022, is having a positive impact among younger Americans.

Virtual Crisis Care connects rural law enforcement with mental health resources during emergencies

Virtual Crisis Care programs, expanding from South Dakota into Wyoming, are helping law enforcement in rural communities gain on-demand access to mental health professionals to de-escalate emergency situations, reports Madeline de Figueiredo for The Daily Yonder.

Officers connect with the telemedicine network Avel eCare in real-time, effectively helping about 80% of individuals across the country to receive care safely at home rather than being unnecessarily hospitalized or incarcerated, Figueiredo explains.

A clinician from Avel eCare specifically assigned to an individual “conducts a risk evaluation, creates a safety plan, and works with officers on next steps,” Figueiredo reports. Because Virtual Crisis Care isn’t just for an emergency response, these next steps always include connecting the individuals with local community health centers for follow-up care.

This program, funded by the Helmsley Charitable Trust, has been used in South Dakota for over five years by more than 30 rural law enforcement departments. Last year, the program was introduced to the Wyoming Association of Sheriffs and Chiefs of Police (WASCOP), with about 25% of law enforcement agencies participating so far.

“I think if you look at serving in rural America, not only on the criminal side but on the mental health side, you deal with the same people over years and decades. If you can get someone struggling with addiction or mental health into treatment and help them change their life, then we’re not seeing them anymore on the law enforcement side of things,” the executive director of WASCOP, Allen Thompson, told Figueiredo.

Suicide awareness in rural communities can help save lives

As we launch into Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, an outline focusing on how and why more rural residents die by suicide, paired with resources on how friends and family members can help, may save lives.

Due to unpredictability in everything from weather to political strife, farming is more financially stressful than most other professions. It also tends to be more solitary, which can make farmers more vulnerable to excessive worry, depression and despair.

"Signs of stress in the farm economy are everywhere you turn, and with corn futures hitting fresh lows, crumbling commodity prices are painting a dreary outlook for 2025, and the financial pressures are causing another bleak reality: farmer suicides are also on the rise," reports Tyne Morgan for Farm Journal.

If a farmer in your community looks like they need support, there are resources and approaches neighbors can take, including encouraging a call to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988, or chat on 988lifeline.org, or texting HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor.

Farm Journal provides a "toolbox" with what to look for and how to help here.

The availability of firearms in rural homes is a significant reason why more rural people commit suicide. "Rural gun deaths exceed urban rates by 28% because of increased suicide rates," reports Sarah Melotte for the Missouri Independent. Guns are considered the most lethal choice for a person contemplating suicide.

Graph by Sarah Melotte, from CDC data

Rural communities that support waiting periods for gun purchases and red flag laws may be able to  decrease suicide rates. Mellote explains, "Waiting periods could help rural communities in the American West that have some of the highest suicide rates in the country. . . . Red flag laws allow law enforcement or concerned family members to petition a court to remove firearms from individuals deemed to be a threat to themselves or others."

While the intention of a person's drug overdose can be unclear, some are determined to be suicides. Drug overdoses are not inherently unique to rural residents; however, awareness of those who may be more vulnerable may help prevent a suicide due to drugs.

In 2020 alone, nearly 92,000 people died from drug overdoses in the U.S. According to the CDC, about 5% to 7% of those overdose deaths were recorded as intentional. "Because it can be difficult to determine whether overdose deaths are intentional, the actual numbers are likely even higher."

To address the numerous reasons for suicide and interventions available for all communities, the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration provides a range of resources. Additionally, the Rural Health Information Hub has offers a program clearinghouse specifically curated for rural communities.

Finally, suicide is complicated for children and adolescents to understand. The University of Utah offers an age-by-age guide for talking to children about suicide.

Military doctors try to replace therapy for PTSD with 'combat cocktails.' The practice has been linked to suicide risk.

Veterans are 50% more likely to commit suicide than civilian 
adults. (Medication-Induced Suicide Prevention graphic)

Although there is no data to support the practice, many military doctors prescribe "combat cocktails" to veterans with Post- traumatic stress disorder. "The practice, known as 'polypharmacy,' can tranquilize patients to the point of numbness, cause weight gain and increase suicidal thoughts when it involves pharmaceuticals that target the central nervous system," report Shalini Ramachandran and Betsy McKay of The Wall Street Journal. Because roughly a third of military veterans live in rural areas, the post-combat treatment may have a disproportionate impact on rural families and communities.

Medical guidelines for the Department of Veterans Affairs don't recommend giving patients simultaneous mixes of psychiatric medications, and the Food and Drug Administration warns against the practice. And yet, "prescribing cocktails of such drugs is one of the VA’s most common treatments for veterans with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)," the Journal reports. "And the number of veterans on multiple psychiatric drugs is a growing concern at the agency."

Polypharmacy definitions vary, but "the VA defines it as taking five or more medications at the same time," Ramachandran and McKay explain. A growing number of VA physicians and researchers believes such dosing can have disastrous results, because powerful drugs can interact with patients' nervous systems and each other in unpredictable ways.

While talk therapy is considered the best PTSD treatment, therapists are often in short supply, so medical providers have turned to medicine to treat PTSD symptoms. "Nearly 60% of VA patients with PTSD were taking two or more central nervous system drugs at the same time in 2019," the Journal reports. "The VA declined requests from The Wall Street Journal to provide more recent polypharmacy numbers for veterans in its care."

