Poema Podcast

**Spoiler Alert** This episode contains spoilers. This week friend of the show Jenna DeWitt returns as we "amaze amaze amaze" about the movie Project Hail Mary.  We share our reflections on the movie, the relationship between Grace and Rocky, the character arc of Grace, the spirituality of the movie and a lot more. We explore the the concept of the most reluctant hero who never wanted to go to space, and chooses to save his friend over glory on earth, and what that can speak to us about our own paths. 

* Trigger warning: Spiritual abuse, neglect, emotional/physical abuse *  This week I'm joined by my friend MJ to discuss the experience of living with both C-PTSD and autism, and the crossovers between them.  Both MJ and I have daily lived experience of both and we discuss that here.  We talk about the conditions themselves & what they look like, the differences and similarities, and how they cross over. We also discuss masking in depth and what that can look like, and how it can differ depending on individual or gender. We also share our stories, how our trauma impacted us & how some trauma responses have interconnected with our lives as autistic people. Finally, we discuss ways we've learned to survive and stay healthy and try to offer hope to others through our experience.  

Today I'm joined by Carolyn Kiel, who hosts the award winning podcast "Beyond 6 Seconds". For over 200 episodes Carolyn has heard people share their nuerodivergent stories, from people ADHD, to autistic people, those with physical and other kinds of disabilities and a lot more. In this episode, recorded in early 2025, she shares her experiences and what she's learned from these conversations & as an autistic / ADHD / CPTSD person I share my experiences alongside those. Its a fascinating insight into those lived experiences.

**Trigger Warning: Epstein Files** Trace Bell returns this week for a discussion on whats happening in the world right now, and the age of disclosure humanity is entering into. Trace shares his perspectives on the Epstein files having been released, with real life consequences all over the world, and the upcoming release of government files on UFOs & aliens. We also talk about the harm of unfounded conspiracy theories, and how actual evidence can tell us far more about what's going on in the world & what may happen in future.

This week sees the first of consecutive episodes with my friend Trace Bell. In this episode, we discuss the idea that the seeds of transformation and change, are somehow embedded in the darkness we're experiencing. Trace and I look at the world as it is, at history both in terms of politics, culture, and consciousness, and explore how darkness is and always has been its own undoing. We also discuss the work of William Strauss & Neil Howe, about the four turns of society. We examine what cycles of history can teach us about what is happening now and will happen in the future - and how this can give us hope.

Becky Castle Miller joins me today to discuss and explore Jesus emotions. We focus in on several stories of Jesus where we see his his vulnerability and where he expresses the deepest of human emotion. We talk about how he expresses grief, fear, anxiety and love during the course of his life, and his darkest moments. Becky and I also explore how he turns the power of grief to perform his biggest sign, and how we see that it is in his most human, vulnerable moments, his true divinity is expressed .

The podcast returns with one half the musical duo JulyDa joining me to talk about their upcoming album Refuge, and the creative and spiritual journey behind it.  We delve into the connections between creativity and spirituality, how art connects us with the divine and ourselves, creative risk & how making art can heal us & help us grow.  Plus, there's also a small exclusive clip of the first single from their new album, called "Wait for the Lord". 

(Trigger Warning: Spiritual Abuse) Today is the 400th episode of the Poema Podcast! In September 2015 I began this show out of pure curiosity to explore a new creative medium. 10 years and a name change later, I've interviewed many many people on all sorts of topics ranging from grief, movies, music, death, mental health, spirituality, demisexuality and more. Today, in an extended anniversary episode, my beloved friend MJ Weissenberger interviews me about the origins of the podcast, why I chose the name, the numerology around 4 and 400, as well as my creative journey. I also share my story of spiritual abuse with YWAM for the first time publicly, and how this impacted my life & was impacted by grief. It's been a wild ride to 400 episodes, and there's more to come! This is the last episode of 2025, but there's new episodes coming in 2026. 

Trigger Warning: Narcissistic abuse.   This week, qualified counsellor and therapist Aly Rae joins me to discuss behaviours related to autism, and to narcissism. From their own lived experience of narcissistic abuse, and professional experience of working with autistic people, they share what the lived experience of autism can be like, and how some autistic traits can be confused with narcissism.  They also explain the difference between narcissism and narcissistic behaviours or traits, which can be displayed by certain personality types separately from an actual diagnosis of narcissism.  Finally, Aly provides helpful tools for autistic people - like her, myself and many others - to navigate the world we all live in, and a system which is not designed for us.

Author Alice Hewson returns to the podcast today to go deeper into exploring and discussing our lived experiences as autistic people and with rejection sensitive dysphoria (RSD). Today we go deeper into RSD, something common in autistic people. We talk about what it is, and our lived experiences of it, and how we have learned to live with it, and even find joy in the midst of all the challenges it and being autistic can bring. 

