Social Media and Online Content Policy

The platform may include:
psychoeducation; information arising from research and scholarship;
discussion of Colonial Trauma and healing; Indigenous wellness and Cultural Wellness; relational approaches to healing; cultural reclamation and reconnection; identity and belonging;
social and structural determinants of wellness; personal and professional reflections; information about clinical counselling;
workshops and educational opportunities; organizational education and consultation; speaking engagements; media interviews and commentary; Substack publications; professional resources; and
discussion of contemporary Indigenous life, healing, and thriving.

The purpose of this work is not simply to describe the harms of colonization, but to contribute to conversations about healing, reclamation, reconnection, wellness, self-determination, hope, and Indigenous thriving.

Colonial Trauma: Naming the Source of the Wound
This platform intentionally uses the term Colonial Trauma.
Colonial Trauma recognizes that trauma affecting Indigenous peoples is not inherently Indigenous.

The term seeks to locate the source of the wound within historical and continuing processes of colonization rather than attaching trauma, dysfunction, illness, or deficiency to Indigenous identity itself.
Colonization has disrupted Indigenous relationships with: self; family; community; culture; language; identity; land; governance; spirituality; traditional roles; Indigenous knowledge systems; and other relations.

Colonial Trauma may therefore be understood as more than an individual psychological injury. It may involve systemic, sociocultural, relational, historical, intergenerational, spiritual, cultural, and personal dimensions.

At the same time, Indigenous identity will not be equated with trauma.
Colonial Trauma is not Indigenous identity. Indigenous peoples are not inherently traumatized, deficient, dysfunctional, unhealthy, or broken.
This platform equally emphasizes Indigenous strength, Wisdom, continuity, resistance, reclamation, resilience, healing, self-determination, and wellness.

Cultural Wellness and the Spirit of Indigeneity
A central foundation of this platform is the understanding that Indigenous wellness can involve the reclamation and living of Cultural Wellness and the Spirit of Indigeneity.
My doctoral research identified a process of Colonial Trauma Healing that included: the Spirit of Indigeneity’s Call to Healing; Purging Colonial Poison; Reclaiming Cultural Wellness and the Spirit of Indigeneity; and Living Cultural Wellness Guided by the Spirit of Indigeneity.

These concepts may inform educational material shared through this platform. They are offered as a framework for reflection and learning rather than as a prescriptive clinical treatment model or a universal description of Indigenous experience. There is no single correct path to Indigenous healing or wellness.

A Strength-Based Approach
Dr.ShawnaBiron intentionally resists deficit-based narratives that portray Indigenous peoples primarily through: trauma; addiction; mental illness; violence; suicide; poverty; dysfunction; vulnerability; victimization; or social problems.

These realities may need to be discussed, but they should not be separated from the historical, political, cultural, economic, social, and colonial contexts in which they occur.
Nor should those experiences become the dominant story of Indigenous peoples.

This platform will intentionally create space for stories of:
healing;
wellness;
resilience;
resistance;
reclamation;
cultural continuity;
Indigenous identity;
contribution;
belonging;
relationships;
personal growth;
leadership;
Wisdom;
self-determination;
joy; and
thriving.

The purpose is not to romanticize Indigenous experience. It is to resist narratives that locate the “problem” within Indigenous people rather than within the conditions that have contributed to suffering.
Relational Understanding of Wellness
Wellness is not understood solely as an individual psychological state.

Within an Indigenous relational perspective, a person exists in relationship.
Relations may include:
one’s inner self;
mind;
body;
emotions;
Spirit;
family;
chosen family;
community;
Nation;
Elders;
Knowledge Holders;
Ancestors;
future generations;
land;
animals;
water;
plants;
environment; and
spiritual relations.

Healing may therefore involve restoring, strengthening, transforming, or reconsidering relationships across multiple areas of life.
Content on this platform may reflect this broader relational understanding of healing.