Given that suicide rates among veterans are much higher than those of civilian adults, how the VA treats PTSD is under scrutiny from Congress, advocacy groups and veterans. "Studies by VA researchers link the simultaneous use of multiple psychiatric drugs to suicide risk among veterans," Ramachandran and McKay write. "Yet the agency has been slow to mandate changes."

Quick hits: Timely 'Star Wars' series; U.S.A.-made shoes; modern Appalachian cooking; incarcerated firefighters

The Star Wars franchise might begin and end in "a galaxy far, far away," but its newest series 'Andor' serves up some close-to-home conflicts. "Migrant farm workers sweating visa status amid amped-up immigration enforcement. Aggressive strip mining of the land without consideration of local communities.  … Rising disregard for due process and human rights," writes Adam B. Giorgi for The Daily Yonder. "Various installments in the franchise have been associated with or said to draw inspiration from then-contemporary concerns, including the Vietnam War, the Cold War, and the American invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. But it’s arguably never been more timely or effective than it is in 'Andor.'"

Keen moved part of its production back to the U.S.
(Keen photo via BBC North America)

High tariffs are one tool the Trump administration has put in place to try to stimulate American manufacturing growth, but even as those costs hit the U.S. market, the question remains, "How can the U.S. reinvent its manufacturing sector in today's global economy?" While U.S. factories look different now than they did in the 1970s, it can be done. Family-owned Keen Footwear located outside of Louisville, Ky., is showing the way, reports Michelle Fleury of BBC North America. "With just 24 employees on site, the factory relies heavily on automation — sophisticated robots that fuse soles and trim materials — underscoring a transformation in how goods are made today."

If it feels like life needs a reset or even an "undo" button, heading outside may be the answer. "Nature can save us from a world gone mad," writes Dana Milbank of The Washington Post. "I hiked the Appalachian Trail, and it fixed my brain. … I wandered happily along the trail spotting the colors of the forest in spring: the red columbine, the lavender wild geranium, the lacy maple-leaf viburnum. … I found myself talking back to the birds that seemed to be following us."

Pharmacist Jan Brandenburg shares her
Appalachian roots in her new cookbook.

Sometimes sharing recipes from home is the best way to showcase what your region is all about. For Jan Brandenburg of Kentucky, home is Appalachia, where she learned to love cooking, baking and science. "Today, after nearly 40 years as a practicing pharmacist, Brandenburg has published The Modern Mountain Cookbook: A Plant-Based Celebration of Appalachia, a tribute to her Eastern Kentucky roots and a vibrant exploration of how food — like medicine — can nourish, heal and connect," report Dana Cox and Rosa Mejia-Cruz for UKnow. "Brandenburg often finds herself offering guidance to patients … not just on medications, but on food choices, too. And she's just as happy to share recipes."

Seeing and smelling my mom's homemade yeast rolls rising in a warm oven, getting a nose-full of Grandma's mildewy basement where I used to fetch canned tomatoes, hearing the old Gordon Lightfoot song my dad played until everyone had it memorized. Those are all distinct experiences with memories and feelings attached to them. According to social psychologist and researcher Chelsea Reid, that feeling — nostalgia — is good for us. Reid explains in her story for The Conversation, that "sentimental longing for treasured moments in our personal pasts is linked to our well-being and feelings of connection with others … triggered by sensory stimuli such as music, scents and foods, nostalgia has the power to mentally transport us back in time."

A line of ARC-supported firefighters head off to battle a blaze. 
(ARC photo via Civil Eats)

When people think of firefighters, they don't also think about prisoners, but that's what some firefighters are, and just like non-incarcerated firefighters, they need care, too. "As hurricane-force winds caused wildfires to raze entire neighborhoods in Los Angeles County, more than 7,500 firefighters risked their lives. … Among them were an estimated 1,100 inmates from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation," reports Nadra Nittle of Civil Eats. "Sam Lewis of the Anti-Recidivism Coalition discusses why good meals, better pay, and post-release support could transform the future for incarcerated firefighters — and why society should see their humanity."

Heavy emotional burdens, struggles of American farmers 'need national attention and policy changes'

A worried farmer stares at his crop of wheat and weeds. 
(Adobe Stock photo)

America's farmers have a lot on their minds: Flooding, weeds, bugs, spiking fertilizer prices, bird flu, changes at the USDA, tractor repairs, extreme rain, high winds, crop insurance, tariffs and isolation. Those pressures can leave farmers deeply distressed and depressed to the point of considering suicide.

"This chronic stress puts farmers at a higher risk of developing health conditions including heart disease, hypertension, depression and anxiety disorders," reports Emily Payne of Food Tank. "Thankfully, nonprofit organizations, farmers’ coalitions and other organizations are working to remove the barriers preventing farmers from accessing suicide prevention assistance."

Part of helping farmers reach out for help means working to reduce stigmas that surround mental health that are often found in rural regions. "In 2021, 63% of farmers and farm workers surveyed by the American Farm Bureau Federation said that there is at least some stigma around stress and mental health in the agriculture community," Payne reports. Farmers and farm employees are afraid they will be recognized and shamed for seeking mental health care.

Third-generation Wisconsin farmer Jake Beeler explained why farmers sometimes avoid dealing with any mental health struggles. He told Payne, "I’m sure there are mental health resources, but anybody that I know that ends up going down that road, money is a huge issue. Why go spend money talking to somebody when I could be at work getting stuff done? That’s the mindset that gets bred into you as a farmer.”

