Throwing Wrenches Mending Fences Podcast

Agrability uses assistive technology and devices to keep farmers farming as they age, or deal with an injury, long-term illness, or disability. Elaine Palm and the Michigan Sheep Producers came to me to ask if I would interview Sam Wolfe from Michigan State University Extension, who works with Agrability. Sam will be doing a Keynote at the Michigan Sheep Producers' Annual Shepherds Weekend Jan 9-1...

Christine Stamp aka, Seed Farmer's Wife on Instagram teaches people how to cook for the masses and she is here this week to share with us! If you are looking for tips and tricks to make field meals easier, less stressful and more streamlined then you are in the right place. 15 Ideas for Field Meals Meatballs Soups/stews Hamburgers Chicken drumsticks Casserole-Lots of types Tacos Bbq beef or pork C...

Pain, soreness, headaches, trouble sleeping, do these things have to coincide with farming? Sometimes pain is from an injury, sometimes it just pops up. What can you do to reduce your pain and get back to work? What is pain? Pain is a warning sign; your body will tell you to slow down or stop whatever you're continuing to do. This can lead to stress injury or overuse injury. If you continue to do...

Having trouble with succession planning? Whether you're the older generation or the younger, you'll learn something in today's episode.  Elaine Froese CSP is a certified professional speaker, certified coach, and author. She's a go-to expert for farm families who want better communication and conflict resolution to secure a successful farm transition. As a farmer and mother to the successor of the...

This is the story of how I knew I needed to start an anti-anxiety and anti-depressant medication. I was recently diagnosed with ADHD, Anxiety and Depression. I also had to switch Primary Care Physicians because my old PCP was not listening to me and seemed very resistant to prescribing any medication for mental health.  Greif, postpartum and the chaos of raising two toddlers sent me spiraling with...

Paper calendar people unite! Jackie Sanford is the queen of the calendar! This week, she teaches us all about how she breaks down her paper calendar starting with the big picture and breaking it down into time blocks to really hammer out her to-do list. Topics covered: Scheduling a year at a time How to do a weekly review Time blocks How to stay on the same page with your spouse How to say no!   T...

Healthy coping with anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc can be tough, it's easy to turn to alcohol, gambling, or other unhealthy coping mechanisms. Tune into this candid conversation with Lauren Martin. Topics Covered: What is Anxiety What is depression How to know if you are using unhealthy coping mechanisms How does addiction play into mental health How alcohol becomes a slippery slope    If you enjo...

Being super type A and organized is NOT required so don't worry! Debbie Gress is a Field Meal pro! She is an athletic trainer, runs their family beef market and serves field meals like a pro!  Here's 5 steps to help you make field meals easier: 1 Print out your calendar and write everything out 2 Plan out what is for dinner (Need some idea's? Debbie's got you covered, send me an email and I'll for...

Emmy was stranded on a mountain island with her dairy herd, but there are hundreds of people so much worse off.  They need our help. Please join me in giving money, food, feed, fencing supplies, hay, etc to the relief efforts of Hurricane Helene. If you are able to donate Hay, Feed, Water, or pasture space please see the link HERE: https://ncdisaster.ces.ncsu.edu/?fbclid=IwY2xjawFswzxleHRuA2FlbQIx...

Over 100 people dead, and over 600 still missing, dozens of farms whipped off the map. $2.5 Billion in Ag losses in one county is Georgia alone.  They need our help. Please join me in giving money, food, feed, fencing supplies, hay, etc to the relief efforts of Hurricane Helene. Find out where to help HERE: https://ncdisaster.ces.ncsu.edu/?fbclid=IwY2xjawFswzxleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHbZwNqJ64mLezx4NnEre4...

Motivation follows action. This is my new mantra, in other words, don't wait until you feel motivated to do stuff, do something and it will help you to get moving. I just turned 30! MY 20's were an absolutely wild ride and I learned so much about myself that I have completely changed the way I think, feel and act. Shocker I know! I was diagnosed with ADHD and I have learned how to manage it in a w...

Duh, farming involves physical labor, but is it a total body workout? No! The thing about exercise is that if you are really strong in some areas and really weak in other areas it can led to major issues with pain and soreness. It can also increase your likelihood of injury and slow down the healing process. Today, I have a few questions that can help you to identify what you should do to take car...

