Mamisewin Counselling & Consulting Services offers helpful tools to use during the holidays

By Laura Mushumanski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

(ANNews) – Time during and leading up to Christmas can be heart heavy and distressing for a lot of people. Factoring in grief within Indigenous communities, the economy impacted by natural disasters, daily challenges—various things can impact a person’s health and well-being. And when asking for help, it can be overwhelming, another barrier can be not knowing who to trust, and or not knowing how to ask for help. The following psychological insights, tools and resources can also support a person when there may be barriers from accessing support for a person’s emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual health and well-being.

An Indigenous counselling therapist who has been working in the area of mental health for the past 15 years, and founder of Mamisewin Counselling & Consulting Services, Joanna Gladue shared her insight, resources and tools to support all our relatives during the holiday season.

Gladue, a member of Bigstone Cree Nation and resident of Edmonton takes pride in being an Indigenous woman, a mother of two and proud to see her children do well and be independent. Her goal is to provide compassionate support and guidance to those around her.

Being well-versed in trauma-informed therapy, curriculum development and facilitation, Gladue also travels to different communities across Alberta to provide in-person counselling and facilitate trauma informed workshops, focusing on Indigenous Mental Wellness and land-based learning while creating partnerships and building relationships with communities.

The first thing that came to mind for Gladue when sharing insight towards expectations during the holidays was, “set realistic expectations for yourself”—speaking to how many people have an idea of what the holidays should be like, instead “do what feels right for you, spend time with whatever family looks like for you, and know that’s okay [for having these expectations].”

Gladue emphasized “prioritizing yourself … whatever self-care looks like for you, taking time for self and reflecting, being on the land [is also important], even changing body temperature just by feeling the snow [makes a big difference].” These insights come from her practice within somatic therapy, teaching us to connect with our senses, like when we smudge, same goes with connecting with the land.

She recommends:

• Going outside for a walk, bundling up, and breathing in the cold air.
• Take your time to feel yourself grounded and really connected to the land.

Anxiety around large gatherings also could surface and feelings of pressure might occur. Gladue shared, “consider limiting social media use and try not to reflect on the past hardship.”

A few somatic practices to try when feeling overwhelmed, Gladue suggests are:

• Engage with the body, do some stretching.
• Do some breathing exercises (box breathing on YouTube).
• Slowing down, get yourself centered.
• Process feelings without reacting to them.

Regulation, another important way to center oneself as “healing part of yourself,” Gladue spoke about finding balance. “Focus on what you are capable of doing, ignore the ‘should’—from others and yourself. ‘Should’ is a driving word that can create a trauma vortex, tune out expectations about ‘you should be doing this, [instead] “focus on gratitude by naming 3 things you are grateful for.”

She offers the following insights: Connecting with loved ones and friends is important, it is also important to set boundaries of what you are capable of doing and what you cannot; give yourself permission to rest and move at a slower pace.

“Self-sovereignty, [meaning] bringing it back to who you are, put [your own] perspective into self-healing, and normalize mental health and wellness by reaching out for support and help,” Gladue shared her understanding of mental health being “no different than going to the doctor.”

A holistic approach to wellness: mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual. Ask yourself, what is it you are doing for each?

What are some things that you can do to connect with your wellness? List activities you can do for yourself that connect you with your true self. A few activities could be reading, listening or playing music, going to ceremony, dancing, learning, laughing, journaling, drawing, arts and crafts, and exercising.

And when speaking to self-healing, remember to “honour where you are at…. recognize and acknowledge losses you had—relationships, jobs, stability, loved ones… healing encompasses so much. You don’t have to carry all this yourself. There are supports. There is a way out. Trust your inner spirit and voice, don’t be afraid, there is always hope. You have a lot of things to be grateful for.”