Katherine Un of the National Young Farmers Coalition, told Food Tank, "It’s challenging for farmers to find the time to seek or schedule treatment while working long days, or to find health care providers who understand the unique challenges of farming. . . and the inextricable link between their work, their livelihood, and their sense of purpose in the world."

Several farming organizations provide structures so farmers can support each other. "Young Farmers Cultivemos network facilitates farmer cohorts, regular farmer-led and farmer-centered events, newsletters, resource-sharing, and training to improve farmers’ mental health and well-being," Payne reports. "Un says that resources and spaces that truly build community are key in fighting isolation and addressing mental health challenges."

Outreach and counseling that follow different therapy models also are available. "Annie’s Project provides community-based mental health solutions outside of the traditional therapy model," Payne adds. "The nonprofit partners on Cultivating Resiliency Programs, which are anonymous opportunities for farmers to get together virtually and share what’s on their minds with both their peers and licensed counselors."

Along with mental health care, Un says farmers also need health and dental insurance, and that will require national attention and policy changes. Un told Food Tank, "We need to meaningfully address the top challenges facing the new generation of farmers and ranchers: affordable land access, access to capital, climate change, health insurance, student loan debt, affordable housing. . . .Until these barriers are addressed through the Farm Bill, farmers will continue to face high levels of stress, uncertainty, financial risk and a lack of safety nets.”

Find basics on what to do and say to someone experiencing mental health stress here. Find CDC agriculture health and safety tools here. 

Save the date: On Sept. 17, Rural Assembly Everywhere will focus on abundance during scarcity.

Ready to rumble for rural communities?

Grab a pen or your electronic calendar and save Wednesday, Sept. 17, for attending the virtual Rural Assembly Everywhere. Formal registration is in June.

The day will be a time for rural residents, advocates and friends to learn how to stop asking ourselves, "What now?" and, instead, ask, "What if?" The event will show participants how to promote mutual flourishing and abundance — even during days marked by scarcity.

"Training ourselves to think in this way is challenging when we are surrounded by cultural messages to the contrary. For people in rural communities, scarcity mindset is a common way of life, because resources are often limited," writes Rural Assembly Executive Director Madeline Matson. "Scarcity is real, but how can abundant thinking lead to other gains?"

Everywhere 2025 will highlight stories, tools and resources designed to help rural people counter fears and scarcity mindsets, so they continue to grow their families, farms, vocations, jobs and businesses with renewed and resilient spirits.

Some Everywhere 2025 content is still under construction, and they'd like to hear more rural voices chime in with thoughts, advice, challenges and successes. Matson asks, "Have you encountered zero-sum thinking in your community? How does it show up?" Email Matson at: assembly@ruralstrategies.org and describe what's happening in your rural space, ask questions or submit a discussion topic.

Report: The national cost of opioid use disorder is in the trillions of dollars each year, in addition to the suffering

Axios map, from Avalere Health data

As counties across the U.S. see many types of illicit drug deaths decrease, the country is left to grapple with the long trail of complex problems drug addictions cause, including their massive price tags.

A newly released in-depth analysis "concludes that it costs an average of nearly $700,000 to treat each affected person," reports Maya Goldman of Axios. "The cost burden falls unevenly, with states in a belt stretching through Appalachia to New England typically having bigger caseloads and a higher cost per case."

Although it's not possible to pin down the exact net dollars the country spent on opioid use disorder, the analysis from Avalere estimated 2024 costs at $4 trillion." The report's author, Margaret Scott, told Goldman, "While this is a cost to government, it's also a cost to private businesses, and the huge cost, of course, is to the individuals who have" opioid use disorder.

Comparing regional expenditures illustrates how extreme the costs for treatment can be. "The projected cost of opioid use disorder in 2024 ranged from $419,527 per case in Idaho to more than $2.4 million in D.C.," Goldman explains. "That covers lost productivity, health insurance costs, property lost to crime and other variables."

The economic losses from OUD are second only to the degree of human suffering individuals, families and friends have experienced by way of OUD trauma. Some of the sobering estimated and reported costs include:

• Economic burden on patients, including years of life lost and reduced quality of life, exceeded $3 trillion in 2024.
• Private businesses absorbed more than $467 billion in costs from lost productivity and health insurance costs.
• The federal government bore about $118 billion in Medicare and other federal insurance costs, lost taxes and criminal justice expenses.
• It cost state and local governments more than $94 billion, with about $42 billion going toward criminal justice costs.
• The Trump administration in March released its own analysis that estimated illicit opioids cost the U.S. about $2.7 trillion in 2023.

One way to reduce opioid treatment costs is to offer individuals the most effective treatment combinations possible. "Behavioral therapy alongside long-acting injectable buprenorphine — a treatment that reduces the risk of future overdoses — generated an estimated $295,000 savings per case, the biggest cost-saver of the options Avalere analyzed," Goldman reports. "Behavioral therapy alone saves a project $144,000 per case."

To use Axios' interactive state map of costs, click here.

Rural jails lack mental health resources. Inmates can linger for weeks in tiny cells awaiting psychiatric care.

