Native American Medicine Essay examples - 1761 Words

Native American Medicine Native American medicine is based on widely held beliefs about healthy living, the repercussions of disease-producing behavior, and the spiritual principles that restore balance. -Ken Bear Hawk Cohen (Chrisman 1). The beliefs that Cohen is referring to are shared by all North and South Native American tribes, however, the methods of diagnosis as well as the treatments vary significantly. This is mainly due to the fact that Native American medicine is based upon a spiritual view of life. A healthy person is someone who has a sense of purpose and follows the guidance of the Great Spirit who represented the central religious figure for most tribes (Chrisman 2). It is believed that someone is†¦show more content†¦In order to heal a fractured, sprained or dislocated bone, the natives would form a padding of wet clay or rawhide to form a cast around the injury. This restricted movement, thus allowing the bone to heal properly. In another method, used by the Ojibwas, they washed the fractured arm with warm water, then greased it, applied a warm poultice of wild ginger and spikenard to ease the pain, covered it with cloth, and bound the arm with cedar splints (Vogel 215). Th is procedure resulted in a sling that allowed the broken bone to heal correctly. When someone broke a bone, it was crucial that the bone be able to heal properly as the injured person was needed to return to work as quickly as possible. Some Native Americans often used specific drugs to suppress ovulation and control the menstrual cycle (Vogel 5). This drugs success started researchers on the road that led to the pill, a common form of birth control today. This demonstrates that many of the needs of the people of the past are similar to the needs of the people today. In 1536, an Indian chief, Domagaia, treated an abundant disease, scurvy, by boiling the leaves and bark of a magical tree and then placing the dregs upon the legs of the people that had been exposed (Morsette 5). They experienced success with this remedy due to the large amounts of vitamin C present in theShow MoreRelatedNative Americans And Western Medicine1413 Words   |  6 PagesUnderstanding Native Americans and Western Medicine Essential Knowledge for Providing Culturally Competent Care to Native Americans Brittany Schelitzche Writing for Healthcare Hennepin Technical College â€Æ' Native Americans and Western Medicine: Essential Knowledge for Providing Culturally Competent Care to Native Americans Many Alaskan Natives and Native Indians, also known as American Indians, share the same or similar views on health and medicine. Their definition of â€Å"traditional medicine† incorporatesRead MoreNative American Medicine Essay738 Words   |  3 PagesNative American Medicine If you were in the desert or woods and bitten by a snake, where you go for help? A call to the local ambulance and a fast ride to the emergency room are not available to you. How would you know what potions to use and what would heal your wounds? This was the dilemma of the Native American People hundreds of years ago. How did they handle it? The medical traditions and customs have remained a mystery to us for hundreds of years. This paper will try to explore someRead MoreNative American Religion : Medicine And Spiritual Healing1694 Words   |  7 PagesErika Lenis-Abril REL-337 5/10/2015 Native American Religion: Medicine and Spiritual Healing Native American traditional medicine and spiritual healing rituals go back for thousands of years, these traditions often focus on different variations of alternative medicine. This knowledge is passed on throughout generations, many of the tribes learn that by mixing natural plants such as herbs and roots they can make remedies with healing properties. It is believed that being healthy is when peopleRead MoreNative American Medicine and Spiritual Healing Essay1098 Words   |  5 Pageshealing process, large or small. In particular the roots of Native American Medicine men (often a woman in some cultures) may be traced back to ancient times referred to as Shaman. A special type of healer used by the Indians is referred to as a medicine man (comes from the French word medecin, meaning doctor). Shaman are known in many cultures, but are identified by different names: healers, spiritual healers, medicine men, angakok, ganga, mulogo, witch doctors and warlords, just to nameRead MoreThe Native American Medicine Man3135 Words   |  13 PagesThe Native American Medicine Man | From the Past to the Present | | | | The Native American medicine man, also known as a shaman (modern term), priest, healer, and even a â€Å"Star Being† were known to be the spiritual leaders of Native American cultures. Each medicine man was unique in his own way simply because each Native American tribe had their own origin of spirituality and religious beliefs. Each medicine man had their own theory on how to rid people of their troubles and ease theirRead MoreNative Americans and Their Contributions to the Advancement of Health and Medicine934 Words   |  4 PagesNative Americans and Their Contributions to the Advancement of Health and Medicine Stories of Native Americans contributions to the advancement of health and medicine traces were discovered in a small town in Nali, Africa. The very first onset of the beggining of modern pharmacology is the substance called quinine. This is the substance that came from a bark of a tree that grew in high elevations. The Indians has been using this substance to cure malaria, cramps, chills, hear-rythm disordersRead MoreNative American Healing Traditions Could Supplement Modern Western Medicine2054 Words   |  9 PagesMany traditional Native medicines and healing practices were discouraged with the advent of Western medicine, but now there is a movement to return to traditional ways (Zubek, 1994, p. 1924). Modern Western medicine treats the symptoms to cure a diseased state when the body is out of homeostasis. Native American healing traditions do this as well with herbs and plants suited to the purpose. These Native healing traditions also include sacred rituals, chants, and pur ification rites to help bringRead MoreA Comparison Between The Way to Rainy Mountain and Love Medicine881 Words   |  4 Pages In the novels Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich and The Way to Rainy Mountain by N. Scott Momaday, the reader gains views of Native American culture, both past and present, through two disparate means of delivery. Both authors provide immensely rich portrayals through varying literary devices in efforts to bring about a better understanding of problems contemporary Native Americans face, especially regarding their own self-identity. The story of Love Medicine revolves around a central characterRead MoreEssay on Alcoholism922 Words   |  4 PagesAlcoholism Alcohol consumption was initiated on reservations when traders in the nineteenth century started to offer it to oppressed and depressed Native Americans. Natives represent, in fact, the ethnic group with the highest degree of alcohol consumption in the United States. Confinement on reservations after displacement brought for Native Americans identity conflicts and assimilation problems. This situation promoted the abuse of liquor to mitigate the psychological pain inflicted by the dispossessionRead More Pocahontas and the Mythical Indian Woman Essay5406 Words   |  22 PagesPocahontas and the Mythical Indian Woman Pocahontas. Americans know her as the beautiful, Indian woman who fell in love with the white settler John Smith and then threw her body upon the poor white captive to protect him from being brutally executed by her own savage tribe. The magical world of Walt Disney came out with their own movie version several years ago portraying Pocahontas as a tan, sexy Barbie doll figure and John Smith as a blond-haired, blue-eyed muscular Ken doll. Although Disney