THRIVE Lifeline

Energy Check-Ins: Pause, Reflect, Replenish Taking the time to check in with your energy is a powerful way to build self-awareness and protect your emotional well-being. Throughout the day, you’re constantly engaging with people, tasks, and environments that either drain or replenish your energy. By intentionally pausing to assess how you’re feeling, you can identify what’s supporting your well-being and what’s depleting it—and then make adjustments to bring more balance into your life. Pause and Notice: Take a quiet moment during your day. Place a hand on your chest or belly and ask yourself: > How am I feeling emotionally and physically right now? > Do I feel energized, neutral, or drained? > What might be causing this feeling? Track Your Energy Patterns: Reflect on the moments in your day. Which activities, interactions, or environments gave you energy? Which ones left you feeling exhausted? Consider: > Did I feel calm and centered, or tense and overwhelmed, during certain tasks? > How did I feel after spending time on social media or consuming news? Name the Sources: Replenishers: Think about what gave you a sense of calm, joy, or focus. Maybe it was a supportive chat with a friend, a quick walk, or taking a deep breath between tasks. Drainers: Consider what left you feeling exhausted or irritable. This could include conflict, overcommitting, or not taking time for breaks. Adjust Intentionally: Based on your check-in, identify one small change you can make to protect your energy. This could be: > Saying “no” to a request that feels overwhelming. > Scheduling a short break to rest or do something that nourishes you. > Limiting exposure to things that drain you, like scrolling through social media. When to Do Energy Check-Ins Morning: Start the day by setting an intention. Ask yourself, “What do I need to feel steady & supported today?” Midday: Take stock of how the first half of your day has gone. Are you holding tension? Can you reset? Evening: Reflect on your overall energy levels. What felt good today? What would you like to change for tomorrow? Why Energy Check-Ins Matter Understanding your energy patterns isn’t about perfection—it’s about becoming more attuned to your needs. When you make space to reflect, you’re giving yourself permission to prioritize your emotional health. You might also begin to notice trends, like who or what consistently drains you, so you can set boundaries or shift your focus toward what truly uplifts you. Remember, your energy is precious, and protecting it is a form of self-care. Checking in with yourself regularly is an act of kindness and empowerment that can help you stay grounded, resilient, and connected to your needs. [ID: Eight panels with a light purple background, wavy white text boxes surrounded by blue, orange, and pink, and black text as captioned] #THRIVELifeline #EnergyCheckIn #ProtectYourEnergy #EmotionalWellBeing #IntentionalLiving #SelfAwarenessJourney

To immigrants struggling during American holiday season: Holiday season in the US can feel particularly isolating to immigrants. When Americans are celebrating and reuniting with their families of origin, many of us don’t feel cultural connections to these holidays, and can’t return home for various reasons. We may feel alone, watching from the margins as people enjoy rituals that don’t belong to us – and often exclude us. Moreover, conversations around home can bring up complex memories of migration and displacement. For many immigrants, the places and communities we come from are not a safe harbor, but carry heavy, traumatic histories. Navigating our connections with “home” can be a painful, messy, lifelong journey – one that’s often unacknowledged by American society. This holiday season, we’re sending love to those who… > Don’t have a place they call home > Struggle to find community where they are > Can’t return home due to immigration status or cost > Are witnessing ongoing violence in their homeland > Have been estranged or have distanced themselves from their families of origin > Risk losing connections to their homeland under racist anti-immigration policies You are not alone. Even when everyone around us seems to be celebrating, we deserve spaces to tend to our grief, process our experiences and define our own heritage. It’s ok to not participate in festivities we don’t relate to, to not have “fun holiday plans” when people ask. Whether you are taking a work shift, spending time alone or meeting up with loved ones, we see you, and we are here to support you. If you’d like to chat with someone, text “THRIVE” to +1.313.662.8209 [ID: Five panels with a blue snowflake background and black and white text as captioned] #THRIVELifeline #ImmigrantSupport #HealingThroughGrief #HolidayStruggles #ImmigrantStories #YouAreNotAlone #NavigatingHome #TraumaAndHealing #RedefiningHeritage #FindingCommunity #SafeSpacesForAll