Local jails weren't build to house mentally
ill populations. (KFF Health photo)

Many rural jails lack resources to manage inmates who need mental health treatment. In Polson, a small town in northwestern Montana, "when someone accused of a crime needs mental health care, chances are they’ll be locked in a basement jail cell the size of a walk-in closet," reports Katheryn Houghton of KFF Health News. Jails across the U.S. have problems similar to Polson, where demand for inmate mental health treatment exceeds any state's capacity to provide it.

Polson's basement jail cell was intended to be a short-term solution to keep mentally altered inmates away from the rest of the jail population until a psychiatric bed opened up. Houghton writes, "Last year, a man sentenced for stealing a rifle stayed in that cell 129 days. He was waiting for a spot to open at Montana’s only state-run psychiatric hospital after a mental health evaluator deemed he needed care."

Some jailed individuals haven't been found guilty of crimes because a judge ordered mental health care completed before allowing the case to move forward. At the Grays Harbor County Jail, located in the small town of Montesano, Washington, "approximately 20-30% of the jail population is made up of inmates who are supposed to be receiving [mental health] care," reports Susannah Frame of KING-TV in Seattle. The facility's medical ward is "the size of a closet. There are no mental health professionals on staff. There is not enough staff to safely deal with a crisis."

Wyoming, Nevada and Oregon jail systems have similar struggles. "More than half of Wyoming’s 23 sheriffs told lawmakers there that they were housing people in crisis awaiting mental health care for months," Houghton reports. "Nevada has struggled despite a $500 daily fine for each jailed patient whose treatment is delayed. Disability Rights Oregon has said delays in that state continue after two people died in jail while on the state’s psychiatric waitlist."

In Polson, Vincent River has been the jail's only mental health provider for 25 years. "He said he’s not always available because he’s the only psychologist in four northwestern Montana counties evaluating whether a person in jail needs psychiatric care," Houghton writes. "River said he can’t get people into any psychiatric bed in Montana because there are too few. Instead, he tries to stabilize people while they’re jailed. . . . Some are released without care if they linger too long on the state hospital’s waitlist."

An Rx for American anger: Imagination, courageous peace-seeking and a collective will for something better for all

Graphic via MedPage

One look at social media posts or comments on newspaper stories, and it's easy to see why some Americans believe the mood of the country can be described as angry.

"This goes beyond malaise," writes psychiatrist Arthur Lazarus in his opinion for MedPage. This mood "signals something deeper. . . It isn't just dissatisfaction or unrest; it's a simmering anger, a wellspring of cynicism so powerful it spills over. . . . Our collective capacity for hope, patience, and even basic kindness seems to be eroding."

Why are Americans so angry? Lazarus writes, "At the heart of this phenomenon is a growing sense of betrayal -- by leaders, by institutions, by systems that promised stability, fairness, and opportunity. For decades, Americans have been sold visions of progress. . . But for many, these promises have proven illusory. . . . When a society feels full of "pervasive negativity," it's natural for humans to "armor up with cynicism" versus exposing feelings of hopelessness.

To make a way forward, we need to "go beyond anger," Lazarus explains. "Beneath the surface lies a yearning for something better -- a system that doesn't exploit, leaders who don't betray, and communities that support rather than divide. . . . Hope isn't naïve, nor is kindness. These qualities are necessary for the repair work ahead."

Reinvigorating courage and peace as American values can help change how we respond to adversity. Lazarus adds, "During the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King Jr. championed peaceful protest and non-violent resistance as a form of courage. Sit-ins, marches, and boycotts challenged segregation and systemic racism without resorting to violence, even in the face of brutality."

Using current frustration as an energy to power change and innovation in U.S. health care models could also help. "Imagination in health care is often about seeing beyond immediate limitations to create systems that better serve humanity," Lazarus writes. "A compelling example is the transformation of Rwanda's health system."

A collective will to persevere together to make things better is an American ideal from the colonial period that can course-correct some of today's pessimism. Lazarus add, "In moments of crisis, it is tempting to retreat into cynicism or inaction. But previous challenges remind us that courage, imagination, and the will to rebuild are antidotes to despair."

Arthur Lazarus, MD is an adjunct professor of psychiatry at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University in Philadelphia. He is the author of several books on narrative medicine, including Medicine on Fire: A Narrative Travelogueopens and Story Treasures: Medical Essays and Insights in the Narrative Tradition.

Mental Health Association launches hub dedicated to improving rural mental health access and education

Rural health includes mental health care.
(Mental Health Association photo)

The Mental Health Association launched a new hub with information and free resources to help rural residents access mental health treatment, reports Liz Carey of The Daily Yonder. The site also provides community members with tools for supporting mental health care in their area.

MHA built its hub to help address the drastic need for improved mental health treatment and education in smaller communities. Carey reports, "About 7.7 million rural adults, or about a quarter (23%) of all nonmetropolitan adults in the U.S., reported having mental illness in 2022, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Additionally, about 1.6 million, or nearly 5%, of nonmetropolitan adults reported having serious thoughts of suicide that year."

While the hub contains many options, its conversational style and easy-to-use format make it approachable. The site's landing page features a "Get Help" drop-down list of information with links on managing a mental health crisis. The site features online mental health tests and surveys to help residents determine what kind of help might fit their situation.

America Paredes, MHA’s chief social impact officer, told Carey, "Based on an individual’s screening results, they have access to a self-guided platform that helps them navigate their mental health journey based on their experience and where they are in their journey."

