Seeking help for psychological distress: The interface of Zulu traditional healing and Western biomedicine

Abstract

This study explores how psychological distress is identified and explained among Zulu people, examines how traditional healers understand their role and treatment methods and investigates the interaction between traditional and Western approaches to health care. Zulu people consult traditional healers namely diviners, faith healers or herbalists, as well as Western doctors to treat mental illness and distress. Whilst Western biomedicine is seen as useful in providing treatment, diviners and faith healers are particularly valued for their skills in identifying the cause of illness. Patients and their families tend to shop around for a practitioner who gives advice in keeping with their own beliefs. Psychological distress is usually explained in terms of sorcery, displeasure from the ancestors or social causes. Traditional healers use treatments aimed at harmonizing the patient with their environment through neutralizing sorcery, appeasing ancestors or directly manipulating the environment.

Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the help of the Zulu people who took part in our study and the support given by staff at Hlabisa Hospital. We would also like to thank Sushrut Jadhav and Simon Dein for their helpful comments and suggestions on the manuscript.