Thurston, Wilfreda EnidOelke, Nelly DonszelmannSchill, Kaela2018-10-022018-10-022018-09-21Schill, K. (2018). “It's a whole package…all part of your body and mind, your soul”: Experiences and Knowledge of Mental Wellness Among Urban Indigenous Elders in the Southern Interior of British Columbia (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/33083http://hdl.handle.net/1880/108730Indigenous peoples in Canada experience higher rates of adverse health outcomes due to historical and contemporary colonialism. In conjunction with a Community Advisory Committee, this research project explored knowledge and experiences of mental wellness among urban Indigenous Elders in the Southern Interior of British Columbia. This project used a qualitative methodology, including traditional and modified sharing circles and individual interviews for data collection. The resulting transcripts were thematically analyzed. Internal validity was established using member checking. Five themes were identified, including: holistic wellness; poor mental wellness outcomes; determinants of mental wellness; the healing journey; and, services and supports. A self-reflection chapter provides insight on the project from the student’s perspective. The research findings are located within the existing academic literature, and the unique ways urban Indigenous Elders experience mental wellness are discussed. Implications of the findings are provided for healthcare systems, cultural safety, policy makers, inter-sectoral collaboration, and future research.engUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.Indigenous wellnessMental wellnessEldersUrban communitiesQualitative methodologiesPostcolonial paradigmCultural safetyMental Healthmaster thesis10.11575/PRISM/33083