Resources for communities working to help residents or families cope with mental illness are also available. Paredes told Carey, “We hope this hub serves as a first step for individuals who may feel alone in their experience and organizations looking to support these communities by providing them with free resources.”

Through the hub, MHA introduces rural residents to various care options, including telehealth, which can help them access care from mental health professionals they would otherwise have to drive long distances to see. Joy Jay, executive director of MHA-SC, told Carey, "The acceptance of telehealth has helped others in rural areas reach the help they might not have otherwise had access to."

Can social awkwardness at holiday functions be avoided? No, but preparation can help manage it.

Holiday get-togethers can be
awkward. (Adobe Stock photo)

The holidays can be the best time of the year, but it can also be the most awkward. As we reconnect with family, friends and coworkers, conversations can veer into uncomfortable stories or political views that lead to dead silence or arguments. In her opinion for The Conversation, philosopher Alexandra Plakias "offers a few strategies people can use to minimize awkwardness and deal with it when it does, inevitably, happen." A condensed version of her tips is shared below.

Know your goals, know your roles. Uncertainty is the oxygen of awkwardness. Before you engage in a potentially awkward or contentious interaction, ask yourself: What do I  want to get out of this? . . . I’m not suggesting that some forethought will make things go smoothly or guarantee that no one’s feelings will be hurt. But it will help you feel more confident in your ability to navigate toward your desired outcome.
 
There’s no ‘I’ in awkward. Awkward situations breed intense self-consciousness. This is both uncomfortable and counterproductive. By focusing on yourself, you’re not attuned to the people around you or the signals they’re sending – signals that could offer you a pathway out of the awkward situation. So make sure you’re paying attention to the other players in the drama, not just your own discomfort.

Plan, coordinate and be explicit. People do so much planning in other areas of their lives, yet they expect social interactions to just flow effortlessly. . . . Have some go-to topics or questions at hand. . . .If you expect to see someone with whom you have an unresolved relationship – an estranged family member, or an old friend you ghosted – try to do some prep work in advance. Emails or letters can give people a chance to process reactions without putting them on the spot.

Laugh it off. Despite your best efforts, awkwardness does strike, offer people a way out – they’ll probably grab it. This doesn’t need to be momentous; it could be a little joke, a small-talk topic, or even – and only if things get very desperate – knocking a spoon off the table to break the silence.

Consider the alternatives. These strategies might help you avoid awkwardness. But take a moment to consider whether you really want to. Awkwardness is the result of social uncertainty; it slows things down and curbs your confidence. . . . If things are awkward, it’s worth looking around to see what role that awkwardness is playing, and what might take its place if it’s gone.

Alexandra Plakias

Alexandra Plakias is an associate professor of Philosophy at Hamilton College in New York. She's a moral psychology expert who studies social awkwardness as a way to explore how it "it stops people from engaging with difficult topics and challenging conversations." For more of her insights on social awkwardness, read her full article here.

Sixty-nine percent of Americans are worried about the 2024 presidential election, but there are steps to reduce stress

Shannon Sauer-Zavala
Licensed Clinical Psychologist,
University of Kentucky

Today is Election Day in the United States, but the country may not know the results of some races until later. And while most U.S. citizens know conscientious ballot counting can be time-consuming, unknowns often stress the human mind. To manage worry and prevent catastrophizing, Shannon Sauer-Zavala for The Conversation shares science-based approaches to reduce election tension.

If this particular election feels distressing, rest assured, that you are not alone. Sauer-Zavala writes, "A recent survey found 69% of American adults are seriously stressed about the 2024 presidential election. It’s difficult not to be worked up about politics in today’s polarized climate. Regardless of which side of the political aisle you sit on, you may find yourself glued to your browser or TV, gobbling up every tiny tidbit of news."

Being mindful and accepting of stressful feelings can keep them from skyrocketing. Sauer-Zavala explains, "Be present. Anxiety can draw you into an uncomfortable spiral of 'what-ifs' about the future. When you make a point to be present, you remind yourself what is actually happening right now, rather than letting hypothetical fears take over."

When the news feels like impending doom, take a deep breath and "shift away from rigid, all-or-nothing thinking about the future," Sauer-Zavala recommends. "When people are anxious, they tend to focus on the worst-case scenario. For example, you might be telling yourself, 'With this candidate in office, things will be terrible and I won’t be able to cope.' . . . Try thinking through what you’d do if the undesirable candidate takes office – thoughts like 'I’ll donate to causes that are important to me' and 'I’ll attend protests.'"

Concentrating on healthy daily behaviors that reinforce a sense of balance and peace also keeps worry from taking over your day or week. "Remember the goal of 24-hour news networks is to increase ratings. It’s in their interest to keep you riveted to your screens by making it seem like important announcements are imminent," Sauer-Zavala adds. "As a result, it may feel difficult to disconnect and take part in your usual self-care behavior. . . . Go for a walk or, better yet, to bed. Keeping up with healthy habits can help reduce your vulnerability to uncontrolled anxiety."

Free online class on rural mental health is available at eCornell. It's designed for vets and agribusiness partners.

A new online course, “Mental Health and Suicide Prevention in Rural America” aims to help veterinarians, agriculture partners and veterinary students learn about mental health issues in rural communities and how to help, reports The Daily Yonder. The class is supported by Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and NY FarmNet, in partnership with Rural Minds, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting mental health in rural America. People interested in taking the course can access it at eCornell. The course is offered at no charge to participants.

