pihtikwê - Visits with First Nations Psychologists

Jeff Wastesicoot shares insight from decades of experience sharing medicine through traditional language and ceremony. With evidence and skilled storytelling – through retelling Indigenous histories and personal stories – Wastesicoot doubly demonstrates the power of language. The nêhiyawak language and culture, which Wastesicoot has dedicated much of his life to preserving, are infused with the la...

In this episode, Dr. Ansloos discusses the significant implications of his work pertaining to suicide. He discusses the complexities of caring for individuals with serious trauma related to colonial violence, including how their experiences may be at once deeply painful, requiring support, yet hotly surveilled and sometimes criminalized. He describes his work as harm-reduction. Dr. Ansloos also di...

In this first episode our three hosts, Dr. Brenda Restoule (First Peoples Wellness Circle), Dr. Holly Graham (University of Saskatchewan), and Dr. Alanaise Ferguson (University of British Columbia-Okanagan) recap Season 1 and their vision for Season 2 of this podcast and their journeys into the world of psychology and mental health and wellness.

Dr Ethsi Stewart is a proud member of the Yellowknife Dene First Nation and a registered psychologist. She is Director of the Waakebiness-Bryce Institute for Indigenous Health, and the first Indigenous full Professor at the University of Toronto, in the Department of Social and Behaviour Health Sciences at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health.

Dr. Michael Yellow Bird is a proud member of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation in North Dakota, and he is a Professor at the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Manitoba. There his research focuses on the effects of colonization and methods of decolonization, ancestral health, intermittent fasting, Indigenous mindfulness and the cultural significance of Rez dogs.

Dr. Bombay's research exploring the ways which Indian Residential School experiences are transmitted across generations has garnered extensive media interest and has been influential in affecting policy and practice related to Indigenous health.

John and Ed are co-founders of the Feather Carriers Leadership for Life Program – a program that speaks to suicide prevention, intervention and postvention.

Dr. Chris Mushquash is a proud member of the Pays Plat Ojibway First Nation on the North Shore of Lake Superior. He is a Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Mental Health and Addiction, and Professor in the Department of Psychology at Lakehead University and the Division of Human Sciences at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine University.

Dr. Rod McCormick is a senior Professor and BC Government endowed Research Chair in Indigenous Health at Thompson Rivers University.

Carol Hopkinsis the Chief Executive Officer of the Thunderbird Partnership Foundation - a leading advocate for First Nations culturally-based mental wellness services. Carol was made an officer in the Order of Canada for her more than 25 years working in the field of First Nations addictions and mental health.

Dr. Melanie Nelson's research focuses on the experiences of Indigenous caregivers within Western systems, including the assessment and diagnosis process. She also investigates how Indigenous youth identify and access support for mental health and wellness in their schools and their communities.

pihtikwê means “come on in”, “welcome” in Cree.