Traditional Beliefs and Practices Associated with Relieving Psychological Problems of Pregnant Women of the Zeliang Tribe

Abstract In resource-poor Indigenous and tribal settings, emotional distress in pregnancy is usually managed through culture-based explanatory models and healing systems. Using a qualitative approach, this article examines how pregnant Zeliang women in Benreu village, Nagaland, understand and manage psychological issues through indigenous practices. Following community psychology and public health paradigms, semi-structured interviews were completed with ten pregnant women and two traditional healers. Braun and Clarke's six-stage thematic analysis identified five core themes: (1) culturally constructed emotional vulnerability in terms of ancestral and spiritual beliefs; (2) ritualized coping mechanisms involving chanting, incense fumigation, and defensive offerings; (3) the psychosocial function of traditional healers as emotional interpreters and community counselors; (4) the impact of maternal kin and communal knowledge in emotion management; and (5) the negotiation between biomedical antenatal care and Indigenous spiritual support. The research shows that traditional healing plays not only a cultural role but also an informal mental health system that provides emotional reassurance, symbolic meaning, and social containment. The research points towards the importance of culturally safe integrative perinatal care models that straddle Indigenous and formal healthcare systems. Such hybrid models are likely to optimize emotional well-being, decrease stigma, and facilitate more balanced maternal mental health services in tribal settings.