The online course provides "practical tips to help with mental health challenges, including recognizing and responding to warning signs, as well as providing key information on resources such as crisis hotline numbers and local supports," the Yonder staff reports. "Rural communities have disproportionately higher rates of suicide in their population compared to urban areas. Farmers are twice as likely than those in other occupations to die by suicide, according to Rural Minds, and veterinarians also face higher risks of suicide when compared to the general population."

Jeff Winton, founder and chairman of Rural Minds, told the Yonder. "As a dairy farmer, I know firsthand that veterinarians are an integral part of all rural communities. And they may be among the first to see warning signs that a client is experiencing a mental health challenge but may not recognize those same signs in themselves."

With new technology, many 988 suicide and crisis hotlines will be able to use caller 'georouting' to help provide care

Many 988 crisis service calls will soon be aided by geolocation technology. (988lifeline photo)

Despite the 24/7 availability of the 988 suicide and crisis hotlines across the country, U.S. suicide rates have continued to climb, with rural states facing some of the highest losses. One of the 988 program's biggest shortcomings has been its lack of caller location services, but that's about to change, reports Deidre McPhillips of CNN. "Carriers have started to adopt a new technology that helps direct callers to 988 hotlines to help centers based on their physical location rather than their phone number’s area code."

Adding the new technology means 988 hotline counselors will be able to connect callers with services and follow-up support where they live. "Verizon and T-Mobile started rolling out the 'georouting' technology last week. . . . AT&T also plans to begin the process within the next couple months," McPhillips explains. "Next month, the Federal Communications Commission will vote on a rule that would require all wireless carriers in the U.S. to implement georouting for 988 calls."

Some mental health advocates have voiced concerns over caller privacy; however, georouting differs from geolocation in that "it does not provide a precise location for the caller," McPhillips adds. "Instead, it aggregates information about a caller’s location to help them reach local support while maintaining their privacy." 

The 988 lifeline began in July 2022, replacing the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline with "a broader focus and a simpler dial code," McPhillips reports. The lifeline now includes services such as "American sign language and Spanish. . . . a special veterans crisis line, and an LGBTQ+ youth and young adult line." 

Military community needs more access to the great outdoors; a new report explores obstacles and solutions

Yosemite National Park
(Photo by Johannes Andersson, Unsplash)

Spending time exploring nature has proven especially important for the U.S. military community's mental and physical health, which is why the Sierra Club Military Outdoors campaign and the University of Kentucky’s Community and Economic Development Initiative of Kentucky have been investigating how to make the outdoors more accessible for all armed services members, their families and veterans.

The partnership just released its initial report and will host a virtual briefing at 1 p.m., E.T., on Wednesday, Aug. 28, to go through the report, provide community reactions to the findings and offer a space for questions. Register for the briefing at https://sc.org/SCMOReportBriefing.

Particularly for veterans, spending time outside walking or participating in activities can supplement treatment for injuries and disabilities, including post-traumatic stress disorder. However, safely accessing the outdoors is not always easy for the military community, and barriers such as cost, transportation, experience level and mobility can interfere. These obstacles and how plans could be enacted to remove them prompted the report.

To research outdoor uses and accessibility, the SCMO conducted a series of in-person listening sessions in California, Florida and Georgia, as well as a virtual listening session for women veterans and a nationwide online survey that drew respondents from 48 states. The report combines research from the listening sessions and survey results.

Overall, the report's recommendations include improving equitable access with a new grant program supporting outdoor access programs focusing on underserved veteran populations, establishing an Office of Outdoor Recreation that would coordinate and support efforts around outdoor access for veterans and military, and expand and fund the new Military Families Outdoors Program, which generates programming and initiatives on public lands to improve the health of the military community.

Quick hits: Canned bread nostalgia; loneliness primer; python teeth inspire improved shoulder repair; fall skies

B&M introduced canned bread to America in 1928.
(Photo by Kaleigh Brown, The Takeout)

Canned bread might fit nicely on a list of non-perishables that are nostalgic and still worth making or buying. "Canned bread's legacy is tied to the survival instincts of early New Englanders," writes Kaleigh Brown for The Takeout. "When the first settlers arrived in Massachusetts, they hoped to grow wheat, but the local climate made it difficult. Instead, they turned to more affordable and resilient grains like rye and corn. . . .Lacking ovens, they steamed their bread over open fires, often using cans as makeshift molds."

Loneliness is a common experience across the United States, but some Americans are more susceptible to the harm long bouts with the emotion can cause. "Loneliness is more than just isolation: It’s the subjective experience of craving more social interaction than you currently have. It isn’t binary, either, and no one is immune," reports Allie Volpe of Vox. "Chronic loneliness has severe negative physical and mental effects. . . . Rather than point to certain populations as explicitly lonely, understanding what increases someone’s risk for loneliness can help address it on a population level."

Python teeth are uniquely curved and sharp, which helps
them grip their prey without tearing. (A.S. photo)

Picking fruit, baling hay and moving or handling food animals can all end in a farmer or farm worker tearing their rotator cuff, which hurts like heck and normally requires shoulder surgery to repair. The surgery is tricky and often fails, which is why a "python-like surgical implant" could help, reports Eric Niiler of The Wall Street Journal. "Medical researchers at Columbia University designed and built a python-tooth-inspired implant to better mend rotator cuff tear. . . . [The snake's] prey-grabbing method was the inspiration for the device."

