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Belonging as Suicide Prevention

Human connection and a sense of "belonging" are the deepest needs for every person
Human connection and a sense of "belonging" are the deepest needs for every person

Prologue: At New Rhythms Therapeutic Center, we serve a richly diverse community — one that includes people from many walks of life, faith traditions, and lived experiences. Some of our clients draw deep strength from their faith. Others are navigating the impact of religious trauma or disentangling from belief systems that caused harm. As a practice, we hold space for both. This is part of our commitment to trauma-informed, inclusive care.


In honor of Pride Month, we want to affirm clearly and compassionately: LGBTQIA+ individuals deserve to feel safe, seen, and supported in therapeutic spaces. The following reflection, written by Cameron Long, LPC Associate, speaks to the life-saving importance of pride — not in the sense of arrogance, but in the deeper, healing experience of self-acceptance, belonging, and restored dignity. Cameron offers a passionate, justice-informed perspective that reflects both her clinical work and her personal values as an advocate and ally.


We know this message may resonate deeply for some and stretch others. That’s okay. Our goal is not to speak with one voice, but to hold space for honest, healing dialogue — and to stand firmly against shame in all its forms. After Cameron’s reflection, you’ll find a Part 2 that offers a faith-integrated lens on the same themes, written specifically for Christian clients who may be curious about how to digest or make sense of Cameron’s words through the lens of their faith.


Every person deserves to feel safe enough to be fully themselves — in body, in story, in spirit. Healing begins there.



Part 1: Pride is Suicide Prevention


By: Cameron Long is a Licensed Professional Counselor Associate under supervision of Megan Korthals, LPC-S, at New Rhythms Therapeutic Center. Cameron is passionate about serving marginalized and minority communities, including but not limited to women and members of LGBTQIA+, Black, Latinx, immigrant/first generation immigrant, neurodivergent, and disabled communities. Overall, she focuses on supporting individuals in their identity exploration journey.

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Each June, Pride Month invites us to celebrate the vibrancy, strength, and resilience of the LGBTQIA+ community. But Pride is more than parades and rainbow flags—it’s a powerful form of suicide prevention. As mental health professionals, it’s critical that we acknowledge the unique challenges faced by LGBTQIA+ individuals and work to provide truly affirming, safe, and effective care.


The Mental Health Crisis in the LGBTQIA+ Community

LGBTQIA+ individuals face disproportionately high rates of mental health challenges. According to The Trevor Project’s 2023 survey:

41% of LGBTQ youth seriously considered suicide in the past year. For transgender and nonbinary youth, the number rises to 54%. Youth with at least one accepting adult were 40% less likely to attempt suicide. These numbers reflect not identity, but the harms of rejection, stigma, and non-affirming environments.


Mental Health Care That Heals, Not Harms

As a therapist who is deeply committed to advocating for, protecting, and affirming LGBTQIA+ individuals, I’ve come to understand that being a “safe person” requires far more than passive acceptance. It’s not just about being kind or nonjudgmental—though those things matter. It requires action, intention, and an understanding of the emotional toll of shame—a force that can be deadly when left unchecked. 


In my work as both a trauma-informed counselor and a counselor who works with historically marginalized communities, I see time and time again how shame corrodes a person’s sense of self worth. It whispers that who you are is wrong, unworthy, or broken. For LGBTQIA+ folks, this shame is often internalized early in life—absorbed from overt and discreet messages of disapproval and rejection from the rest of the world. 


But here’s what I know: pride is the antidote.


When someone begins to feel pride in their identity—when they are seen, affirmed, and celebrated—the shame starts to loosen its grip. Pride isn’t about arrogance. It’s about self-acceptance. It’s about resilience. It’s about choosing life, joy, and visibility in a world that tells us to disappear. Pride says: The way you are is okay AND being yourself is powerful, beautiful, and worthy.


My practice is built on the foundation that shame dies where pride thrives.