Indigenous Peoples Are Diverse
There is no singular Indigenous culture, identity, worldview, healing practice, spirituality, or experience.
First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples are diverse.
Individual Nations and communities have distinct:
histories;
territories;
languages;
laws;
governance;
ceremonies;
teachings;
knowledge systems;
cultural practices; and
understandings of wellness.
Individual Indigenous people also have different relationships with culture, Nation, family, spirituality, identity, community, and traditional practices.
Content shared through this platform should therefore not be interpreted as speaking for all Indigenous peoples.
No Measure of Being “Indigenous Enough”
Cultural connection exists across a continuum.
Colonization deliberately interrupted the transmission of culture, identity, language, family relationships, ceremony, land relationships, and Indigenous knowledge.
Indigenous people may therefore have very different experiences of cultural connection. Some may have strong connections to Nation, language, ceremony, or community. Others may be reconnecting. Others may have complicated or painful relationships with Indigenous communities or cultural environments. Others may be urban, adopted, displaced, disconnected, mixed ancestry, non-status, or navigating multiple identities and cultures.
No person should be judged as:
not Indigenous enough;
not traditional enough;
not cultural enough;
too Western;
insufficiently spiritual; or
healing incorrectly.
Cultural reclamation should support self-determination rather than create another standard against which Indigenous people are measured.
Culture Is Living
Culture is not frozen in a pre-colonial past.
Culture is living, relational, adaptive, intergenerational, and continually expressed within contemporary environments. This platform may explore ways Indigenous people reclaim and live Indigenous values and identities while simultaneously participating in contemporary society. Reclamation does not necessarily require rejecting everything Western or recreating a historical way of life. Contemporary Indigenous people may integrate Indigenous and Western knowledge, practices, technologies, education, professions, relationships, and ways of living in personally meaningful ways.
Cultural Humility
I approach Indigenous wellness from a position of cultural humility rather than claiming universal cultural authority.
My perspectives are informed by my:
Indigenous identity and lived experience;
relationships;
professional experience;
counselling education;
doctoral research;
work within Indigenous health and wellness;
academic scholarship;
cultural learning; and
ongoing personal reflection.
Those experiences do not authorize me to speak for every Indigenous Nation, community, family, Elder, Knowledge Holder, or Indigenous person. Where something arises from a particular Nation, person, community, teaching, or knowledge system, I will make reasonable efforts to provide that context when appropriate.
Self-Location and Positionality
Relationship and positionality matter. Where relevant, I may identify the personal, cultural, professional, academic, or relational position from which I am speaking.
I may also distinguish between:
my lived experience;
my doctoral research findings;
participant narratives;
Indigenous scholarship;
professional observations;
clinical knowledge;
cultural teachings;
academic research;
personal interpretation; and
opinion.
These sources of knowledge may intersect, but they should not automatically be treated as interchangeable.
Respect for Elders, Knowledge Holders, and Cultural Authority
Elders, Knowledge Holders, cultural teachers, language speakers, healers, and other people entrusted with cultural responsibilities carry forms of knowledge and authority that cannot simply be obtained through academic education.
Academic credentials do not automatically create cultural authority.
Clinical credentials do not create cultural authority. Likewise, Indigenous identity alone does not entitle a person to teach every Indigenous cultural practice. Where cultural knowledge is shared through this platform, attention will be given to appropriate attribution, authority, context, relationship, and permission.
Sacred, Ceremonial, and Restricted Knowledge
Not everything that can be known should be posted online.
Some Indigenous knowledge may be:
sacred;
ceremonial;
private;
community-held;
family-held;
seasonal;
gender- or role-specific;
intended for particular relationships;
received through ceremony;
restricted to particular knowledge holders; or
inappropriate for public dissemination.
Social media does not create an entitlement to Indigenous knowledge. I will not intentionally share cultural knowledge that I do not have the authority or permission to share.
Stories Are Relational
Storytelling is an important way of transmitting knowledge and creating meaning. However, another person’s story is not automatically mine to tell.
Before sharing stories involving other people, consideration will be given to:
consent;
confidentiality;
context;
relational responsibility;
cultural implications;
ownership of the story;
potential consequences;
community identifiability; and
whether sharing serves a meaningful purpose.
Particular caution is necessary within small or interconnected Indigenous communities, where someone may be identifiable despite removal of their name.
Research Participants and Dissertation Content
My doctoral research may inform content shared through ShawnaBironPhD.
The fact that material was gathered for research or appears within a dissertation does not mean every participant story, quotation, teaching, or experience should automatically be repurposed as social media content.