Failing to have end-of-life discussions can leave important decisions to a time when there is no time. "Morbidity, mortality, and the many grey zones in between are ever-present in healthcare, writes Nidhi Bhaskar for MedPage Today. "I believe it is crucial to equip future physicians with the skills to navigate these conversations, especially in acute situations where time is limited and patient capacity for decision-making can quickly change. . . . Multiple studies have highlighted the positive impact that early exposure to palliative care and end-of-life goals can have on patient satisfaction at the end of life."

Remember to star gaze this fall; there's going to be a lot to marvel at. Mars and Jupiter will be easily visible on Aug. 27 and "will be accompanied by the crescent moon, creating a dazzling pack in the sky, according to NASA," reports Juliana Kim of NPR. If you missed August's super 'blue' moon, don't despair, "next month’s supermoon will be on Sept. 18. It will be a super harvest moon. It’s called a harvest moon because of its proximity to the autumnal equinox: An equinox is when the Earth’s equator is most directly in line with the sun. This supermoon will also undergo a partial lunar eclipse, reports Mansee Khurana of NPR. "The next two supermoons will occur on Oct. 17 and Nov. 15."

A prescription for rural isolation: Coffee and community that can build human connections and improve health

Coffee and community can be part of a healthy lifestyle.
(Mercantile photo via RHIH)

Part of rural living's appeal can be its wide open spaces with big skies and swaths of uninhabited land. While people may relish country living, it can be socially isolating and lonely, which isn't a healthy state for most people. In Madison, Minnesota, pop. 1,518, Dr. Hannah Fields, the town's family physician, is experimenting with a new prescription for some of her patients: "Visit the local coffee shop," reports Brendan Stermer for Rural Health Information Hub. Fields told Stermer, “It's as simple as pulling out a piece of scrap paper and writing a prescription for coffee, then texting Kris [the owner of the shop] like, ‘Hey, if someone shows up with this, put it on my tab."

Field's prescription isn't just for coffee -- it's for the community bonds the location offers alongside warm sips. "These interactions, Fields believes, amount to an intangible elixir that is healthier and more invigorating than even the Mercantile's strongest brew: authentic human connection," Stermer explains. "It's a basic — though often unacknowledged — necessity for health."

The U.S. Surgeon General's Advisory on the Health Effects of Social Connection and Community was published in May 2023, and it listed human connection “as essential to survival as food, water, and shelter." But hanging out together and connecting has become harder for many Americans.

The 2023 advisory described the problem: “Recent surveys have found that approximately half of U.S. adults report experiencing loneliness, with some of the highest rates among young adults. These estimates and multiple other studies indicate that loneliness and social isolation are more widespread than many of the other major health issues of our day, including smoking (12.5% of U.S. adults), diabetes (14.7%), and obesity (41.9%), and with comparable levels of risk to health and premature death.”

With that kind of health risk on the table, a cup of coffee or tea with other humans might be the cheapest and most effective antidote. "Fields hopes the 2023 Surgeon General's Advisory has opened the door for individuals and providers to reckon with the presence of these issues in their own lives, and in their communities," Stermer reports. "Her referrals to the Mercantile are inspired by a practice, more common in Europe, known as social prescribing. While she has heard promising patient feedback, she emphasized that formal program implementation and evaluation would be needed to draw any firm conclusions."

Opinion: 'Red flag' laws help prevent firearm suicides in the U.S., but they curb gun rights. It's a balancing act of risks.

ERPOs can prevent firearm suicides, but striking a
balance with gun rights is difficult to measure. (A.S. photo)

Access to a firearm can mean a person at the crossroads of ending their own life will succeed. Even though many other means of suicide exist, almost none are more predictably final. Psychiatry researcher Jeffrey W. Swanson looks at how extreme risk protection order laws prevent suicides and how they intersect with gun rights in his opinion for JAMA Network Open. Swanson first sees the topic through the lens of his 18-year-old cousin's suicide.

"The sound of my grandmother’s trembling voice lingers from that winter morning, almost 40 years ago now, when she called with awful news. My beautiful cousin Kristin had come home from college for the holidays and killed herself with a shotgun. . . . I was a new faculty member in a psychiatry department at the time, embarking on a career in which I would spend decades researching ways to prevent death and injury from guns.

"Aunt Helen asked me what could have saved their youngest child. I suggested Kristin had succumbed to a fatal illness; it was no one’s fault. . . .Today I would give a different answer. I would say Kristin died from a preventable injury with a firearm. I would add that a law prohibiting her access to a gun might have kept Kristin alive."

Extreme risk protection order laws, also known as red flag laws, "provide a civil court process designed to prevent firearm injuries by temporarily disarming individuals who pose an imminent risk of harm to themselves or others. An ERPO also prohibits a person from purchasing or possessing a firearm while the order is in effect, typically for up to a year," Swanson explains. "With the clarity of excruciating hindsight, it seems obvious that Kristin’s ability to acquire a firearm was a decisive factor in her death."

