This Spiritual Fix cover art

This Spiritual Fix

This Spiritual Fix

Written by: Kristina Wiltsee & Anna Stromquist
Listen for free

About this listen

What meditation works for you? What is it like to do tantra? How do you best communicate with a loved one? Kristina Wiltsee & Anna Stromquist are two best friends on a quest to try all things spiritual in order to attain enlightenment -- or just stay sane while juggling a lot on their plates. Their internationally recognized podcast hits close to home for many people who are struggling for peace amidst the pain of trauma, emotional wounds, and neurodivergent brains. As we uncover deeper layers of ourselves, they teach, with humor, that there is nothing to fix - just more of us to love.

Season Themes:

Season 1: The Primal Wounds (Abandonment, Rejection, Betrayal, Injustice, & Humiliation)

Season 2: The Drama Triangle (The Inner & Outer Persecutor, Rescuer, and Victim)

Season 3: First Chakra (Relationships & Sexuality & The Mother Wound)

Season 4: Second Chakra (Integration of the Multidimensional Self & The Father Wound)

Season 5: Third Chakra (Growing Up and the Money Wound)

Season 6: Fourth Chakra (Primal Wounds Revisited, Villains & Karma Yoga)

www.thisspiritualfix.com

2023. All rights reserved. Hinduism Hygiene & Healthy Living Parenting Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Relationships Self-Help Social Sciences Spirituality Success
Episodes
  • 7.19 Finding your Inner Hero AKA Retrograding Villains

    7.19 Finding your Inner Hero AKA Retrograding Villains
    Dec 30 2025
    Retrograding VillainsRevisiting the Medicine of Each Inner VillainIn this episode, Kristina and Anna step back and do something essential. They revisit every Inner Villain, not to re-explain the theory, but to clarify the medicine. What actually helps. What works in real life. What moves someone out of being stuck.This conversation reframes villain work as inversion, retrograde, and polarity shifts. Nothing to purge. Nothing to fix. Just learning how to move differently with what already exists.Stuckness is the real enemy. Movement is the cure.Core ThemeRetrograding a Villain means changing the spin, not erasing the trait.Every villain contains intelligence. When that intelligence freezes, it becomes destructive. When inverted, it becomes power.This episode walks through each villain with:A grounded overviewThe Hero form (the inversion)The Legend form (integrated mastery)Practical, lived examples of medicineVillain-by-Villain Breakdown1. Obedient CriticCore wound: Belonging, hierarchy, credentialsHero: The AnarchistLegend: The EqualizerMedicine:Break inherited hierarchies without trying to destroy everyone elsePlay consciously with power dynamics instead of submitting to themPractice lowering yourself in hierarchies you secretly worshipPractical example:Deliberately stop being “the competent one.” Let others rise. Let systems wobble. Watch what equalizes.2. Vengeful MartyrCore wound: AbandonmentHero: The Self-Possessed (Selfish, in the healthy sense)Legend: The NourisherMedicine:Use resources instead of martyringAsk for help without explaining or over-justifyingMake yourself obsolete on purposePractical examples:Pool childcare, money, laborOutsource tasks you secretly hoardStop being the only one who knows how things workMartyrdom is not generosity. It is control disguised as virtue.3. Vain ControllerCore wound: Status, image, worthHero: The UnveiledLegend: The InventorMedicine:Reveal vulnerability without collapsingConfess judgment instead of acting it outUse resources to create, not to provePractical example:Say out loud what you are afraid of being seen as. Especially to the people you subtly judge.4. Eternal ChildCore wound: Entitlement, victimhood, arrested developmentHero: The ReflectiveLegend: The TravellerMedicine:Radical self-reflectionMoral inventoryRecognizing available choicesA key insight discussed through The Choice:Victimhood comes from believing you have no choice.Practical tools:Mirror workAsking “Where did I participate?”Listing real choices, not imagined constraints5. Evasive ExpertCore wound: Over-intellectualization, emotional suppressionHero: The PassionateLegend: The IntegratorMedicine:Somatic and kinesthetic practicesSlowing downHumor and playKey insight:If you’ve lost your sense of humor, you’re back in the villain.Embodiment tools:NatureLaughterSensation-based awarenessMoving before thinking6. Divisive ImmortalCore wound: Safety, loyalty, fear of deathHero: DeathLegend: The HealerMedicine:Direct confrontation with death and fearEgo deathExposure to impermanencePractical examples:Death meditationsRitual griefCultural practices that normalize deathAvoiding death creates rigidity. Facing it restores life.7. Hungry ShapeshifterCore wound: Attention, identity diffusion, timeHero: The PresentLegend: The FabricatorMedicine:Presence over performanceAttention returned to selfTime-based embodimentPractical tool:A Raja Yoga technique involving extremely slow head rotation to anchor awareness in the present moment.Identity stabilizes when attention stops scattering.8. Righteous BullyCore wound: Opinion, certainty, savior complexHero: The SurrenderedLegend: The ChannelerMedicine:Recognizing choiceLetting others leadReleasing the need to fixStrong opinions are not wisdom. Channeling replaces enforcing.9. Invisible DestroyerCore wound: Disembodiment, addiction, stagnationHero: The EmbodiedLegend: The ArchitectMedicine:Pleasure in the bodyStructure and containmentCreation after destructionPractical focus:Sensory pleasureNaturePassion projectsRoutine and structureBad luck often follows disengagement. Embodiment reverses it.Fusion Villains ExplainedSome villains are composites:Righteous Bully = Obedient Critic + Vengeful MartyrHungry Shapeshifter = Vain Controller + Eternal ChildInvisible Destroyer = Evasive Expert + Divisive ImmortalWhen stuck at a composite level, work downstream with its components.Final TakeawayNothing here is about becoming someone else.Retrograding a villain means:Changing directionRestoring movementLetting intelligence flow againYou don’t heal by erasing parts of yourself.You heal by letting them evolve.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
    Show More Show Less
    53 mins
  • 7.18 Interview with Joy & Matt Kahn