Research material will be approached with continued attention to:
research consent;
participant intent;
confidentiality;
relational accountability;
ethical dissemination;
context; and
respect for the people whose Wisdom contributed to the research.
Where participant narratives are shared, their original meaning and context should be preserved.
Indigenous Knowledge and Data Sovereignty
This platform recognizes that Indigenous peoples have legitimate interests in the ownership, control, access, stewardship, and use of information and knowledge concerning themselves, their communities, and their Nations.
Where applicable, consideration will be given to Indigenous data sovereignty and principles such as OCAP® — Ownership, Control, Access and Possession.
Legal access to information does not necessarily make its use culturally or relationally appropriate.
Avoiding Cultural Extraction and Appropriation
Indigenous culture is not a branding tool.
Cultural practices, teachings, stories, artwork, language, medicines, songs, ceremonies, symbols, and knowledge should not be extracted from their relationships and contexts merely to make content more interesting, marketable, spiritual, or commercially valuable.
When cultural content originating with another person, Nation, artist, Elder, Knowledge Holder, or community is used, reasonable efforts will be made to provide appropriate attribution and obtain permission where required.
Attribution does not replace consent.
Trauma-Informed Communication
This platform may discuss difficult subjects related to colonization and trauma, including:
residential schools;
child apprehension;
forced assimilation;
cultural suppression;
racism;
discrimination;
violence;
substance use;
suicide;
grief;
family disruption;
abuse;
systemic inequities;
colonial institutions; and
intergenerational trauma.
Where appropriate, content notices may be provided. However, it may not be possible to anticipate every topic that another person finds distressing. Trauma will not intentionally be sensationalized or presented graphically merely to attract engagement. Indigenous suffering will not be used as spectacle.
Healing Is Not Linear or Prescriptive
Healing is personal, relational, and contextual.
People may heal through different combinations of:
culture;
relationships;
family;
counselling;
community;
ceremony;
spirituality;
land;
physical activity;
language;
traditional practices;
creative expression;
medical treatment;
education;
social change;
advocacy;
reflection;
peer support; and
other approaches.
Healing may also involve periods of wellness, challenge, grief, reconnection, disconnection, growth, and change. The four-phase framework arising from my doctoral research should not be interpreted as requiring every person to progress through healing in exactly the same manner.
Cultural Healing and Clinical Counselling Are Not the Same Thing
Indigenous cultural healing and clinical counselling are distinct.
Neither should automatically be substituted for the other.
Clinical counselling may support some people’s healing but does not replace:
Elders;
cultural teachers;
ceremony;
community;
spiritual support;
traditional healing;
family; or
Nation-specific cultural knowledge.
Similarly, general discussion of culture or healing on social media should not be interpreted as individualized clinical, cultural, spiritual, ceremonial, or medical guidance.
Educational Content Is Not Counselling
Content shared through:
social media;
Substack;
websites;
podcasts;
interviews;
presentations;
videos;
articles;
comments;
newsletters; or
other public platforms
is generally provided for educational and informational purposes.
It does not constitute:
counselling;
psychotherapy;
diagnosis;
psychological assessment;
medical advice;
individualized treatment;
risk assessment;
crisis intervention;
legal advice;
cultural authorization;
ceremonial guidance;
traditional healing; or
individualized spiritual advice.
Professional Services
I may provide professional services that are separate from general public educational content.
These may include:
clinical counselling;
psychoeducation;
workshops;
presentations;
organizational education;
consultation;
conference speaking;
facilitated learning;
media interviews;
podcasts;
panels; and
other professional engagements within my competence.
Information about services may be shared through this platform.
Providing information about professional services does not guarantee availability, suitability, acceptance as a client, or a particular outcome.
For professional inquiries:
shawna@phdshawnabiron.ca
No Counsellor–Client Relationship Through Social Media
Viewing, following, liking, commenting on, sharing, subscribing to, tagging, emailing about, or messaging ShawnaBironPhD does not establish a counsellor–client relationship.
A professional counselling relationship is created only after appropriate steps have occurred, which may include:
communication regarding the requested service;
consideration of professional competence and service fit;
jurisdictional considerations;
intake and screening;
informed consent;
discussion of confidentiality and privacy;
discussion of fees and limitations; and
mutual agreement to enter a professional relationship.
Professional Identity and Credentials
Professional and academic credentials will be represented accurately.
When I use Dr. Shawna Biron, Shawna Biron, DSocSci, or otherwise refer to my doctorate, I will provide reasonable context that my doctoral degree is a Doctor of Social Sciences.
The title Dr. is not intended to represent me as a physician, psychiatrist, psychologist, or another health professional whose credential I do not hold.
My professional counselling qualifications and registration will similarly be represented accurately.