Honoring Grief During the Holidays The holidays can stir up a lot of emotions, especially grief. While others may seem to be celebrating, you might feel the weight of what’s missing—a loved one, a relationship, or even the version of yourself that once felt joy this time of year. Grief doesn’t take a holiday, and that’s okay. You’re allowed to feel what you feel, even if it doesn’t match the festive atmosphere around you. Here are some ways to honor your grief while caring for yourself this season: Create Space for Your Feelings Allow yourself to feel sadness, anger, or longing without judgment. It’s okay to cry, to laugh, or to feel a mix of both. Your emotions deserve to be acknowledged. Honor Their Memory Light a candle, hang an ornament, or cook their favorite dish. Small acts of remembrance can bring comfort and connection. Redefine Traditions Give yourself permission to let go of traditions that feel too painful and create new ones that bring peace or meaning to where you are now. Lean on Support Share your feelings with trusted friends, family, or a resource like THRIVE Lifeline. You don’t have to navigate this alone. Take It Moment by Moment The season can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be tackled all at once. Focus on one moment at a time, and remind yourself it’s okay to take breaks from the holiday buzz. Grief is not linear, and it doesn’t come with a deadline. This season, give yourself the grace to feel, to remember, and to rest. The holidays may be different now, but you’re allowed to find moments of comfort in your own way. [ID: Eight panels with white and black text as captioned and photo backgrounds including candles, lanterns, flowers, and an empty chair] #THRIVELifeline #HonoringGrief #HolidayHealing #GriefJourney #PermissionToFeel #HealingThroughGrief #RedefiningTraditions #SupportMatters #EmbraceYourFeelings #SelfCompassion

Did you get your deck of affirmation cards yet? We have a few more left - donate $30+ by the end of the year (December 31, 2024) and send us a receipt at info@thrivelifeline.org to claim yours! Designed by our RECRUIT Intern Ren Zhang, these affirmation cards are designed to support, affirm, and validate multiply marginalized individuals, especially those who are LGBTQ+, neurodivergent, and/or struggle with mental health. Not only is each card a reminder of strength and worth, but they also include tangible actions to promote wellness and fulfillment. Along with the affirmation, on the back of each card, you can find either a recipe, grounding exercise, or herbal remedy. Affirmations are positive, empowering, and repetitive statements designed to challenge negative thoughts and beliefs. These phrases aim to help shift your mental and emotional focus towards a more positive mindset! We have a myriad of multicultural recipes, providing 12 new dishes to try! With a quick summary of the dish and a breakdown of the effort required, you'll never be at a loss for dish ideas! Grounding exercises are techniques individuals can use to help them in times of distress, overwhelm, anxiety, or feeling disconnected. These exercises are simple practices to help you return to your center and refocus in the present moment. Herbal remedies are natural treatments derived or made form plants used to treat specific ailments and promote health. Learn how to use and prepare various herbs! Get your affirmation cards now! [ID: Four panels with light background, dark text, and pictures of our affirmation cards] #THRIVELifeline #Affirmations #AffirmationCards #Grounding #Donate

We've officially closed submissions for our We Are Still Here: Oral History and Portraiture series - thank you so much to all who shared stories with us, and we are still drawing portraits that we will continue to share here. It's an honor to hold and know parts of your humanity - together we help each other to amplify our voices. Today, we're sharing Kaël's story. Kaël says: I am a trans, neurodivergent and mad human studying to work in mental health. Growing up I always felt othered, like my soul was defective and broken and had been sent on this earth by accident, and that everybody could feel it. I went through 9 years of intense bullying which led me to struggle a lot during my teenage years. I got diagnosed with dysthymia + MDD, GAD + panic disorder, anorexia, C-PTSD, and later with BPD and alcohol use disorder, and struggled a lot with suicide. During my stays in psychiatric wards, I witnessed many devoted members of the staff who treated us like humans with compassion and kindness, and I also witnessed situations where psychiatry was misused to overly drug and restrain patients, and abuse that came from stigma from the practitioners. That shaped my view on how we treat mad individuals in this medical system, especially those from marginalised communities and identities, and I want to do good. On the side apart from my studies, I am learning more about anti-carceral and community-led ways to help, focused on harm reduction, that I want to integrate in my future work. I am no longer ashamed of my queerness nor my madness. They are integral parts of who I am that don’t need to be fixed. To read others' stories, visit the link in our bio: https://lnkd.in/eHTfhpVD [ID: Three panels containing Kaël's story and portrait, along with the other We Are Still Here portraits.] #THRIVELifeline #WeAreStillHere #TransVoicesMatter #NeurodivergentAndProud #MadPride #MentalHealthAdvocate #HarmReduction #AntiCarceralCare #CPTSDRecovery #QueerAndProud #MentalHealthMatters #EndStigma #CommunityCare #PortraitOfResilience #BreakingTheSilence #SurvivorStories

