Native American Medicine
Native American medicine involved more than just a few pills and a pat on the back. It involved drawing a connection between the mind, body and spirit. They believed that medical conditions went beyond the body and that a healthy person had a healthy emotional or mental side. They encouraged medication and focusing on the bigger picture, instead of just one simple thing.
Native American medicine also involved different natural and herbal products. Through trial and error they found things that worked and passed those ideas along to the next generation. Horse mint for example was used to treat a backache, while wormwood cured bronchitis and chest infections. They often boiled the leaves, strained out the leaves and drank the liquid to cure their ailment.
Resources on Native American medicine include:
- Medicine Wheel: examines the idea of the medicine wheel in Native American cultures.
- Earth Heart: offers healing and treatment in the Native American ways.
- Cherokee Messenger: shows different ways Native Americans treated medical problems.
- Native American Medicine: discusses the treatments and how they did them.
- Traditional Native American Medicine: offers a look at how the Native Americans treated medical problems.
Native American culture depended on the belief that humans were only one part of the greater source of life. They also believed that all humans were connected to nature and had a deep connection to Mother Earth. Healing ceremonies were sometimes performed as way to help. The point was to heal the body from within and to recreate the individual's connection with nature. These healing ceremonies often involved using sacred objects and creating a circle around the sick person.
Many tribes used a healer. This person acted as a spiritual advisor as well as a counselor in terms of medicine. When a tribesman became sick, he or she sat with the healer. The healer looked at their symptoms and tried treating the ailment through natural supplements. They also discussed their spirituality and emotional well being. If the individual remained ill, the healer then started the process of a spiritual ceremony.
