People providing mental health support across the country have been much busier helping those who have been traumatized after Pope Francis arrived in Canada and apologized for the harm done by members of the Catholic Church.
“Once we started, before the Pope gave his first speech on Monday, we saw about 125 people come to us at Maskwacis,” said Nola Jeffrey, executive director of the Tsow-Tun Le Lum Society, a substance abuse and trauma organization.  assistance center offering traditional and cultural healing in Lantzville, BC
Jeffrey and her team of elders, survivors and people living with intergenerational trauma were invited by the BC First Nations Health Authority and organizers of the Pope’s visit to Alberta to provide support as the Pope apologized, for the first time in Canada, in front of school survivors and their families in Maskwacis, Alta., south of Edmonton.
“After (the apology), people came to us in droves,” Jeffrey said.  “We didn’t leave until the last person who wanted help finished.”
Indigenous Services Canada said the federal government’s 24-hour crisis support line has received double the number of callers it usually receives since the Pope arrived for his visit this week.
“Crisis lines receive calls from across the country,” Kyle Fournier, a spokesman for Indigenous Services Canada, said in an email Thursday.
“Callers to the crisis lines express a range of different emotions. For some, the Pope’s visit and apology can be healing and, for others, it can be a trigger. Conversations about the harmful legacy of residential schools are important and can also be difficult for many.”
On average, Fournier said the National Indian Residential School Crisis Line received 121 calls a day as of January 2022.
But on the day the Pope apologized for the cultural destruction and forced assimilation of indigenous people, the number of callers rose to 277. The next day, the crisis line received 244 calls.
Fournier said in Alberta, 300 additional mental health and cultural support workers have been asked to be at papal events.  Sixty workers have been called to Quebec and 40 mental health workers will be on site in Iqaluit for the papal visit, eight of whom are clinical counselors.
For the Pope’s visit to Alberta, Jeffrey said she drove from B.C.  carrying traditional medicines such as cedar and fir branches that people brush with to release negative energy.
Many people also approached Jeffrey to use cold water to wash the tears from their face, which is traditionally done four times.  Water helps balance emotions and ground people.
“The first ablution is to honor the Creator, the second ablution is to honor their ancestors, the third ablution is to honor their territory and the last ablution is when I always say, ‘This is the most important ablution to honor a beautiful and precious you.”
Jeffery said her team didn’t turn anyone away.
“We even had a lot of people come to us and the guy who was in charge of security was depressed and came in for help,” he said.
The next day, she said, she stayed past midnight with her team at Lac Ste.  Anna, northwest of Edmonton, after the Pope took part in a holy pilgrimage.  Jeffrey said many people there also needed help.
He said Canadians need to think about how those who can’t let go of their pain can get support for the days, weeks and years to come.
“There’s a teaching that it takes seven generations to let go of trauma, and that’s how we’re at the top,” he said.  “My hope is that we can help our people,” she added through tears.
“The Pope didn’t talk about how children were raped, beaten, shamed, starved and experimented on. We need to make our people feel good about themselves. So many of our people are dying.”
Fournier said access to trauma-informed cultural and emotional support services, as well as professional mental health counseling, will continue to be available through the federal government’s Indian Housing Resolution Health Support Program.
“Community-based support varies from community to community and may include elder services, traditional healers, indigenous health support providers and peer counselors. Professional mental health counseling is also available through this program.”
Jeffrey said indigenous people thrived for thousands of years before colonization.
“Colonization is just a blip in our history,” he said.  “It’s a painful blow, but I know we can come out of this and be strong and thrive again.”
The Indian Residential Schools Resolution Health Support Program has a hotline to help residential school survivors and their families who are traumatized by the recall of past abuse.  The number is 1-866-925-4419.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on July 29, 2022.
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This story was produced with financial assistance from Meta and the Canadian Press News Fellowship.