Reconnecting to Ancestral Wisdom is a Path to Mental Health

Although all communities in our society contend with stigma around mental health struggles, for the Chicana/o/x community reconnecting to our indigenous ancestral wisdom is not only good for our mental health it also shows us that Western psychology is not the only fountain of mental health wisdom. Our community, just as other communities from what is commonly referred to as Latin America, was forcibly disconnected from our indigenous wisdom 500 years ago. While there have always been and still are some sustained indigenous communities in Latin American countries, despite the invasion and subsequent colonization, the vast majority of us have been disconnected.

However, many of us are in a process now of reconnecting to these wisdoms and rightfully reclaiming our indigenous lineage. As this Mental Health Awareness Month comes to an end, we would like to remind our people that there are various ways we can begin to make these connections that help us maintain our well-being. The four elements are a good place to start - fire, water, earth and wind. Fire is the oldest element and we can see the benefits when we think of our Sun and the importance of spending time outside for our mental wellness. Fire can also represent our passion and can help us when we need to ignite a change in our lives. Water, of course, sustains life. Making sure we drink water everyday is crucial. However, using water to cleanse ourselves, physically and emotionally is key to our well-being. When taking a shower, let your worries also be washed away. We can turn to our Madre Tierra, Earth, who also gives life and helps to root us - to ground us - when we need to be still. When we are overly distracted and can’t focus; when we feel lost, we can put our hands on the earth and allow our mother to ground us. Finally, the element of Wind has so much guidance for our well-being. Wind can represent the importance of movement when we are stuck. It is the element that connects to our breath and our voice. So when we need to use our voice, to speak our truth, we are connecting to the element of the wind. While these recommendations in some ways are common mental health tips we see in the mainstream, what is important for our community is that our ancestors were already practicing “good mental health” long before the current field developed. We see threads of this in our contemporary life as well. When asked “What cultural values or practices do you believe add to a good life?” followers on our Instagram account (@xicanpsych) responded with following examples:

Being with my plants/garden

Growing food

Spending time with Mother Nature

Cooking with a molcajete

Dancing

Self awareness

Spending time with family

Danza Azteca

Growing food

Participating in ceremony

Platicas with community and family circulos

Cleaning my space

Curanderismo

Making coffee for my Ancestor Altar every morning

Music