Exploring Medicine Wheel Teachings to Enhance Mental Health

Across many Indigenous worldviews, wellness is understood as balance and relationship — within ourselves, with others, with community, with the land, and with spirit. Mental health is not seen as something separate from the rest of life, but as deeply interconnected with emotional, physical, spiritual, and relational wellbeing.

The Medicine Wheel is one framework that reflects this holistic understanding of health. It offers a way of noticing where balance may be present and where care, attention, or support may be needed.

A respectful note: Medicine Wheel teachings are not universal across all Indigenous Nations. Not all Indigenous communities use the Medicine Wheel, and teachings, colours, directions, meanings, and protocols vary by Nation and community. What follows is a general framework intended to support reflection and understanding, not to replace learning from Elders, Knowledge Keepers, or community-based teachings.

Medicine Wheel

The Medicine Wheel as a Holistic Framework

Rather than viewing mental health as something that exists only in the mind, the Medicine Wheel invites us to understand wellbeing as interconnected. When one area of life becomes strained or neglected, it often affects the others.

In many teachings, the Medicine Wheel is often described through four interrelated aspects of wellbeing:

• Mental – thoughts, beliefs, learning, meaning-making

• Emotional – feelings, relationships, expression, connection

• Physical – body, movement, rest, nutrition, environment

• Spiritual – values, purpose, spirit, connection to land and ancestry

Balance does not mean perfection or equal attention at all times. Rather, it asks us to stay curious about where we may be out of alignment and what support might restore harmony.

The Four Directions (General Teachings)

Many people are introduced to the Medicine Wheel through teachings connected to the four directions. These associations are commonly shared across communities, though they are not the same for all Nations. The commonly seen coloured quadrant wheel is a teaching tool that has been widely shared, but not all Indigenous cultures use the same colours, directions, or meanings.

The descriptions below are offered as one general way of understanding.

🌅 East – Mental / New Beginnings

Often associated with the rising sun, the East may represent clarity, insight, learning, and awareness. From a mental health perspective, this can involve:

• Noticing thought patterns

• Developing insight and self-reflection

• Cultivating curiosity rather than judgment

🔥 South – Emotional / Relationships

The South is often linked with emotions, connection, and growth. This area may invite reflection on:

• Emotional expression and regulation

• Relationships and boundaries

• Play, creativity, and joy

  
  

🌄 West – Physical / Reflection

The West is commonly connected to the physical body, introspection, and rest. In terms of wellbeing, this may include:

• Listening to the body’s signals

• Attending to sleep, movement, and nourishment

• Slowing down and integrating experience

  
  

🌌 North – Spiritual / Wisdom

The North is often associated with wisdom, spirit, and long-term perspective. Spirit does not necessarily mean religion — it can also reflect meaning, values, and purpose. This quadrant may involve:

• Clarifying what matters most

• Connecting to land, ancestry, or community

• Living in alignment with values

Why the Medicine Wheel Supports Mental Health

Many Western mental health models focus primarily on symptoms or diagnoses. Indigenous frameworks such as the Medicine Wheel offer a broader lens — one that recognises how distress can arise when parts of ourselves are disconnected or unsupported.

Community-based research and teachings from Elders have highlighted that reconnecting mind, body, spirit, culture, and relationship supports wellbeing. Studies with Indigenous communities and youth have found that cultural frameworks emphasizing balance and identity are associated with increased self-esteem, resilience, and a stronger sense of belonging.

For many people, especially Indigenous individuals reconnecting with cultural knowledge, the Medicine Wheel can be both grounding and empowering.

Engaging with the Medicine Wheel in a Respectful Way

The Medicine Wheel can be a meaningful tool for reflection and wellness when approached with respect, humility, and awareness of cultural context.

Engaging with the Medicine Wheel may look different for everyone. Some ways people may choose to engage include:

• Reflecting on personal balance by noticing how mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual needs are being met as a reflective practice rather than a strict framework or checklist.

• Using journaling, mindfulness, or therapeutic reflection to explore areas of imbalance with curiosity and self-compassion, rather than a need to “fix” oneself.

• Spending time in nature and recognizing the importance of land and environment in holistic wellness and noticing how connection to place supports overall wellbeing.

• Learning about the Medicine Wheel through community-led teachings, Elders, or Knowledge Keepers when possible, recognizing that teachings, meanings, and practices vary by Nation and community.