My doctoral research provides academic expertise concerning Colonial Trauma Healing and contemporary Indigenous wellness. It does not make me the cultural authority for all Indigenous peoples.
Current, Former, and Prospective Clients
Current, former, and prospective clients should consider the privacy implications of publicly interacting with a professional social media account. Following, liking, commenting, or sharing may reveal information about a person’s interests or potential relationship with counselling or mental health services.
To protect confidentiality:
I will not publicly identify a person as a client;
I will not publicly confirm that someone is or was a client;
I will not discuss clinical matters in public comments;
I will not provide counselling through informal social media interactions; and
I will not require clients to follow or publicly engage with my account.
If a client publicly interacts with the account, I may not respond in a manner that could reveal the professional relationship.
Testimonials and Reviews
I do not request testimonials or public endorsements from current clinical counselling clients.
Testimonials can create concerns involving:
confidentiality;
informed consent;
power imbalance;
professional boundaries;
privacy; and
unrealistic expectations.
If someone independently identifies themselves publicly as a client or former client, I may decline to respond, repost, or confirm the relationship.
Comments and Community Standards
Respectful conversation, curiosity, reflection, disagreement, and learning are welcome. However, this platform is not obligated to host abusive or harmful engagement.
Comments or accounts may be removed, restricted, blocked, or reported where interaction involves:
racism;
hate speech;
harassment;
threats;
discriminatory statements;
cultural mockery;
dehumanization;
personal attacks;
colonial denialism presented in an abusive manner;
disclosure of another person’s private information;
exploitation of trauma;
sexual harassment;
impersonation;
spam; or
other behaviour inconsistent with the safety and educational purpose of the platform.
Disagreement is permitted. Abuse is not.
Direct Messages and Email
Social media messages and ordinary email are not confidential clinical environments.
Please avoid sending detailed information concerning:
trauma histories;
abuse;
medical information;
psychological information;
current crises;
confidential cultural information;
workplace matters;
legal issues;
children;
family members;
clients;
community members; or
information belonging to another person.
Messages may not be monitored continuously. I may be unable to respond to every message.
Social Media Is Not a Crisis Service
Social media, Substack, comments, direct messages, and email are not crisis services.
If you are experiencing an immediate mental health or safety emergency, use an appropriate emergency or crisis service.
In Canada, call or text 9-8-8 for suicide crisis support.
Call 9-1-1 or attend the nearest emergency department when there is immediate danger or a medical emergency.
Indigenous individuals may also choose to access available Indigenous-specific crisis, health, cultural, community, Elder, or wellness services.
People outside Canada should contact the appropriate crisis or emergency service in their location.
Accuracy, Research, and Knowledge
I aim to share information informed by:
my doctoral research;
Indigenous scholarship;
professional education;
counselling knowledge;
Indigenous wellness literature;
lived experience;
clinical experience;
cultural learning;
consultation; and
ongoing professional development.
Social media necessarily simplifies complex subjects.
A post cannot capture every:
cultural distinction;
research limitation;
historical context;
methodological issue;
clinical consideration; or
alternative interpretation.
Where possible, I will distinguish between evidence, research findings, theory, participant narratives, Indigenous knowledge, professional interpretation, and personal reflection.
Two-Eyed Seeing and Multiple Ways of Knowing
My work may draw from both Indigenous and Western sources of knowledge.
My doctoral research intentionally explored areas where Indigenous knowledge, Indigenous wellness approaches, social science, psychology, trauma theory, and other Western theoretical frameworks may intersect or provide complementary insights.
Drawing from multiple knowledge systems does not require one to erase, absorb, or subordinate the other.
Where knowledge systems differ, those differences may also be acknowledged.
Personal Reflection and Self-Disclosure
I may share personal experiences where doing so has a clear educational, relational, professional, or healing purpose.
Personal disclosure may help:
provide context;
identify my positionality;
humanize academic material;
support stigma reduction;
illustrate concepts;
encourage reflection; or
describe my own relationship with healing and reclamation.
Personal experience represents my experience.
It should not be interpreted as the experience of all Indigenous people or as evidence that another person should follow the same path.
Media, Speaking, Workshops, and Professional Collaboration
I welcome appropriate inquiries related to:
podcasts;
television;
radio;
print media;
journalism;
documentaries;
conferences;
keynote speaking;
panels;
workshops;
professional education;
Indigenous wellness;
Colonial Trauma Healing;
Cultural Wellness;
organizational learning; and
related professional collaborations.
Participation in another person’s program, publication, event, or media platform does not imply endorsement of every view associated with that person or organization.
Media and professional inquiries may be sent to:
