What is traditional healing?

Traditional Healing is based on the interconnectedness of all life and the importance of balance and harmony in Creation. Indigenous people understand that everything in Creation has a spirit and that healing is understood in terms of the spiritual basis of everything. Traditional Healing is holistic, and its approach is through ceremony, which is a way to restore balance to the mind, body, spirit, and emotions.

In Traditional Healing, there needs to be harmony and balance in a person just as there is in all of Creation, and when that harmony and balance are lacking, sickness ensues. The approach to healing is through the use of sacred items such as the pipe, drum, and eagle feather to help make the connection with Creator. Traditional Healers and Medicine People provide healing and work in different ways, and each has their own unique gift.

All things have the ability to heal, everything that was put on this earth can be used to heal, the trees, the animals, the water etc. In the past, the knowledge of healing was more widespread and unfortunately, this knowledge is becoming less and less known by community members. As a result of generational traumas faced by Indigenous communities in Canada, many are seeking emotional, mental, and spiritual healing as a direct result of past abuses and traumas. The illnesses we face today have also challenged traditional healing practices as they are often foreign to this land. It is essential more than ever for Indigenous healing practices to be upheld and for those working in the healthcare sector to understand its importance in healthcare.