• Engaging with cultural practices only within appropriate cultural context and guidance, understanding that some practices, such as ceremony or smudging, carry specific protocols and are not meant to be adapted casually.

• Integrating Medicine Wheel teachings alongside counselling or other supports as a complementary approach, rather than a replacement for professional mental health care.

These suggestions are offered as general guidance and may look different depending on individual experience, culture, and community.

Examples of Medicine Wheel Impact on Mental Health

Research and anecdotal evidence highlight the benefits of Medicine Wheel teachings:

• Research with Indigenous youth has found that culturally grounded programs incorporating Medicine Wheel teachings are associated with improved self-esteem, stronger cultural identity, and reduced experiences of depressive symptoms. These outcomes are linked to the emphasis on balance, belonging, and connection across mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual domains (e.g., studies summarized by the University of Manitoba and Indigenous mental health research initiatives).

• Mental health practitioners working in Indigenous and community-based settings use Medicine Wheel frameworks to inform holistic care planning. Research and practice literature describe how addressing multiple interconnected aspects of a person’s life — rather than focusing on symptoms alone — supports improved engagement, meaning-making, and overall wellbeing (e.g., Indigenous wellness and Two-Eyed Seeing frameworks).

• Qualitative research and client-reported experiences suggest that reflective practices grounded in Medicine Wheel teachings can increase feelings of grounding, resilience, and emotional regulation. Daily or regular reflection using holistic frameworks has been linked to improved stress management and coping, particularly when paired with culturally affirming supports. (Links below for sources)

  
  

Respecting the Medicine Wheel Teachings

It is essential to approach Medicine Wheel teachings with respect and cultural sensitivity. These teachings are sacred and vary among Indigenous nations. Learning directly from Indigenous elders or knowledge keepers ensures authenticity and honors the tradition.

A Gentle Reflection

You might consider asking yourself:

• Which area of the Medicine Wheel feels most supported in my life right now?

• Which area may be asking for more care or attention?

• What small step could help restore balance?

Wellness is not a destination — it is an ongoing relationship with ourselves and the world around us.

Summary

The Medicine Wheel offers a holistic way of understanding mental health by focusing on balance between mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual wellbeing. Instead of viewing mental health challenges in isolation, it reminds us that wellness is shaped by our relationships, values, culture, and connection to land and community.

Research and community-based studies show that culturally grounded approaches, including those informed by Medicine Wheel teachings, can support resilience, self-esteem, emotional regulation, and a sense of belonging — particularly for Indigenous individuals and youth. These benefits come from strengthening balance and cultural connection, rather than using the Medicine Wheel as a clinical treatment on its own.

When approached with respect, the Medicine Wheel can be a helpful reflective framework that complements counselling and other supports. It invites us to slow down, notice where balance may be missing, and reconnect with what helps us feel grounded and whole.

If you’re interested in exploring holistic and culturally informed approaches to mental health within counselling, this framework may be something we can reflect on together.

Research Sources: 1. A community‐based participatory study using Medicine Wheel and Two-Eyed Seeing frameworksThis research explored Indigenous youth experiences and used a Medicine Wheel-related framework to understand health balance. PMC🔗 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9137308/

2. A scoping review showing that culturally appropriate, strength-based wellness strategies improve engagement for Indigenous youthAlthough not exclusively Medicine Wheel, this review highlights strength-based and culturally grounded approaches that align with holistic frameworks like the Medicine Wheel. PMC🔗 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9422134/

3. A community survey using a four-domain health model based on the Medicine WheelThis study used a Medicine Wheel-based model (physical, mental, emotional, spiritual) to examine determinants of health and wellbeing. PMC🔗 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8910369/

4. Research showing that Medicine Wheel-based approaches are used to understand and support Indigenous wellness holistically in public healthThis article discusses the Medicine Wheel as a holistic health model relevant to Indigenous wellbeing frameworks. PMC🔗 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11294231/

5. Qualitative research on resilience and hope in Indigenous youth that links Medicine Wheel balance concepts with wellbeing outcomesThis study reports on Indigenous youth perspectives where balance and resilience (core Medicine Wheel concepts) were central to wellness. coloradosph.cuanschutz.edu🔗 https://coloradosph.cuanschutz.edu/docs/librariesprovider205/journal_files/vol26/26_2_2019_151_gray.pdf