The Professional Counselor | Volume 13, Issue 4 459 Essential directives noted in this article include the importance of consulting with Indigenous healers within (or in approximation to) readers’ own contexts, to consider the ethical application of Indigenous-origin healing practices. We suggest seeking out and receiving education around such interventions, their histories, and the communities from which they originate to gain further understanding and respect for the practices. Those working in school systems may want to work collaboratively with an Indigenous education director in the ethical provision of ceremony-based interventions in their setting or to advocate for hiring such professionals for settings that lack an expert. Readers can also refer to the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development’s Native American Concerns Group as a resource for Native counselors as well as for professionals counseling Native populations. We reiterate that the perspectives around the use of and appropriation of Indigenous practices differ within and across Indigenous communities. Meade et al.’s (2022) Checklist for Counselor Practitioners reminds practitioners to remain vigilant to their own intersecting identities and to adhere to ethical practices in order to avoid harmful cultural appropriation. We attend to several of these recommendations by acknowledging and sharing our intersecting identities and offering guidance on ethically adapting the interventions to all clients. Finally, going forward, when sharing these healing teachings, we encourage readers to maintain an awareness of the deep roots of these practices—stretching back and beyond seven generations—as a way to honor the ancestors who came before us and who have persisted in the face of great tragedy. We recognize the oral traditions that have allowed these teachings to be passed across the generations and ask readers to mindfully and respectfully pass on such teachings (orally or in writing) for seven generations more. In this way, future communities will know the healing practices that have aided Indigenous people for thousands of years, and they can adapt such practices in ways that heal and bring balance and wholeness to each unique community. Ultimately, we hope that counselor awareness of such factors will ensure that these teachings are shared in a mindful, loving, and honorable way. Conflict of Interest and Funding Disclosure The authors reported no conflict of interest or funding contributions for the development of this manuscript. References American Counseling Association. (2014). ACA code of ethics. https://www.counseling.org/resources/aca-codeof-ethics.pdf Blackett, P. S., & Payne, H. L. (2005). Health rhythms: A preliminary inquiry into group-drumming as experienced by participants on a structured day services programme for substance-misusers. Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy, 12(6), 477–491. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687630500342881 Borden, A., & Coyote, S. (2007, April 25). Smudging ceremony. http://www.snowwowl.com/nainfosmudging.htm Causadias, J. M., Alcalá, L., Morris, K. S., Yaylaci, F. T., & Zhang, N. (2022). Future directions on BIPOC youth mental health: The importance of cultural rituals in the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 51(4), 577–592. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2022.2084744 Craddock, L., Kells, M., Morgan, L., & Shah-Beckley, I. (2022). Drumming, singing and ceremony within a psychologically informed planned environment for women on the offender personality disorder pathway. The Journal of Forensic Practice, 24(2), 123–137. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFP-05-2021-0026
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