Lesson 2: Indigenous conceptualizations and approaches to well-being
Indigenous conceptualizations and approaches to well-being
First Nations and Métis Peoples in Canada have a holistic understanding of well-being based on the teachings of the four directions: the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual realms of being. This lesson introduces well-being as a holistic concept through concepts and teachings grounded in First Nations worldviews. While there are many separate Indigenous nations in Canada, each with its own language, traditions, and knowledge system, there are core concepts that are common to all Peoples of this continent. The primary resource for the perspectives and teachings in this lesson is the First Nations Mental Wellness Continuum Framework (Health Canada, 2015), developed by a committee with representation from several First Nations. The lesson includes insights and strategies to support well-being for Indigenous students and instructors as well as online resources for further learning and support.
Lesson checklist
- Learn about a holistic perspective of well-being from a First Nations perspective.
- Explore ways of supporting Indigenous students’ well-being.
- Learn more about Indigenous perspectives on well-being.
Defining well-being from a holistic approach
Anishinaabe Elder Jim Dumont shared teachings on the four directions—the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual—as necessary aspects of mental wellness for individuals, families, and communities. Supporting well-being requires facilitating connections at each of these levels and across the four directions (Health Canada, 2015, p. 4).
Explore the Culture as Intervention Model
The Indigenous Wellness Framework is a Culture as Intervention Model based on discussions with cultural practitioners and Elders from across Canada representing many different Indigenous cultures. A common belief across First Nations cultures is that “wellness must be understood from a ‘whole person’ perspective wherein wellness is a balance of one’s spirit, heart/emotions, mind, and physical being” (p. 4). Balance within and between each of the four aspects of being can be facilitated based on the following understandings:
- Mental wellness is facilitated through an appreciation for both intuitive and rational thought and the understanding that is generated when they are in balance.
- Spiritual wellness is facilitated through a connection to beliefs, values, and identity.
- Emotional wellness is facilitated through relationships, having an attitude of living life to the fullest, and having connections to family and community.
- Physical wellness is expressed through a unique native way of being and doing and taking care of one’s physical body as the ‘home’ of one’s spirit.
By attending to these four aspects of our being, we have the opportunity to live life as a whole and healthy person (p. 4).
The key wellness outcomes—purpose, hope, belonging, and meaning—are also common concepts described in different ways in different Indigenous cultures. The common belief is: “Persons who experience wellness have hope, know where they belong in this world, and understand that their life has meaning and that they have a unique and specific purpose in life” (p. 5). As an essential component for overall health, mental well-being for Indigenous people is supported by culture, language, families, Elders, and all of creation.
Four attributes that are also core to First Nations worldviews as important aspects of well-being include identity, intuition, ways of being, and ways of doing. Identity is rooted in language, land, and people, including ancestors. Intuition is an inner spiritual source of knowing. Ways of being are centred around the understanding that all aspects of creation are alive and interrelated. Ways of doing reflect this understanding by honouring the relationships between all living beings, human and more than human.
The key wellness outcomes and the four core attributes of First Nations worldviews come together to support a holistic sense of well-being:
From coast to coast, First Nations people have said that: a connection to spirit (identity, values, and belief) promotes hope; a connection to family, community, land, and ancestry promotes a strong sense of belonging; knowing who one is and where one comes from allows one to think and feel and understand life from an Indigenous perspective and promotes a sense of meaning; and an understanding of the unique First Nations way of being and doing in the world promotes purpose. (Health Canada, 2015, p. 13)
Understanding mental well-being as a cultural construct is important for both self-care and for considering the well-being of others. Cultural knowledge is a critical component for living a healthy life. Cultural values, Indigenous knowledge, languages, and practices are “essential determinants of individual, family, and community health and wellness” (Health Canada, 2015, p. 22). They provide Indigenous people with the knowledge required to live a good life, in balance both internally and externally with all other life.