Intimate Partner Violence in Queer Relationships It reflects societal systems of oppression, including heteropatriarchy, misogyny and cisnormativity. These systems make queer people vulnerable to harm, and invisiblize their experiences in many anti-violence spaces. Here are some forms of violence specific to queer relationships: Content warning: the following slides describe intimate partner violence. Policing Gender and Sexuality - Invalidating a partner’s identity - Coercing a partner into acting “feminine” or “masculine”, judging or controlling their clothing, makeup, behaviors, etc. Isolation - Stopping a partner from going to queer events and spaces - Spreading rumors about a partner in the queer community, turning friends against them, and/or asking community members to monitor a partner Outing - Threatening to disclose someone’s gender, sexuality, HIV status or medical history to their family, community, school or workplace Financial Control - Forcing / preventing a partner from employment, including sex work - Controlling a partner’s funds for gender affirming care, HIV medication, and other healthcare necessities Sexual Violence - Coercing someone to have sex, and/or shaming them for refusing sex - Pressuring someone to have sex a certain way, forcing partner into a specific sex role, disregarding pre-negotiated limits and safe words Using Children In many states, queer/trans parents don’t have equal access to parental rights as cis and straight married couples. - Threatening to use the state’s racist, transphobic, and queerphobic system to have children removed from a partner - Dismissing the rights and parental role of a non-biological parent Fetishization - Objectifying someone’s appearance or body based on their transness, intersex identity or gender nonconformity - Commenting on a queer person’s genitals, surgery scars, body shape, etc. in an unsolicited and uncomfortable way, or treating their bodies as a curiosity You’re not alone. Experiencing violence is never your fault. You deserve safety, care, love, & spaces to heal. Sources “Partner violence in rainbow relationships.” Hohou Te Rongo Kahukura – Outing Violence. https://lnkd.in/eb_d_RYu “Power and control in lesbian, gay, transgender and bisexual relationships.” NYC Anti-Violence Project. https://lnkd.in/eq5W2uAq [ID: Ten purple panels with light purple text boxes and black text as captioned] #THRIVELifeline #QueerSafety #EndIntimatePartnerViolence #TransRightsAreHumanRights #LGBTQSupport #StopQueerphobia #RelationshipSafety #SurvivorVoices #EndAbuse #QueerHealing #SafeSpaces #CommunityCare #ConsentMatters #LoveWithoutHarm #TraumaInformed

Words from The Galaxy: Collectively we are The Galaxy, a system of parts who make up a whole mind. We have complex Dissociative Identity “Disorder” whose main symptom is identity fragmentation; for us, this condition is our brain’s adaptation to survive many forms of abuse and other traumas throughout our life. Our body is mixed South American Native, and we exist as genderqueer, multicultural, autistic, mad, and physically disabled persons. We depend on our community for financial, emotional, and physical support, and we are strong advocates for the importance of building community care and support networks outside of oppressive institutions. In order to survive, we have been forced to hide the scarier truths of our mental and physical disabilities, such as voice-hearing, self harm addiction, and chronic pain, which especially in conjunction with our racial identity, can and have resulted in severe danger. It is our prayer that one day, nobody should have to hide their disabilities in order to survive, but instead can reveal their support needs to a community where they will be protected. We Are Still Here is our oral history and portraiture series. The artist and student behind the project is Cy (he/they). Art & oral history can help amplify the voices of the marginalized. Want to be included? Tell your story anonymously and you may be chosen to have it shared with a portrait like Cy's or Theo's. Submit your story by December 15th at thriv.life/WeAreStillHere! [ID: Three panels with black, gray, and purple background and white and purple text as captioned. There are portraits of Cy and Theo] #THRIVELifeline #WeAreStillHere #DisabilityPride #DIDAwareness #SurvivorVoices #CommunityCare #MutualAid #EndAbleism #IntersectionalAdvocacy #MadPride #AutisticAdvocacy #QueerAndDisabled #Justice #ArtForChange #StorytellingHealing

