Sask. app aims to provide First Nations-focused mental health support – CBC
Apr 26, 2023
Talking Stick connects First Nations people with trained peer advocates
A Saskatchewan-based mental health app is aiming to help First Nations people feel heard.
Talking Stick was developed by the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations alongside Canadian tech health company TryCycle Data Systems. It is a free and anonymous text-only chat platform that allows First Nations people to connect with a trained peer advocate in Saskatchewan.
The advocates are First Nations people who have been trained to listen with compassion, respect and humility. They are not crisis counsellors or health-care professionals.
Nathan Chamakese, the northwest regional manager for the app, said the platform is meant to be a mental-health support built around the concept, “for First Nations by First Nations.”