As a therapist and an ally, it’s my responsibility and my passion to create spaces where someone can be fully themselves- PERIOD. Where their truth is met with compassion. Where they hear, perhaps for the first time, “There is nothing wrong with you.” These moments heal, they lift the heavy weight of shame from tired, scared shoulders. And these are the moments that I celebrate when I celebrate Pride Month. 


Levels of Allyship and Being a Safe Person

I often think about allyship as a spectrum. At one end, there’s tolerance: “Tolerating” someone says, I’ll put up with you as long as it’s “not in my face”. This is not a message of safety: we “tolerate” a lot of things we’d get rid of if we could.


Then there’s acceptance: “You’re okay, but I don’t see the point in supporting you.” Acceptance is not enough when working with communities who have historically (and in present day) suffered deeply and systematically.

Affirmation goes deeper: “You are good. You matter. You’re safe with me. I want to support you.”  


But I believe we need to go further—into celebration: “Your existence is a gift. I cherish these parts of you. I will not only support, but advocate for your joy, your safety, and your liberation.”


This is the level of allyship I strive to live out every day. Not just in my clinical work, but in my personal life, my advocacy, and my presence in our community. Because when we celebrate each other, we won’t shame each other. And when we don’t shame each other, we won’t shame ourselves. And when someone experiences genuine pride in who they are, healing becomes not only possible—but inevitable and life saving.



Part 2: Belonging, Dignity, and the Work of Healing: A Faith-Integrated Perspective from NRTC


By: Megan Korthals, LPC-S and Co-Founder of NRTC

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As a therapist specializing in complex trauma, I often meet with clients who carry deep questions — about identity, about spirituality, and about whether those two parts of themselves can coexist in peace. For many LGBTQIA+ individuals, the messages they received from family or faith communities weren’t just confusing — they were devastating. These weren’t theological debates. They were wounds. They were experiences of being told, implicitly or explicitly, “There’s something wrong with you.”


In the Christian tradition, the word pride is often associated with sin or moral failure. But in the clinical and relational work we do at New Rhythms, what gets called “pride” is more accurately described as dignity restored. It’s not arrogance. It’s relief. It’s the calm in someone’s nervous system when they are no longer hiding. It’s what happens when shame starts to lose its grip.


In my clinical training, the integration of the Christian faith was also included in my degree. We explored the Christian theology that all beings are created for connection — with God, with others, and with themselves. And so our work is about healing through connection. It’s about creating space where clients can tell the truth of who they are, without fear of rejection, and experience what it feels like to be loved and respected in that truth.


This is not at odds with Christian faith. In fact, I believe this is what Christian faith looks like when lived out in the body: connection, compassion, honesty, and love without shame.

Whether you’re reading this as someone who identifies as LGBTQIA+, as a person of faith, as someone who is both (or is neither), or as someone still figuring it out — we welcome you. You don’t have to resolve everything to begin healing. At New Rhythms, you are not a problem to be solved. You are a person to be supported.


We are here for you exactly as you are. Our therapists are prepared to hold space for spiritual conflict, religious trauma, and the beautiful possibility of reconciliation between identity and belief. 


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More Resources:


National Mental Health Hotlines & Organizations

The Trevor Project – 24/7 crisis help for LGBTQ youth: https://www.thetrevorproject.org 

Trans Lifeline – peer support by trans people, for trans people: https://www.translifeline.org 

PFLAG – support for LGBTQ individuals, families, and allies: https://pflag.org 

Human Rights Campaign: https://www.hrc.org/resources 


Local Resources

Longview Pride (East Texas Pride) – annual festival June 28, 2025; Maude Cobb Convention Center: https://www.facebook.com/longviewpride/ 

Glass House Resource Center: https://www.theglasshousetyler.org/ 

PFLAG East Texas: http://pflageasttexas.org 

East Texas Rainbow Network: https://www.facebook.com/ETXRainbowNetwork/ 


Other TX Resources

Equality Texas – legal, mental health, and community aid: https://www.equalitytexas.org  

Information derived from: 



Resources for parents struggling to support a LGBTQIA+ child while reconciling this with Faith:

"When Children Come Out" - Mark Yarhouse - https://amzn.to/4nvrPPO


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