This week my friend Jenna returns to the show and in this episode we discuss the most recent series of Doctor Who, and the show as a whole. Jenna and I explore the themes of grief, fear and power which come up in the recent series and the 15th Doctor's journey.  We also talk about how we've seen these themes come up in the show with previous Doctors and how they impact the Doctor's overall story. And how seeing the Doctor experience these things inspires and encourages us on our journey. We then move on to share the reasons we love the show and what it means to us and to many others, and our hopes for its future.

This week we're talking James Gunn's "Superman" with my friend, podcaster Mario Francesco Robles, host of the "Superman on Film" podcast. We talk about the themes of hope, identity, and being human which Superman embodies and are explored in the movie. We also discuss our own experiences of the movie, how it inspired us & where it stands in the echelon of Superman movies. This was such good fun!

My friend Jonathan Bregel is a filmmaker and creator. He's recently shot a documentary on a retreat designed solely to help people grieve, which he's hoping to release soon. He's also made a short film about grief about 18 months ago. Today we discuss his experiences making these films, and his own experiences of grief. Jonathan shares what he has learned about grieving and death, and how its impacted him and his own journey, and relationships with others. This episode is a moving insight into one man's personal journey of grief.  ***** You can support the movie and see the trailer here. 

Author and friend Jim Woods returns to the podcast today, to discuss his latest work, the creative process, power of story and what he's learned as an author coach.  We talk about the challenges which every creative person faces, with Jim sharing some of his own story, why these happen, and how to overcome them. We also explore the dangers of pursuing our art and how we can keep our integrity whilst still creating great art to share with the world. He shares his inpsiration for his recent series of novels and how the research and writing of these books changed him. This was such a fun conversation, and I'm sure you're going to love it. ___________ You can find Jim's books on Amazon, and access to all his work at JimWoodsWrites.com   Jim's books, including several nove are all available on Amazon

Today my friend Justin return to the podcast. In this episode they talk about their advocacy and lived experiences as a bi and ace racialised person and how the developments in the USA have impacted their lived experience. We both share stories about how healthy community can help us survive through difficult times, in a world of prejudice and hate, and what healthy community should - and can - look like.  Justin is a person who inspires hope in me, and I'm sure they will in you too. Check out their work here: Medium: jancheta25.medium.com Bluesky: @jancheta25.bsky.social Website: www.justinanchetawriter.com

My beloved friend Brandan Robertson returns to the podcast today to talk about his latest book, "Queer & Christian: Reclaiming the Bible, Our Faith, and Our Place at the Table".  We talk about how Brandan revisited the scriptures and discovered there are several Queer saints within it, more than you'd expect. He also explored the usual "clobber" verses used against LGBTQIA community and unpacked their true contextual meaning.  He shares his vision of a Biblically supported, fully inclusive, loving joyful Christian faith, and its very compelling. 

This week Jenna DeWitt is back on the podcast, this time we discuss the MCU movie "The Marvels", the sequel to Captain Marvel, the MCU's leading female superhero currently.  Jenna shares how this movie and the journey of the lead characters in it, have been really impact for her as a queer, asexual woman. She also talks about how the movie covers themes of grief and loss, something often found in these type of movies, and identity.  This was such a fun conversation, hope you enjoy it. ***** You can find more of Jenna's work at invisiblecakesociety.com

This week my dear friend MJ joins us to share the story of her autism diagnosis, how she first realised she may be autistic, the process of getting her diagnosis, and how her life has changed since.  This is a powerful, challenging and encouraging story. 

Today I'm joined by author and speaker Alice Hewson to discuss autism in the work place. Alice talks about the challenges of being neurodivergent in the world we live in, which isn't set up for neurodivergent people, and how this can often translate into the work place.  She shares her own experiences and also offers some practical ideas for both employers and neurodivergent people themselves, for how neurodivergent people can feel safe and protected in the work place. She also shares some thoughts and examples of how neurodivergent people can build structures and processes which will help them thrive in the work place rather than be overwhelmed, and to avoid potential meltdowns You can read more about this in her book "Neurodiversity in the Workplace" which is available wherever books are sold. 

This week, as part of a new series, Dr Amy Maschall PsyD returns to the podcast to talk about people's lived experiences with autism and in particular the experience of justice sensitivity.  Dr Amy is autistic herself, and works with autistic people on a regular basis, and a qualified expert, so has a lot of both lived experience and academic knowledge of autism. She shares this with us, and talks about how autistic people can be more sensitive about injusitces, big and small, and feel them more acutely, often seeing injustice and how to stop it in a binary way. I myself share my experiences of this as an autistic person too, and we explore how autistic people can navigate the challenges this bring, and how it impacts our day to day lives.  Dr Amy has so much knowledge and insight on this subject, this is well worth a listen. ____ Find more of Dr Amy's work, including her many books on neurodiversity on her website here.