Amanda Ruechel MSW, LCSW

12/30/2025

12/24/2025

12/17/2025

12/12/2025

We know the holidays are hard. And we're here, if you need support.

THRIVE Lifeline is open 10:30p - 4:30a PT Wednesday nights via webchat at thrivelifeline.org
> Non-carceral and non-pathologizing
> Uplifts your humanity and agency
> Crisis and warmline support, by trained peers who get it
> Centers multiply marginalized communities

Our peer support discord server (Stronger Together) is available 24/7 . We have weekly virtual support groups as well.

We can get through this holiday season, together.

12/12/2025

12/02/2025

for December (a poem):
everything may not
change at once,
but that doesn’t mean
nothing will change at all...

you are allowed
to acknowledge
the possibility
of something good
starting to shift,
even if it begins small.

for perhaps,
after all the Decembers
you have lived through,
you are still free to consider
how this December
can be different for you.

whether this year
felt different from others,
or more like the same old thing,
or some tangled and turning path
in the wildwood of the between,
you are free to have hope
for things that hold,
wonder that knows no end,
timing that works out,
and good songs
worth playing on repeat,
again and again.
if something in you
dares to even consider it,
you are still free to have this hope.

beautiful new beginnings
can start later than you thought.

small shifts
can have a larger impact
than you realized.

honest, grounded hope
can return where you thought it was over.

you can still experience
the sense of possibility
you once thought
was only possible
for other people.

yes, you can be
surprised by grief
in this life,
but perhaps,
you can also
be surprised
by joy.

everything may not
change at once,
but that doesn’t mean
nothing will change at all.
you are allowed
to acknowledge
the possibility
of something good
starting to shift,
even if it begins small.

and even if it is in
the most subtle way,
you are free
to think of December as a place
where leaves part
from their branches
and make room for you
to come into the forest’s clearing
and let yourself breathe again.

-

for all that comes next,
may December breathe slowly
in ways you did not expect.
may you meet this month
with both curiosity and gentleness.

make space for
moments of clarity where you need to
and create room to simply be
where you need to.
let December be what it needs to be.

let December be what it needs to be.

MHN

11/27/2025

11/23/2025

Upcoming closure: We will be closed November 26th through November 30th- we will be back in the office December 1st!

11/11/2025

Our LGBTQIA+ Alternatives to Su***de group launched April 2025 and is still going strong!

This is a peer-led virtual space for LGBTQIA+ individuals with lived experience of wanting to die, suicidal thoughts, or feeling like life isn’t worth living.

We meet every Tuesday from 7–8:30pm ET on Zoom.

No registration required. You'll find the Zoom access link here: tinyurl.com/ALT2SULGBTQIAPlus

Image ID:

Begin image description:

A colorful flyer with a warm gradient background of yellow, orange, and pink, decorated with abstract pastel star and tape shapes. The text reads:

"LGBTQIA+ Alternatives to Su***de Support Group
A virtual support space for folx to talk about wanting to die—judgment-free, peer-led, and rooted in Wildflower Alliance’s Alternatives to Su***de approach.
Tuesdays, 7 PM-8:30 PM ET on Zoom
Meeting ID: 852 2024 8726
tinyurl.com/ALT2SULGBTQIAPlus
Questions? Email us at info@wildfloweralliance.org"

End image description.

11/08/2025

11/06/2025

When your relationship moves outside the window of tolerance…
You stop feeling like teammates and start feeling like enemies. Conversations turn into fights. Words are designed to hurt instead of heal. And your nervous system goes into survival mode and emotional safety disappears.

When you can stay in’s side the window of tolerance, something different happens. You can stay open to each other’s perspectives. You can co-regulate. You can connect with your heart, head, and body all at once. You can enjoy being together, not because everything is perfect, but because you both feel emotionally safe enough to stay engaged.

10/28/2025