shawna@phdshawnabiron.ca
Ethical Representation of Indigenous Trauma in Media
When collaborating with media or organizations, I encourage discussions of Indigenous trauma to include appropriate colonial, historical, social, relational, and systemic context.
Indigenous suffering should not be presented merely as:
tragedy;
dysfunction;
spectacle;
sensational content; or
evidence of inherent Indigenous vulnerability.
Where trauma is discussed, space should also be made for Indigenous agency, healing, resistance, reclamation, knowledge, and wellness.
Commercial and Professional Transparency
ShawnaBironPhD serves both a public-education purpose and a professional purpose.
I may discuss services that I provide, including counselling, speaking, education, workshops, consultation, and media work.
Professional qualifications and service descriptions will be represented truthfully.
I will not intentionally use:
fear;
trauma;
vulnerability;
urgency;
cultural identity;
exaggerated claims;
guarantees; or
unrealistic promises
to pressure someone into purchasing services. No professional service can guarantee healing or a particular outcome.
External Resources and Collaborations
I may share the work of:
researchers;
Indigenous scholars;
organizations;
communities;
authors;
clinicians;
Elders;
Knowledge Holders;
podcasts;
programs;
books; and
other resources.
Sharing something does not mean that I endorse every belief, statement, service, or practice associated with that resource. Users should consider the context, credibility, qualifications, cultural location, and relevance of external resources.
Intellectual Property
Unless otherwise identified, original ShawnaBironPhD content is my intellectual property. Content may generally be shared using built-in social media functions where the original attribution and context remain intact.
Please do not:
remove attribution;
represent my work as your own;
materially alter my work in a misleading way;
remove important cultural or historical context;
commercialize substantial portions without permission;
use content to stereotype Indigenous peoples;
imply professional endorsement where none exists; or
use my work to claim cultural authority that has not been granted.
Different rights may apply to information, artwork, teachings, stories, quotations, or other material originating from participants, Indigenous communities, Nations, artists, Elders, Knowledge Holders, or other contributors.
I cannot grant another person rights that do not belong to me.
Artificial Intelligence and Digital Reproduction
Content from this platform should not be used in ways that misrepresent my voice, identity, research, professional views, or cultural teachings.
This includes altered, generated, or synthetic content that falsely represents me as saying or endorsing something I did not say or endorse.
Indigenous stories, cultural teachings, participant narratives, research material, and culturally sensitive material should be approached with particular caution when using artificial intelligence or automated content-generation systems.
Public availability should not be interpreted as unrestricted cultural permission.
Accountability, Reflection, and Correction
Cultural humility involves ongoing learning rather than claiming perfect cultural competence.
I remain responsible for:
reflection;
consultation;
ongoing education;
listening;
examining my own assumptions;
correcting material errors;
considering respectful feedback; and
revising my understanding as I continue to learn.
Where content is found to be materially inaccurate, misleading, culturally inappropriate, or inconsistent with my current understanding, it may be corrected, contextualized, archived, or removed. Accountability does not require agreement with every criticism, but respectful concerns will be considered.
A Relational Standard for This Platform
A guiding question for this work is not simply:
“Can I post this?”
It is also:
“Is sharing this in a good way?”
That includes considering:
who or what I am in relationship with;
whose knowledge is involved;
whether the story is mine to tell;
whether appropriate permission exists;
whether the content honours dignity;
whether it reinforces or challenges colonial narratives;
whether it contributes to wellness;
whether it creates unnecessary harm;
whether cultural context is preserved; and
whether I can stand behind the content with integrity.
Knowledge carries responsibility.
Changes to This Policy
This policy may evolve alongside:
my professional practice;
the development of ShawnaBironPhD;
further scholarship;
cultural learning;
professional standards;
ethical guidance;
privacy law;
social media technologies;
media practices; and
the continued development of my work on Colonial Trauma Healing and Cultural Wellness.
The most current policy will be identified by its effective date.
Contact
For inquiries concerning:
clinical counselling;
Colonial Trauma Healing;
Indigenous wellness;
Cultural Wellness;
psychoeducation;
workshops;
organizational education;
speaking engagements;
conferences;
consultation;
podcasts;
media;
interviews;
research; or
professional collaboration,
please contact:
Dr. Shawna Biron, DSocSci, MA, RCC
Email: shawna@phdshawnabiron.ca
Closing Statement
Colonial Trauma Healing is not about locating deficiency within Indigenous peoples. It is about understanding the wounds created through colonization while making space for what has endured, what can be reclaimed, and what can be created.
Indigenous peoples can heal. Indigenous peoples can reclaim Cultural Wellness. Indigenous peoples can thrive within the contemporary colonial world.
That hopeful, relational, strength-based orientation is at the centre of the research underpinning this platform.