Providing Culturally Appropriate Education on Type 2 Diabetes to Rural American Indians: Emotions and Racial...

Healthy and balanced emotions are an important aspect of well-being. Today, diabetes has a high prevalence in American Indian communities. Four Talking Circle facilitators were interviewed in a phenomenological research study to describe their experience of facilitating Talking Circles during a diabetes research intervention, Diabetes Wellness: American Indian Talking Circles. The Diabetes Wellness study provided a twelve week educational curriculum in a Talking Circle format to target prevention and effective maintenance of symptoms of Type 2 diabetes among American Indians adults on two rural Northern Plains reservations. Seven essential themes emerged from the phenomenological study data. This report describes one theme: expression of the emotional aspect of diabetes and three sub-themes that depict American Indian culture: connectedness, collective living, and transformation. Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease that affects the emotional status of American Indians in rural communities. The notion of racial consciousness is discussed as a potential context from which Talking Circle facilitators can operate and Talking Circle participants respond. This viewpoint may be a useful cultural approach for lay personnel with an (emic) inside perspective like Talking Circle facilitators when working in areas like rural American Indian reservations.