The legacies of colonization, including intergenerational effects on individuals, families, and communities are another important layer to consider in supporting health and well-being for Indigenous people in Canada. The Indigenous Wellness Framework is called a cultural intervention model because it is geared toward healing from the harms of colonization.
Learning activity 1: Ecosystem of Identity Development
Based on the work of Dr. Christine Martineau, this worksheet uses an Indigenous model to guide you through discovering your identity development. Use the worksheet to articulate your roots to identity, how they inform the foundation of identity development, and ways it is enacted through thoughts and behaviours.
Learning activity 2: The Joy of Learning
This downloadable journal, created by an exceptional team of 3M award recipients, was designed to foster the joy of teaching and learning in higher education. Fill it out as seldom or frequently as you would like. Interspersed throughout the journal, you can find inspiring stories and positive quotes to remind you of the valuable work you are doing.
Anti-Indigenous racism in Canada – fact sheets
This series of three fact sheets focuses on racism experienced by Indigenous peoples in Canada – how to understand it in historical context, how it affects individuals and communities, and what programs, policies and strategies exist to combat it.
Social determinants of health – understanding racism
Fact Sheet, 12 pp. | (2013) Charlotte Reading.
Presents the historical construction of race, the ideology of racism, the various forms of racism, and examples of the racialization of Indigenous Peoples in Canada.
Indigenous experiences with racism and its impacts
Fact Sheet, 16 pp. | (2014) Samantha Loppie, Charlotte Reading, & Sarah de Leeuw.
Focuses on the lived and structural forms of racism that Indigenous peoples experience and its impacts.
Policies, programs, and strategies to address anti-indigenous racism
Fact Sheet, 16 pp. | (2014) Charlotte Reading.
Critically explores how policies, programs, and strategies attempt to address racism at both the personal and institutional levels.
National Collaborating Centre for Aboriginal Health
The National Collaborating Centre for Indigenous Health (NCCIH) is a national Indigenous organization established in 2005 by the Government of Canada and funded through the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) to support First Nations, Inuit, and Métis public health renewal and health equity through knowledge translation and exchange.
Read more about the National Collaborating Centre for Aboriginal Health
Digital Resources – Inequalities and Indigenous peoples in Canada
Health Inequalities and social determinants of Aboriginal Peoples’ Health – Report, 36 pp.
(2013) Charlotte Reading & Fred Wien.
The National Collaborating Centre for Indigenous Health (NCCIH) is a national Indigenous organization established in 2005 by the Government of Canada and funded through the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) to support First Nations, Inuit, and Métis public health renewal and health equity through knowledge translation and exchange.
Indigenous-specific Mental health and/or wellness strategies in Canada
A resource from the Gouvernement du Québec, written by Stephani Arulthas. It provides several different models and frameworks for Indigenous mental health and well-being. Explore Indigenous-specific Mental Health and/or Wellness Strategies in Canada further at the link below.
The Indigenous Knowledge Implementation Packsack: A Handbook for Embedding Indigenous Ways of Knowing in Your Teaching
A resource from the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario written by the Negahneewin Research Centre at Confederation College.
References
Health Canada. (2015). First Nations mental wellness continuum framework. Indigenous Services Canada, https://thunderbirdpf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/FNMWC-Full_EN_WEB2023frameworks.pdf
Lessons
Lesson 1: Introduction to mental health and well-being in the classroom
Lesson 2: Indigenous conceptualizations and approaches to well-being
Lesson 3: Well-being and course design
Lesson 4: Trauma-informed teaching
Lesson 5: Supporting student well-being in the classroom
Lesson 6: Instructor well-being in the classroom
Authors
Dr. Patti Dyjur, PhD
Educational Developer
Dr. Sreyasi Biswas, PhD
Educational Developer
Jaclyn Carter PhD (c)
Educational Developer
Dr. Tyson Kendon, PhD
Digital Learning Platforms Team Lead
Dr. Christine Martineau, PhD
Educational Developer
Dr. Anna Pletnyova, PhD
Educational Technologist