ERPOs have gained traction across the country as legislatures search for ways to reduce firearm deaths. At the same time, gun rights matter, so where is the balance? Swanson presents the paradox: "How do we know when someone poses enough danger to justify deploying police authority to remove their firearms? Risk means uncertainty, by definition, and risk assessment will always be an imperfect predictor of rare adverse events such as suicide; the significant risk factors all apply to many more people who will not die from suicide than those who will. Thus, for every hypothetical death averted by an ERPO, there will always be some ERPO respondents who would not actually have harmed themselves, or anyone else, had they been left (literally) to their own devices. We just do not know who they are in advance."

There are statistics to back up ERPO's effectiveness. "A widely cited statistic from our group’s research studies of suicide deaths among ERPO respondents in Connecticut and Indiana is that for every 10 to 20 ERPOs issued, 1 suicide was averted," Swanson adds. "In a nation where private gun ownership is commonplace, culturally entrenched, and constitutionally protected, feasible solutions to gun violence hang in the balance of risk and rights. . . . [Yet] in a country where more than 20, 000 people every year die of suicide with firearms, it is impossible to ignore that what is too late for Kristin could save many today."

Friday quick hits: Rural top-flick picks; dairy funds; heat can kill; racial voting division; bread debate; hop on a new train

Eita Okuno, Anna Sawai, and Hiromoto Ida in 'Shōgun.' (FX /IMDb image via The Daily Yonder)

On steamy days when the pool is too crowded and you can't handle any more of Mother Nature's energy-sucking heat, it might be time to chill indoors and take in a rural flick. From the "Mad Max Saga" to wrestling's fierce Von Erich family drama to the stunning "craftsmanship and costuming" in "Shōgun," Adam B. Giorgi of The Daily Yonder has some fine movie picks that will make relaxing in the AC much more fun.

In states with the highest number of drug overdose deaths, patients in treatment for mental illness often live with an opioid use disorder that mental health clinics are unable to treat, a study showed. "Despite high rates of opioid use disorder among people with mental health disorders, only a third of community outpatient mental health treatment facilities in 20 high-burden states offered medications for OUD," reports Shannon Firth of MedPage Today. "Among the 450 community outpatient mental health treatment facilities surveyed, weighted estimates showed that 34% offered medications for OUD, reported study co-author Jonathan Cantor, PhD. JAMA Network Open published the study in June.

Jersey Scoops capitalized on the USDA's new small
dairy initiative. (Jersey Scoops photo)

What's better than locally made ice cream or homestead cheeses? More of both. At least that's what the Department of Agriculture seems to think. The USDA is funding a new initiative that "aims to transform and diversify the dairy industry, one small producer at a time," reports Naoki Nitta of Civil Eats. "At 'Jersey Scoops' in Loleta, a small, unincorporated community in Northern California’s Humboldt County, the ice cream is as fresh as it gets. From pasture to parlor, its organic, butterfat-rich milk travels less than 10 miles, produced by a herd of Jerseys pasture-raised on the misty coast. . . . But Jersey Scoops didn’t get here on their own; they leveraged a $60,000 grant from the Pacific Coast Coalition’s Dairy Business Innovation Initiative to secure both the space and equipment." Learn about how local cheese ventures are leveraging this funding here.

As global temperatures continue to spike, awareness of heat-related illnesses is especially vital for outdoor workers and their employers. Heat can make workers sick, but it can also be deadly, reports Seth Borenstein of The Associated Press. "With much of the United States, Mexico, India and the Middle East suffering through blistering heat waves. . . several doctors, physiologists and other experts explained what happens to the human body in such heat." To find out how heat kills, click here.

Handmade bread is much different than mass produced
loaves. (Bluegrass Baking Company photo)

Bread is considered a U.S. family staple for affordable nutrition, but the processing that creates a uniform and stay-fresh loaf has landed "packaged bread in the middle of a fraught debate over 'ultra-processed food,'" reports Jesse Newman for The Wall Street Journal. "Less-processed foods tend to be more expensive and quicker to spoil. . . . For bakers like Jim Betts, owner of Bluegrass Baking Company in Lexington, Ky., most packaged bread is a far cry from the food that has been sustaining humanity for at least 10,000 years." To read why homemade bread is so dramatically different and more pricey than store-bought loaves, click here.

The U.S. rural-urban voter divide primarily exists among whites, a new study published in Politics, Groups, and Identities found. Kate Blackwood for PHYS.org reports, "When it comes to politics, Black and Latino residents of rural America differ far less, if at all, from their urban counterparts than do non-Hispanic white residents, the researchers report." One of the study's authors, Suzanne Mettler, told Blackwood, "Rural and urban Americans began moving apart politically in the late 1990s, and the division has widened and deepened since then. . .We wanted to know whether all Americans, regardless of race and ethnicity, are swept up in this growing cleavage.

A Borealis Amtrak train rounds the corner
surrounded by Midwestern fall colors. (Amtrak photo)

Midwestern states have been busy working to add more train services to their transportation portfolios. The new Amtrak Borealis service between Chicago and St. Paul opened last month after 12 years of planning, reports Daniel C. Volk of Route Fifty. "The new service was also a breakthrough. It is the first new passenger route launched in Minnesota since 1975, and the first in Wisconsin in more than two decades. . . . Officials in both states — like dozens of others across the country — are now planning for even more new passenger routes, because of incentives in President Joe Biden’s 2021 infrastructure law." Borealis trains include wide reclining seats, ample legroom, free Wi-Fi and views of the Mississippi River between St. Paul and La Crosse, Wisc., in daylight in both directions across Wisconsin.