First Nations

Elder Gerry

Elder Gerry Oleman, a member of the St'át'imc Nation, is from Tsal’alh (Shalalth), British Columbia. He is a cultural and spiritual consultant in health care settings.

You’re never alone

Saa Hiil Thut offers a comforting reminder that, through spirit and community, you are never alone in your grief. (0:36)

First Nations - Grief, Loss, Dying, and Death

Wiping the tears ceremony (1:58)
Traditions and grief (1:55)
Group help for grief (2:02)
The anger of grief (1:19)
Letting go (2:16)
Returning to my culture (0:53)
Honour and let go (1:33)
A time to cry (1:10)
Grief comes in waves (0:57)
Haida G'waii fire ceremonies (2:15)
Reincarnation (1:24)
After death beliefs (0:25)
Helping others mourn and heal (2:29)
Moving to the spirit world (1:37)
The comfort of ceremonies (1:31)
Go freely now (1:29)
Preparing the body for the spirit world (2:41)
One year to grieve (1:27)
Family grief and healing (0:39)
Indigenous Voices: Honouring Our Loss and Grief (23:07)
Burial traditions in my community (1:26)
Burial traditions in my community (1:26)
From the AIDS Crisis to COVID: The Importance of End-of-Life Rituals (1:28)
The sacred fire (1:27)
Symbols of remembrance (1:09)
The relationship continues (1:39)
The Memorial Quilt Project (2:03)
Erased in death: Honouring Two-Spirit identities (0:49)
Honouring and remembering our Two-Spirit community (1:26)
Responding to grief and loss in a tangible way (1:08)
Acknowledging caregivers (0:58)
Healing collectively as a community (1:30)
When we couldn’t speak our grief (1:12)
Two-Spirit lives and loss in the AIDS epidemic (1:49)
The trauma of loss (0:57)
Healing together (0:31)
We all grieve in our own way (2:31)
Taking time (0:37)
Take note of the drag queens (1:11)
A journey of letting go (1:04)
Life continues forward (0:37)
Remembering our missing sons (1:24)
Dignity for transgender patients (1:31)
Becoming an advocate after the death of a loved one (1:15)
Why we need to talk about loss (1:25)
Gifting an eagle feather (0:55)
Before colonization inclusion was our tradition (1:24)
Relationships continue after death (0:53)
The journey of life (1:44)
Transforming as we move through our lives (0:41)
Leaving a legacy (1:05)
Learning to laugh (1:20)
Celebrating life and death as a family (2:13)
Saying goodbye from above (1:09)
Sensing the passing of a loved one (1:35)
Finding strength in each other (3:31)
Breaking the cycle of trauma (1:46)
We carry the silence of hidden trauma (1:05)
The trauma and grief that our Elders continue to live with (1:06)
The gift of listening and being present (2:15)
Words of comfort in the face of loss (1:02)
The body remembers what the heart fears (0:49)
How I grieved the near-loss of my husband (0:56)
Learning to let go (1:50)
Addiction, loss and the need to stand together (2:18)
Living within an ongoing cycle of grief (1:31)
My sister was murdered: How Indigenous people are often treated as second-class citizens (1:42)
Facing my husband’s health crisis (1:21)
Connecting to the Creator during difficult times (2:42)
Inviting Spirit to walk with us (1:54)
Returning to our spiritual self in times of grief (1:38)
Choosing our path and finding our peace (1:59)
Teaching and learning along our life journey (1:40)
When laughter brought balance to a tragic situation (3:29)
A different way to think about grief (1:41)
Grief and the loss of our spiritual self (1:03)
Honouring our grief (0:53)
Supporting connection and guiding healing (2:01)
Recognizing the weight of cumulative grief (2:40)
Grieving in the midst of crisis (2:58)
An invitation to healing (2:28)
Creation Stories can serve as guides for grief (2:36)
Colonization, grief and resilience (1:48)
The ongoing impacts of colonization (2:44)
Re-claiming teachings can help us heal (3:00)
Spirit first: Finding a path through grief (1:24)
Healing for future generations (2:02)
Supporting grief through re-claiming our teachings (2:17)
Tools and teachings for grief and healing (2:32)
Ceremony and healing after the death of my father (3:02)
Burning ceremonies connect us to the spirit world (1:57)
A brushing ceremony helps take away mistakes of those that have died (1:54)
A hospice ceremony helped me grieve my sister’s death (1:33)
Completing the brushing ceremony (1:58)
Wrapping loved ones in a blanket (0:33)
My first experiences of grief and funerals were overshadowed by the church (3:00)
How we support grieving families (1:35)
Our lost generations (1:28)
Unresolved grief and Indigenous identity (1:10)
Healing and balance (1:00)
Swallowing our emotional pain (1:00)
Climate change and grief (1:10)
When you carry unresolved grief, you carry heaviness (1:41)
Unresolved grief stresses our whole system (1:34)
Trauma, loss and carrying heaviness (2:20)
Forgiveness and removing negative energy (0:57)
One can grieve while not carrying the heaviness of grief (1:26)
It's common to live with the fear of losing someone (1:10)
Forgiveness and grief (3:58)
Racism, grief and loss of identity (2:06)
Racisim and Canada’s medical system (3:07)
Ignorance and racism (0:52)
My sister taught me about death (2:03)
Healing the Nations: My Hummingbird Song (2:11)
Rituals and ceremony could be called “no-talk therapy” (0:37)
Reincarnation and the human spirit (2:23)
The Brushing Ceremony: Releasing grief, restoring Spirit (3:57)
From Head to Toe: Letting Go Through the Brushing Ceremony (2:16)
We had a sustainable way of life for thousands of years (1:58)
Music is healing (2:37)
Medicine, music and healing (1:38)
Rejuvenating our Spirit (1:55)
Living in harmony ensured that we were healthy (2:10)
Music can free you from what’s hurting you (1:44)
Laughter and stories can help with grief (1:20)
Our teachings can help with trauma (1:01)

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