Aboriginals

If you are in Crisis, call First Nations and Inuit Hope for Wellness Help Line 1-855-242-3310  Toll free, 24/7 for Mental Health and Wellness.

This is a National toll-free number that provides immediate, culturally competent, telephone crisis intervention counselling support for First Nations and Inuit, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Counsellors can also work with callers to identify follow-up services they can access. Counselling is available in English and French and, upon request, in Cree, Ojibway, and Inuktut.
Mental health and wellness encompass both the mental and emotional aspects of being – how you think and feel. Some signs of good mental health include:
  • Knowing and taking pride in who you are;
  • Enjoying life;
  • Being able to form and maintain satisfying relationships;
  • Coping with stress in a positive way;
  • Striving to realize your potential; and
  • Having a sense of personal control.

If you’re experiencing emotional distress and want to talk, call the First Nations and Inuit Hope for Wellness Help Line at 1-855-242-3310. It’s toll-free and open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

For more long term care, contact a First Nations and Inuit Health Regional Office.

Factors Influencing Mental Health

So many factors can influence your health, including your mental health. These factors are commonly known as the determinants of health and include such things as how much money you make, how much education you have and your relationships with family and friends. For instance, supportive relationships with family and friends can make you feel cared for, loved, esteemed and valued, and as a result, have a protective effect on your health.

Historical determinants, such as the legacy of residential schools, are believed to have shaped the mental health of Aboriginal people. A research project commissioned by the Aboriginal Healing Foundation found that 75 percent of the case files for a sample of Aboriginal residential school survivors contained mental health information with the most common mental health diagnoses being post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse disorder and major depression.

Programs and Services

Health Canada is committed to assisting First Nations and Inuit communities to achieve better health with several mental health-related programs and services:

Resources and Links

Check out our resources and links for more information on:

Mental Health and Wellness

The National Collaborating Centre for Indigenous Health (NCCIH)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 to support First Nations, Inuit, and Métis public health renewal and health equity through knowledge translation and exchange.

First Nations Mental Wellness Continuum Framework – Summary Report
A coordinated, comprehensive approach to mental health and addictions programming, which respects the model of whole health – physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, social, and economic well-being.

Aboriginal Youth Network
Check out their Health Centre for information covering a variety of health topics, including mental health, depression, suicide, eating disorders and addictions.

Stop Family Violence

Suicide Prevention

Centre for Suicide Prevention
Check out this link for more information on suicide prevention, and to learn about training opportunities.

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Tools for Aboriginal youth for making good decisions about sharing online

 By Media Smarts

To help Aboriginal teens make smart decisions when sharing online, Facebook, MediaSmarts and APTN partnered to translate the Think Before You Share guide into three common Aboriginal languages: Ojibwe, Cree and Inuktitut. The new resources are freely available on the Facebook Safety Page and MediaSmarts.

The guides offer teens advice on safe, wise and ethical online behaviour. Research shows young people prefer to deal with online issues socially, rather than relying on technological tools. That’s why the guides recommend dealing with unwanted sharing by talking to the person responsible offline. They also give young people tips for dealing with “hot” emotional states like anger or excitement that can lead to making bad choices about sharing things online, and remind them to turn to friends, family and other trusted people in their lives for support if things go wrong.

Young people want to make good decisions about sharing online. With the Think Before You Share guides they have the tools they need to do just that.