Indigenous Topics
What is Traditional Healing?
Traditional healing and medicine are difficult concepts to define, as many Indigenous people refer to local practices within the context of their community. The World Health Organization provides a general definition of traditional medicine:
- "Is the sum total of knowledge, skills, and practices based on the theories, beliefs, and experiences Indigenous to different cultures, whether explicable or not, used in the maintenance of health as well as in the prevention, diagnosis, improvement of treatment of physical and mental illness."
World Health Organization. (2021). Traditional, Complementary and Integrative Medicine. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/health-topics/traditional-complementary-and-integrative-medicine#tab=tab_1.
Use these terms to help guide your research:
| Traditional Healing | Land-based Healing |
| Traditional Medicine | Land-based Medicine |
| Holistic Healing | Healing |
Traditional Healing
Select resources from the U of C Catalogue
Indigenous Ways of Knowing in Psychological Counseling by ISBN: 9783030331764Publication Date: 2020-06-23Indigenous Counseling is based in universal principals/truths that promote a way to think about how to live in the world and with one another that extends beyond the scope of Western European thought. Individual health and wellness is intricately interwoven into the relationships that we establish on multiple levels in our lives, those that we establish with ourselves, with others, and with the external environments with which we live. From an Indigenous perspective, health and wellness in our individual lives, families, community and world, is the result of ancient knowledge that produces action in a way that is beneficial to all beings on the planet for generations to come. The current social and political record of our country now clearly reveals the result of a paradigm that has outlived its time. No longer can we ignore the core values of our fields of study; we must take a deeper look into the academic endeavors that inform the way we pass our cultures' values on to successive generations. While it has taken Western Science decades to catch up to Indigenous/Native Science, we now have ample scientific evidence to support claims of interconnectedness on multiple levels of individual and collective health.
Indigenous Healing by ISBN: 9780143191100Publication Date: 2014-05-20Imagine a world in which people see themselves as embedded in the natural order, with ethical responsibilities not only toward each other, but also toward rocks, trees, water and all nature. Imagine seeing yourself not as a master of Creation, but as the most humble, dependent and vulnerable part. Rupert Ross explores this indigenous world view and the determination of indigenous thinkers to restore it to full prominence today. He comes to understand that an appreciation of this perspective is vital to understanding the destructive forces of colonization. As a former Crown Attorney in northern Ontario, Ross witnessed many of these forces. He examines them here with a special focus on residential schools and their power to destabilize entire communities long after the last school has closed. With help from many indigenous authors, he explores their emerging conviction that healing is now better described as "decolonization therapy." And the key to healing, they assert, is a return to the traditional indigenous world view. The author of two previous bestsellers on indigenous themes, Dancing with a Ghost and Returning to the Teachings, Ross shares his continuing personal journey into traditional understanding with all of the confusion, delight and exhilaration of learning to see the world in a different way. Ross sees the beginning of a vibrant future for indigenous people across Canada as they begin to restore their own definition of a "healthy person" and bring that indigenous wellness into being once again. Indigenous Healing is a hopeful book, not only for indigenous people, but for all others open to accepting some of their ancient lessons about who we might choose to be.
Indigenous Cultures and Mental Health Counselling by ISBN: 9781138928992Publication Date: 2016-09-01North America's Indigenous population is a vulnerable group, with specific psychological and healing needs that are not widely met in the mental health care system. Indigenous peoples face certain historical, cultural-linguistic and socioeconomic barriers to mental health care access that government, health care organizations and social agencies must work to overcome. This volume examines ways Indigenous healing practices can complement Western psychological service to meet the needs of Indigenous peoples through traditional cultural concepts. Bringing together leading experts in the fields of Aboriginal mental health and psychology, it provides data and models of Indigenous cultural practices in psychology that are successful with Indigenous peoples. It considers Indigenous epistemologies in applied psychology and research methodology, and informs government policy on mental health service for these populations.
Healing Traditions by ISBN: 9780774815253Publication Date: 2009-07-01Aboriginal peoples in Canada have diverse cultures but share common social and political challenges that have contributed to their experiences of health and illness. This collection addresses the origins of mental health and social problems and the emergence of culturally responsive approaches to services and health promotion. Healing Traditions is not a handbook of practice but a resource for thinking critically about current issues in the mental health of indigenous peoples. Cross-cutting themes include: the impact of colonialism, sedentarization, and forced assimilation; the importance of land for indigenous identity and an ecocentric self; and processes of healing and spirituality as sources of resilience.
- Traditional Indigenous Approaches to Healing and the modern welfare of Traditional Knowledge, Spirituality and Lands: A critical reflection on practices and policies taken from the Canadian Indigenous ExampleIn order for traditional knowledge to be maintained and to develop, it has to be practiced. Traditional healing provides a vehicle for this to occur. In Canada, the spiritual revitalization of Indigenous communities and individuals often involves the use numerous components of traditional healing. These elements are reflected most clearly at the grassroots level, however, current Indigenous programs delivered by Indigenous and governmental agencies have made some accommodating efforts as well. Perhaps most importantly, traditional knowledge and Indigenous spirituality hinges on the maintenance and renewal of relationships to the land. Indigenous land bases and the environment as a whole remain vitally important to the practice of traditional healing. A focus on Indigenous healing, when discussing Indigenous knowledge systems and spirituality, is paramount today due to the large scale suppression of Indigenous cultural expressions during the process of colonization. With respect to policy, there appears to be a historical progression of perception or attitude towards Indigenous traditional healing in Canada from one of disfavour to one favour. There are nevertheless continuing challenges for traditional healing. Mainstream perceptions and subsequent policy implementations sometimes still reflect attitudes that were formulated during the decline of traditional healing practice during colonization processes. As a consequence the ability for particular communities to maintain and use their specific understandings of Indigenous knowledge continues encounter obstacles. Indigenous Knowledge systems are living entities and not relics of the past. Today, these knowledge systems are still greatly being applied to help Indigenous communities and Indigenous people recover from intergenerational pain and suffering endured during the colonization process. Future policy development and implementation should aim to support Indigenous peoples and communities when they decide to learn about, maintain and build upon the knowledge amassed by their ancestors. Adapted from the source document.