Today we'd like to provide some information about dissociation. Read on to discover what dissociation is, why we dissociate, types of dissociation, and some ways to cope. What is Dissociation? Dissociation refers to the feeling of being disconnected from yourself, thoughts, feelings, body, memories, surroundings, or identity. Dissociation is common, and everyone experiences dissociation differently. Why Do We Dissociate? People can dissociate for many reasons; here are a few common reasons people dissociate: > Cope with stressful situations > Response to trauma > Certain mental health conditions > Part of a religious or cultural practice > Some medications or substances > Feeling overstimulated Some Types of Dissociation: Depersonalization: feeling detached or not present in body. Derealization: feeling that the world or environment isn’t real. Amnesia: forgetting events or personal information. Identity Alteration: shifts in identities, behaviors, or personas. Identity Confusion: struggling with sense of self. Coping with Dissociation: Grounding Exercises 4-7-8 Breathing: inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 7, exhale for 8. Repeat. Body Scan: notice sensations of each body part to connect with your body. Sensory Grounding: hold a textured object, a warm/cold pack, or smell scented item. Engage with Surroundings: touch or describe everything around you in detail. Coping with Dissociation: Art & Expression > Journaling > Painting > Drawing or coloring > Create or Listen to music > Photography > Dancing > Cooking or Baking > Sculpting or pottery > Writing poems or letters Other Ways to Cope with Dissociation > Practice mindfulness > Distraction (ex. puzzle or TV) > Reach out to others you trust > Seek peer or professional support > Text THRIVE to +1.313.662.8209 [ID: Nine purple panels with yellow text boxes and dark text as captioned. Graphics include people dissociating and practicing grounding] #THRIVELifeline #UnderstandingDissociation #DissociationAwareness #TraumaResponse #MentalHealthMatters #GroundingTechniques #SelfRegulation #CopingWithDissociation #MindBodyConnection #HealingJourney #ResilienceInAdversity #Breathwork #SensoryGrounding #TraumaRecovery #MentalWellnessTools

Multiple marginalization refers to the overlapping experiences of discrimination or oppression faced by individuals who belong to more than one marginalized group. For example, someone who is both a person of color and part of the LGBTQ2S+ community may encounter compounded biases that are more complex than those faced by individuals with just one marginalized identity. These layers of marginalization can create unique challenges, such as navigating systems that fail to acknowledge the full scope of our experiences or struggling to feel fully seen and supported in spaces meant to uplift only one aspect of our identities. However, while multiple marginalization brings challenges, it also fosters extraordinary strengths. Those of us living in the intersections often develop profound resilience, adaptability, & empathy. The ability to navigate & bridge diverse experiences can lead to building powerful communities & advocating for change in ways that uplift others who share similar struggles. Although the path is not always easy, it is one of immense strength and courage, proving that even in the face of compounded barriers, we can thrive. [ID: Three panels with light purple background and dark text as captioned.Graphics include marginalized people, a person inside a Venn diagram, and an intersectionality flag] #THRIVELifeline #MultipleMarginalization #Intersectionality #EmpowerTheMargins #ResilienceInDiversity #LGBTQ #BIPOCVoices #EquityAndInclusion #StrengthInDiversity #BreakingBarriers #AdvocateForChange #ThriveThroughAdversity #IntersectionalStrength #CourageInCommunity #UpliftingVoices

The holiday season can be filled with joy, but it can also bring stress and emotional challenges. Setting and maintaining boundaries is essential for your well-being. Whether it's deciding when to say yes, navigating triggering topics, managing a budget, or communicating your needs, honoring your limits helps you stay balanced. Remember, it's okay to prioritize your comfort and take steps to prevent overwhelm during this busy time. You deserve a holiday season that feels safe, manageable, and meaningful to you. Some boundaries to consider for the holiday season: Saying Yes Say yes because you want to, not out of obligation Avoiding Certain Topics If some topics are triggering to you, or you know you'll get into arguments, plan out some strategies to avoid them. Budget Try planning and then sticking to a budget, so that you're not spending more than you are capable of. Communication Communicate your needs, expectations, and boundaries. Sometimes we need to advocate for ourselves. You deserve to feel comfortable too. Feeling Overwhelmed If you are feeling overwhelmed: skip, go late, leave early, or manage your own transportation to holiday parties. [ID: Six red panels with light purple text boxes, black and white text as captioned, and a holiday lights border. Graphics include a snowflake, money, and a car] #THRIVELifeline #HolidayBoundaries #SelfCareSeason #HealthyBoundaries #PrioritizeYou #EmotionalWellness #StressLessHolidays #BoundariesMatter #HolidaySelfCare #OvercomingOverwhelm