Sometimes the muscles are rubbed in a manner similar to Western massage. The Cherokee use massage to relieve tension, sprains, and pain. Massage oils made of buffalo fat, bear grease, or sea algae may also be applied. For example, Eagle Plume, a renowned Blackfoot medicine man, treated his son's knee injury by inserting rose thorns into the skin and burning them down to the bottom. Clan mothers, respected female elders, are especially known for their ability to offer kind, wise, yet strong advice during times of emotional difficulty.
Native counseling emphasizes health rather than pathology.
The counselor generally seeks to augment a person's strengths rather than analyze or focus on weaknesses. Humor is frequently used to help break obsessive and overly serious thinking or behavior. Counseling may take the form of talking things out or listening to the insight of an elder or medicine person. Or, the healer may help the patient access healing guidance by interpreting his or her dreams or visions. The counselor may also use his or her own visualization of healing powers to affect a proximal or distant patient.