Making good decisions that improve your mental health can be difficult when you are in the thick of it. What do you actually do to help yourself feel fewer symptoms of depression or anxiety?  In today's episode we create a plan for those days when we are feeling depressed, anxious, overstimulated, angry, bored with the monotony of life, annoyance, grief etc.  Not that doing one of these things can...

I'm back from a very long maternity leave. In this episode I talk about grief, losing half my grandparents in the same month and my birth story.  Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, take a screenshot, post to Facebook or Instagram and tag me! And don't forget to subscribe, rate and review the podcast to let us know your key takeaways. Connect with Sarah Zastrow Facebook https://www....

Emily Reuschel is a keynote speaker, coach, and farm mom and wife. She teaches rural women how to get intentional, live into their passions and live life on purpose. Her personal growth journey has changed and evolved in different seasons of life. Emily and I have so much in common. Personal growth and development have changed as jobs, roles, life stages, etc evolve and finding a way to live inten...

Fair week was the first time I realized what anxiety really felt like in my body. Fortunately, I have an amazing mom who recognized it and helped me to do some deep breathing and bring some perspective to my pre-fair worry. Except that is really an understatement because I was like a bridezilla on steroids, I was a fairzilla for two weeks leading up to the fair. This episode is all about the thing...

Paige Dulaney and her family farm and ranch in Colorado. She is a mom of three and a busy social media advocate (aka agricultural agvocate). She does a fantastic job and digging into research and facts about our food system, supply chain and agriculture in general. She always keeps her cool and bring the best information to the table. We also talk about some sanity saving moms hacks and start off...

Mary Pat Sass loves cheese, farming, and journaling. She is a farm wife, entrepreneur and social media influencer. Her what to make for supper video's, mom content and farm lifestyle piece have gone viral because people love her down to earth, funny and real style.    Mary Pat Sass' Grounded Journals are the perfect prompts to remember the good times, collect memories and share photo's. She create...

5 Paradigm Shifts I Learned in Therapy 1.       Set boundaries early and often, say no, and protect your time, space and family 2.       You cannot change other people, changing the way you react to situations in your life is more valuable anyway 3.       The story you tell yourself is the only thing that matters, the "truth" is subjective 4.       Sometimes you just have to talk things out 5.    ...

Ashley Brazo is in Commercial Real-estate by day and by night she is a mom and farm wife. I met Ashley a few months ago and we talked for a good hour about the challenges of raising kids when your husband is in the field. We hit it off right away. I asked her to come onto the podcast to talk about how to work through feeling lonely and sorry for yourself when the guys are busy.    Topics covered:...

Did you know that May is Mental Health Month? The American Farm Bureau Federation has a campaign going called Small Gestures, Big Impact. Week one: Send a text Week two: Give a card Week Three: Take a ride Week four: Deliver a treat Week five: Make a call Farm State of Mind: https://www.fb.org/initiative/farm-state-of-mind National Farmer Mental Health Alliance: https://nfmha.ca/ 6 Things to Impro...

On our farm, it feels like spring planting is getting started late. In reality we are not THAT late, nonetheless, I am anxious about it. We have something scheduled every weekend in May, this means I will have to leave the farm and do the activity. This gives me farmer guilt, it's similar to "Mom-guilt" where you feel like you can't be away from your kids or else you are an anxious mess, while sim...

#63 ChopLocal-Online Direct to Consumer Meat Sales Made Easy Katie Olthoff is co-founder of ChopLocal which is an online farmers market platform where farmers can sell their meat products direct to consumer.   They created this online platform during the pandemic to help farmers and consumers who wanted to buy local meat connect. They remove the marketing and technological barriers by making the o...

#62 How Gratitude Changed My Mom Guilt and 5 Easy Gratitude Habits This past week, we went to the American Farm Bureau Fusion Conference in Jacksonville Florida. It was so nice to get away but I felt more Mom guilt than normal. This combined with the huge chore of packing for a cross county trip with a baby, sort of plagued the whole vacation and it got me thinking about how we can change mom guil...

#61 Contentment on the Homefront and Actual Seatbelt Wearers with Jordan Waas Jordan Waas is a farmer in the Laurel highlands of Pennsylvania. They farm row crops in the hills and mountains and raise cattle where it gets too steep. She has four kids, a herd of registered red angus cattle and loves to make soap. We talk about how important it is to be comfortable at home and be able to actually rel...