Understanding Indigenous Canadian Traditional Health and Healing
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Wilfrid Laurier University Scholars Commons @ Laurier Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive) 2008 Understanding Indigenous Canadian Traditional Health and Healing (Gus) Louis Paul Hill Wilfrid Laurier University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.wlu.ca/etd Part of the Social Work Commons Recommended Citation Hill, (Gus) Louis Paul, "Understanding Indigenous Canadian Traditional Health and Healing" (2008). Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive). 1050. https://scholars.wlu.ca/etd/1050 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive) by an authorized administrator of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact [email protected]. UNDERSTANDING INDIGENOUS CANADIAN TRADITIONAL HEALTH AND HEALING By: (Gus) Louis Paul Hill MSW (Wilfrid Laurier University, 2001) BSW - Native Human Services (Laurentian University, 2000) DISSERTATION Submitted to the Faculty of Social Work In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree Wilfrid Laurier University 2008 © (Gus) Louis Paul Hill 2008 Library and Bibliotheque et 1*1 Archives Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-38005-5 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-38005-5 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives and Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par Plntemet, prefer, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans loan, distribute and sell theses le monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, worldwide, for commercial or non sur support microforme, papier, electronique commercial purposes, in microform, et/ou autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L'auteur conserve la propriete du droit d'auteur ownership and moral rights in et des droits moraux qui protege cette these. this thesis. Neither the thesis Ni la these ni des extraits substantiels de nor substantial extracts from it celle-ci ne doivent etre imprimes ou autrement may be printed or otherwise reproduits sans son autorisation. reproduced without the author's permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformement a la loi canadienne Privacy Act some supporting sur la protection de la vie privee, forms may have been removed quelques formulaires secondaires from this thesis. ont ete enleves de cette these. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires in the document page count, aient inclus dans la pagination, their removal does not represent il n'y aura aucun contenu manquant. any loss of content from the thesis. Canada Abstract This qualitative research study is situated within an Indigenous research methodology. The goal of the research was to develop an in-depth understanding of traditional healing from the perspectives of practitioners of traditional healing. It was important to explore the experiences of practitioners of traditional healing because there continues to be a lack of literature on this subject, as well as a significant lack of understanding and awareness about traditional healing and Indigenous Canadian people in mainstream society. The theoretical underpinnings of this research are holism and the four aspects of the self, visually represented in the Anishnaabe medicine wheel. In-depth audio-recorded interviews were conducted with 16 Indigenous people who self-identified as traditional people who use the ceremonies, medicines, teachings and Elders from their cultures in their healing work. Each participant was approached in a traditional Anishnaabe way, with tobacco in red cloth. The research questions explored their experiences as practitioners and recipients of traditional healing methods. The themes that emerged from the research articulate an in-depth understanding of traditional healing. The themes are grouped under eight categories: defining health and healing, the source of problems, the qualities of healers, guidelines for effective helping, the process of healing, integrating traditional and western methods, self- government, and the strengths/limitations of traditional healing. The process of healing was the largest category of themes and it included groups of themes related to focusing on the self, giving back, using traditions, and sustaining wellness. The themes are i discussed in light of the literature review on traditional healing and implications for social work research and practice are identified. Dedication This dissertation is dedicated to my participants who generously shared their stories about their experiences with Traditional Healing and who are "In the trenches doing the healing work in our communities." I would also like to dedicate this dissertation to the Elders who keep our knowledge sacred and who guide our lives with their wisdom. iii Acknowledgments I want to thank the many people who have supported me along the way. To Heather, my wife, my best friend and my partner in life: Thank you for your love, patience, support, for believing in me; for Gibson and for sharing everyday with me. Thank you for the nagging and telling me to "Just get it done!" I couldn't have done any of it without you by my side. I appreciate you more and more each day. I love you. To Daniel and Gibson, my boys: Thank you for being the inspiration to do better and be the best person I can be, for reminding me that family is the most important thing, that my first responsibility is to be a good father. I have done this for you; to show you that there are no limits to what you can do. I love you with all my heart. To my parents, Martha & Blackie, Garry & Jackie: Thank you for believing in me and supporting my vision for a better life. Thank you for all of your teachings and guidance. I know this hasn't been easy for you. Thank you for being proud of me and forcing me to be someone to be proud of. To answer your question: "When are you going to be done?", the answer is I'm finally finished! I love you all. To my parents-in-law, Andy and Sylvia: Thank you Andy for reading my writing and giving me the support and encouragement that I needed along the way. Thank you for wasting hours and days talking and debating about spirituality, religion, faith, counselling, traditional healing and whatever else came our way. Thank you for golfing with me to forget about those conversations. Thank you Sylvia for your support and love. Thank you for being there when I needed you the most. Your time and energy have been invaluable and I appreciate all you've given. I love you both. iv To my best friends, Steve Hendriks, Steve McGee and Greg Jarvie: Thank you for being there when I needed to lean on you. Thank you for providing the perfect distractions when I needed them most and for all that we've done together. That's what friends are for! To Jean Becker: Gchi-miigwetch for your love, patience, wisdom, nurturing and teachings. Thank you for showing me a life worth living. Thank you for kicking me in the ass when I needed it. For your guidance and your love, I am eternally grateful. I love you. To my committee, Nick Coady, Anne Westhues, Mac Saulis and Chris Ross, as well as my external examiner, Stan Wilson: Thank you for making this a gentle and rewarding experience. To Nick, my chair, my advisor and friend: Thank you for supporting my journey and standing beside me through it all. Thank you for taking a risk with me and stepping into my world view. Thank you for giving so much of yourself to my process. I know it was difficult at times. You were the perfect person to guide me on my journey. I truly couldn't have done it without you. To Anne: Thank you for believing in me from the moment I arrived at WLU. Thank you for your encouragement and patience. Thank you for introducing me to the idea of doing a doctorate and for supporting my journey. You have been a great teacher to me. Thank you for teaching me how to celebrate the small accomplishments and for joining with me in those celebrations. To Mac: Gchi-miigwetch for teaching me about me, about how to be Indigenous v and for your support and guidance all the way. Thank you for being there when I needed you and for being patient with me. You have been a great teacher to me. To Chris: Thank you for being patient, trusting and having faith in my process. Thank you for forcing me to write better and be clearer about what I want to say. To Stan: Thank you for your kind words, for encouraging me to step into other disciplines and explore all that they have to offer. Thank you for teaching me about relational accountability and being a part of my journey. I appreciate your generosity. To my Creator and Spirit Guides: Gchi-miigwetch. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract i Dedication iii Acknowledgments iv SECTION I: INTRODUCTION AND LITERATURE REVIEW Chapter 1: Introduction 2 Problem Identification 4 Theoretical Context for Traditional Healing and Definition of Key Terms 6 Aboriginal People 6 Indigenous 6 Traditional Knowledge 7 Illness 8 Traditional Healing 8 Bimaadiziiwin 10 Healer 10 Holism 11 Medicine Wheel 12 Natural