East Pingelly farmer John Hassell shares his battle with mental health on new podcast series, Father land

East Pingelly farmer John Hassell has opened up about his personal battle with mental health as part of a new podcast series, Father Land, in a bid to break the stigma around seeking help in the bush. The new eight-part series, launched on September 3 by national charity Motherland founder Stephanie Tretheway, gives rural dads a voice on the unfiltered podcast platform. Mr Hassell faced the realisation he was depressed twenty years ago while caught up in fraught succession planning, frustrating business dealings and the everyday stresses of working on the land. He has since spent every day fighting back. Mr Hassell said he didn’t realised he was depressed until a colleague pointed out a rash covering his legs. “He saw that I had psoriasis. . . and said, ‘that’s caused by stress’,” he said. “Until that point I didn’t realise I was suffering depression, even though I was getting two hours sleep a night and spent a lot of time in tears. “It wasn’t until he said that to me that I realised there was something wrong.” The fifth-generation farmer said it was this realisation that moved him to join WAFarmers, taking a stand alongside his industry peers and going on to lead the peak body for four years until mid-2025. Many rural Australians would recognise Mr Hassell as a force behind the fiery Keep The Sheep movement against the federal government’s phase out of the live export industry. He currently manages 1400 hectares and a 3500-head Merino flock. But Mr Hassell revealed what lies beneath that tough exterior, sharing his trials and triumphs in the new podcast mini-series. The eight episode run is part of the Motherland podcast, a juggernaut that has featured hundreds of rural mothers’ stories over nearly six years. Its founder, a 2024 Australian of the Year for Tasmania awardee, launched a charity and podcast to connect women raising their families in the isolation of the bush. For years, she said she had been hoping to do the same thing for rural dads. She interviewed eight rural fathers from seven states about their experiences of farm and family life. “The common theme is fatherhood and mental health but their individual journeys as fathers on the land and as farmers is so different,” she said. “We cover everything from the breakdown of a marriage; we break down the really outdated stereotypes on what it means to be a man and what it means to be strong. “A big part of Father Land and Motherland is that vulnerability is not a weakness and, in this sense, it’s part of being a bloody good dad.” Mr Hassell said he took part in the series to help others realise that tough periods do have an end. “I’ve come out the other side and I’m experiencing this wonderful joy of being a grandparent and parent,” he said. “It’s good to be able to tell people: you might be going through a lot of shit but it’s bloody good to crawl out the other side. “It might feel deep but you can swim. You don’t have to sink.”