Culture plays a very important role how in how communities identify ill-health and wellbeing and how they deal with it. Culture provides people with ways to make sense out of life, conceptualize meanings, thoughts, behaviours and events. Culture also influences customs, norms, values, and belief systems as well as how all people understand, interpret and respond to themselves, others and mental illness.
In some communities, stigma associated with mental illness can be a barrier for seeking therapy. When working with a client from a culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) background, it is important to understand and assess cultural, social and psychological factors that influence mental illness such as linguistic barriers, family dynamics, history of trauma and the religious impact on the person.
Working with an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander person’s mental health requires an understanding within a broader context of health and wellbeing which not only includes the social and emotional, but also the cultural and spiritual context of the person’s behaviour. For example, seeing spirits and hearing voices and seeing deceased loved ones are common with Aboriginal people. Furthermore, the concept of social and emotional wellbeing is broad and recognizes that Indigenous people have a deeper understanding of the relationship between people and their environment. Family and kinship must be recognised in the broader concept of family and bonds of reciprocal affection, responsibility and caring.
Social and emotional wellbeing concerns cover a broad range of problems resulting from unresolved loss and grief, abuse and trauma, removal from family, domestic violence, family breakdown, substance use, racism, discrimination, cultural dislocation, and social disadvantage.
When supporting clints from Indigenous backgrounds, Jayani Jayatilake identifies their recovery goals by encouraging them to be an active participant in their recovery which will encourage self-determination, resilience and empower them in improving their health and wellbeing. Their connection to land, culture, ancestry, family and community can serve as a reservoir of resilience and recovery in overcoming adversity and the impact of intergenerational trauma on social and emotional wellbeing at the individual, family and community level.
References:
- Training manual of Assessment and Diagnosis – Queensland Centre for Mental Health Wellbeing
- Indigenous Mental Health First Aid- Institute of urban Indigenous Health
If you are from a culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) background or an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and you need assistance with maintaining emotional wellbeing you can book an appointment with Jayani Jayatilake, Peaceful Mind Counselling.
A highly experienced Counsellor, Jayani Jayatilake has a Masters Degree in Social Work. Jayani believes that the client is an expert in his/her own situation and encourages clients to take an active role in their recovery by helping them to recognise and acknowledge their own strengths, resilience and resourcefulness in overcoming barriers to improve their quality of life.
Contact 0426 191 010 or send us a message.
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