Mental health and wellness support that reflects the strength of our people.
Meeting People with Care, Not Judgement
NHSS recognizes that Western mental health systems have often failed Indigenous communities, and we’re not here to copy them. For many in the Nlaka’pamux Nation, mental wellness is not just personal – it’s collective. It lives in family, in ceremony, in land, and in language.
Through a mix of in-person, virtual, and culturally rooted supports, we’re building a system where mental health is treated with the same care and respect as physical health, and where no one has to struggle alone or in silence.
Building a Nation of Wellness & Strength
We understand that healing takes many forms. Some people need a counsellor. Others need ceremony, a safe space to talk, or someone to sit quietly with them in a hard moment. Our model allows space for all of that - and more.
Contact UsNHSS offers a growing range of mental health and wellness services designed to reflect our Nation’s values. These include:
- One-on-one counselling, including youth and family-focused services
- Adult counselling
- Addictions counselling
- Groups for grief/loss, ITFL/IFOT teachings
- Culturally safe, confidential counselling spaces
- Outreach for people in remote areas
Traditional Wellness Has Always Been Here
One of our core goals is to ensure traditional wellness is not an afterthought, but a cornerstone. That means bringing Elders and knowledge keepers into the design and delivery of services, and supporting land-based healing where people can reconnect with their culture and identity.
Key efforts include:
Mental Health counselling modalities such as:
- ITFL, IFOT
- Play Therapy, Art Therapy
- Youth and Child Mental Health to Adult Mental Health Service
These practices help restore what was always ours: ways of healing that come from the land, from kinship, and from a deep sense of belonging.
Making Room for Real Mental Health Support
Mental health needs don’t start or stop with one appointment. That’s why NHSS is planning for long-term infrastructure to make these services more permanent and widely available.
A proposed new health facility will include:
- Private offices for mental health and wellness staff
- Group spaces for community support circles and education
- Services for those navigating substance use
- Integration of mental health alongside physical health, rather than keeping them separate
In addition, we are building out mobile options and satellite access points to reach smaller and more remote communities. Mental wellness should not be something you have to travel hours to access—and with these changes, it won’t be.
From Our Communities, For Our Communities
We’re growing a mental wellness team that reflects the Nation and understands the unique role of this work in Indigenous communities. That includes:
- Child, youth, and adult counsellors
- Traditional wellness workers
- Home and community care supports
- Frontline responders trained in mental health first aid
NHSS also supports mentorship, co-op placements, and job-shadowing opportunities to grow future wellness staff from within the Nation. Every team member receives training that combines modern best practices with cultural teachings, so they’re equipped to deliver care that is both skilled and deeply respectful.
Our Work is Our Promise
Wellness doesn’t come from one department. It comes from a community approach. NHSS is committed to walking this path alongside the Nation. That means listening, adapting, and building trust over time.
We will continue to expand services in response to community-identified needs, incorporate cultural practices at every stage of care, build facilities and programs that are sustainable and rooted in place, and most importantly, make mental health care something you can reach, and something you can trust. Wellness isn’t a service we offer – it’s a relationship we honour.