Robbins, Julian A, & Dewar, Jonathan. (2011). Traditional Indigenous Approaches to Healing and the modern welfare of Traditional Knowledge, Spirituality and Lands: A critical reflection on practices and policies taken from the Canadian Indigenous Example. International Indigenous Policy Journal, 2(4), 2. https://doi.org/10.18584/iipj.2011.2.4.2
- The sweat lodge ceremony: A healing intervention for intergenerational trauma and substance useMany traditional healers and Elders agree that strengthening cultural identity, incorporating traditional healing practices, and encouraging community integration can enhance and improve mental health and reduce substance use disorders (SUD) in Indigenous populations. Despite the fact that traditional healing practices have always been valued by Indigenous Peoples, there is very little research on efficacy. Recent research by one of the authors in this group (T. Marsh) has shown that the blending of Indigenous traditional healing practices and a Western treatment model, Seeking Safety, resulted in a reduction in intergenerational trauma (IGT) symptoms and substance use disorders (SUD). This article focuses on the qualitative evidence concerning the impact of the traditional healing practices, specifically the sweat lodge ceremony. Participants reported an increase in spiritual and emotional well-being that they said was directly attributable to the ceremony. This study demonstrates that it would be beneficial to incorporate Indigenous traditional healing practices, including the sweat lodge ceremony, into Seeking Safety to enhance the health and well-being of Indigenous Peoples with IGT and SUD.
Marsh, Teresa Naseba, Marsh, David C, Ozawagosh, Julie, & Ozawagosh, Frank. (2018). The sweat lodge ceremony: A healing intervention for intergenerational trauma and substance use. International Indigenous Policy Journal, 9(2). https://doi.org/10.18584/iipj.2018.9.2.2
- A Gathering of Native American Healers: Exploring the Interface of Indigenous Tradition and Professional PracticeThis article reports insights from a 4-day Gathering of Native American Healers at the University of Michigan in October of 2010. This event convened 18 traditional healers, clinically trained service providers, and cross-cultural mental health researchers for a structured group dialogue to advance professional knowledge about the integration of Indigenous healing practices and conventional mental health treatments in community-based mental health services for Native Americans. Our thematic analysis of transcripts from five Roundtable sessions afforded several key insights and understandings pertaining to the integration of Indigenous healing and conventional mental health services. First, with reference to traditional healing, the importance of a rampant relationality, various personal qualities, Indigenous spirituality, and maintenance of traditional life and culture were accentuated by Roundtable participants. Second, for traditional healers to practice effectively, Roundtable participants posited that these individuals must maintain personal wellness, cultivate profound knowledge of healing practices, recognize the intrinsic healing potential within all human beings, and work for the community rather than themselves. In speaking to the possibilities and challenges of collaboration between Indigenous and conventional biomedical therapeutic approaches, Roundtable participants recommended the implementation of cultural programming, the observance of mutuality and respect, the importance of clear and honest communication, and the need for awareness of cultural differences as unique challenges that must be collaboratively overcome.
Moorehead Jr, Virgil D, Gone, Joseph P, & December, Damia. (2015). A Gathering of Native American Healers: Exploring the Interface of Indigenous Tradition and Professional Practice. American Journal of Community Psychology, 56(3), 383–394. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-015-9747-6
National Film Board of Canada
"This short documentary journeys into the spiritual world of traditional Indigenous medicine, a world inhabited by Mary and Ed Louie. With a lifetime of experience in the ways of spirituality, they are committed to practices that keep them accountable to the spirit world, their people, and Mother Earth. When one of the crew members get sick while shooting, his subsequent care is recorded for the purposes of this film."
Burke, M. (Director). (2005). Spirit Doctors [Film]. National Film Board of Canada.
Indigenous Plant Diva by Kamala Todd
National Film Board of Canada
"Kamala Todd's short film is a lyrical portrait of Cease Wyss, of the Squamish Nation. Wyss is a woman who understands the remarkable healing powers of the plants growing all over downtown Vancouver. Whether it's the secret curl of a fiddlehead, or the gentleness of comfrey, plants carry ageless wisdom with them, communicated through colour, texture, and form. Wyss has been listening to this unspoken language and is now passing this ancient and intimate connection down to her own daughter, Senaqwila."
Todd, K. (Director). (2008). Indigenous Plant Diva [Film]. National Film Board of Canada.
University of Saskatchewan Research Guides: Indigenous Health
The University of Saskatchewan provides access to their Indigenous Health Research Guide, housing resources related to FNMI health and wellness.
- Use the left-hand menu to guide your search.
- Note the specific section titled, Traditional Knowledge