    7.18 Interview with Joy & Matt Kahn
    Dec 16 2025

    You can find more information here: https://www.mattandjoy.org/



    Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

    Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 9 mins
  • 7.17 How to Communicate with Your Villains Pt 2

    7.17 How to Communicate with Your Villains Pt 2
    Dec 2 2025
    How to talk to the Vengeful Martyr, Evasive Expert, Divisive Immortal, Hungry Shapeshifter, Righteous Bully, and The NothingIn this second part of the “Communicating with Villains” series, Kristina and Anna get very practical about how to actually talk to people who are running these archetypes, including when you are the one in the villain seat.They move from real stories about teeth, genetics, and breast health into concrete language, strategies, and “do not do this” warnings for each villain.This is the “how to handle them in real life” episode.In this episodeKristina and Anna explore:How the Vengeful Martyr shows up in health, caregiving, and self neglectWhy dental and breast health can become a mirror for martyrdomThe role of Divisive Immortal catastrophizing in medical decisions and safetyHow to make choices that are logical, not fear based, even around cancer riskHow to actually talk to:Evasive ExpertDivisive ImmortalHungry ShapeshifterRighteous BullyThe Nothing / Invisible DestroyerThey also name the difference between doing “self work” on your villain and learning to stay in relationship with someone else’s.The Vengeful Martyr: health, teeth, and breast tissueAnna shares:How her “Vengeful Martyr era” lined up with sleep deprivation, breastfeeding, and her first major dental issuesThe realization that she invests in visible hygiene and beauty, while neglecting things no one sees, like gums, pap smears, and internal healthA concrete shift: flossing, water picking, changing dentists, and choosing a provider who does not shame herA genetic test that revealed increased risk for breast cancer and skin cancer, and her decision to act now rather than “martyr” herself by ignoring itWhy she is seriously considering prophylactic bilateral mastectomies as an act of self nourishment, not fearKristina reflects on:The symbolism of breasts as sources of nourishment and pleasure, and what it means to “retire” the functional side of them in order to care for the selfHow the Nourisher legend of the Vengeful Martyr is “drink while you pour,” and how that plays out in real bodies and real choicesThe overlap between Vengeful Martyr and Divisive Immortal when it comes to health, anxiety, and medical systemsDivisive Immortal: fear, loyalty, and catastropheThey unpack:How the Divisive Immortal can show up as catastrophizing doctors, shaming providers, and rigid ideas about safetyThe Enneagram 6 “loyal skeptic” flavor, and how loyalty plus fear becomes rigidityThe difference between making a logical preventive decision and making a fear based decisionHow two people can face the same medical risk but be activated in different villains, one in Vengeful Martyr, one in Divisive ImmortalCommunication tips for Divisive Immortal:Avoid “us versus them” language and triangulationEmphasize “you and me versus the problem”Reassure safety and solidaritySay things like:“I feel the fear you are feeling, and I understand it”“I am not your enemy, we are on the same team”“Our relationship is bigger than this argument”Evasive Expert: logic, avoidance, and emotional shutdownFor the Evasive Expert, Kristina and Anna cover:How they over rely on logic and under express emotion, or explode when emotion finally leaks outClassic tells: “I do not know how I feel,” or answering questions with cerebral analysisWhy approaching them with pure emotion makes them disappearCommunication tips for Evasive Expert:Lead with logic, not dramaPresent the impact as a logical chain: “A and B happened, which led to C and D, can you see why I might be upset”Use “logic puzzles” to pierce the emotional shellIn full blow up mode, give them time to process, then return with calm, structured reasoningHungry Shapeshifter: attention, performance, and multiplicityFor the Hungry Shapeshifter, they discuss:The need for attention, lightness, and performanceHow calling out their shifting identities can feel humiliating, not helpfulWhy dramatic outbursts are often releases, not always indicators of deep relational ruptureCommunication tips for Hungry Shapeshifter:Let them perform, be the audience rather than the critic in the momentNotice patterns over time, not just one dramatic sceneWhen they are calm and grounded, take them more seriously than in full performance modeInvite coherence by asking, “Which part of you feels most true right now”Righteous Bully: conviction, protection, and curiosityFor the Righteous Bully, Anna shares how working this arc has changed what even triggers her, and why things that used to set her off no longer land.They cover:The intensity and danger of the Righteous Bully when they have reached their limitHow they will burn things down to protect what they love or believe inThe shift from externalized bullying to internalized self criticismCommunication tips for Righteous Bully:Be deeply curious, not defensiveReflect their point of view back accurately so they feel heardUse ...
    Show More Show Less
    49 mins
No reviews yet