Have a question or comment? Send it to Kristin!

“Old keys don’t open new doors, and this year asked me to choose new ones.”

In this solo episode of Sex, Drugs, & Soul, I reflect on a year that brought me to my knees and opened my heart.

I explore what it means to receive an answered prayer, release old patterns, and choose bold faith over familiar intensity. Through stories of organic love, spiritual curiosity, church rediscovery, vulnerability, sacred eroticism, and inner child healing, this episode invites listeners to slow down, get honest, and align with the life they say they want.

Topics include...
• Letting go of old keys and opening new doors
• Slow-burn love vs. intensity
• Faith, integrity, and intentional living
• Vulnerability vs. exposure
• Stillness, safety, and nervous system regulation
• Erotic energy as holy and sacred
• Play, presence, and inner child healing

This episode is for anyone standing at the threshold of something new, wondering if they’re brave enough to receive it.

Chapters: 

00:00 Reflections on 2025: A Year of Transformation

02:55 New Beginnings: Embracing Vulnerability in Relationships

05:44 Intentional Living: Setting Goals for the New Year

08:31 Faith and Spirituality: A Journey of Self-Discovery

11:16 The Power of Vulnerability: Building Deeper Connections

13:56 Exploring the Intersection of the Erotic and the Holy

17:12 The Role of Stillness in Personal Growth

19:33 Embracing Playfulness and Choice in Life

Support the show

Connect with Kristin:
Website: kristinbirdwell.com
Instagram: @kristinbirdwell_
Facebook
YouTube

Kristin’s Book:
Sex, Drugs, & Soul
Spotify Audiobook

Peptides:
Oral Quicksilver GHK/Copper Peptide
https://elliemd.com/kristinbirdwell

Microdose 🍄
https://myfeelium.co/
password: opensesame
Code: kristin20 for 20% off

Subscribe to Pod:
YouTube
Spotify
Apple

Have a question or comment? Send it to Kristin!

“The mask that keeps you from being abandoned is the same one that keeps you from being loved.”

This episode is not soft.
It’s not performative.
And it’s definitely not comfortable.

Licensed therapist C.R. Herro returns for one of the most raw, intellectually honest, and emotionally confronting conversations on Sex, Drugs, & Soul to date.

We unpack:

• Why archetypes and masks feel safe but sabotage intimacy
• The uncomfortable truth that sex is not love
• How trauma teaches us to outsource safety, worth, and belonging
• Why kindness is strength (and intensity is often a red flag)
• The fantasy of being rescued & the grief of letting it die
• What it actually means to become your own hero

This is a conversation about responsibility, embodiment, emotional honesty, and the courage it takes to stop performing and start living.

🎧 Listen if you’re ready to stop numbing, stop pretending, and start telling yourself the truth.

00:00 – Welcome + why this conversation will ruffle feathers
03:00 – What’s turning C.R. on: access, honesty, & emotional availability
07:30 – Why being human is harder than we admit
12:00 – Archetypes vs authenticity: the mask we wear to feel safe
18:00 – The puppet metaphor: why the mask blocks real love
24:00 – Trauma, self-blame, & being crueler to ourselves than others
30:00 – Codependence vs hyper-independence (same wound, different armor)
36:00 – The fantasy of being rescued
42:00 – Sex ≠ love: the most expensive lie
48:00 – Intensity vs kindness (red flags that look like desire)
54:00 – Dropping performance & choosing emotional responsibility
60:00 – The 80th birthday exercise: playing the tape all the way forward
68:00 – Becoming your own hero
75:00 – Love without possession & interdependence
82:00 – Final reflections, integration, & closing wisdom

Support the show

Connect with Kristin:
Website: kristinbirdwell.com
Instagram: @kristinbirdwell_
Facebook
YouTube

Kristin’s Book:
Sex, Drugs, & Soul
Spotify Audiobook

Peptides:
Oral Quicksilver GHK/Copper Peptide
https://elliemd.com/kristinbirdwell

Microdose 🍄
https://myfeelium.co/
password: opensesame
Code: kristin20 for 20% off

Subscribe to Pod:
YouTube
Spotify
Apple

Have a question or comment? Send it to Kristin!

In this powerful conversation, Spencer Coursen, veteran, threat management expert, bestselling author, and host of Coursen’s Corner, opens up about the journey from trauma to healing, and what it truly means to “win the war within.”

Spencer opens up about his journey from childhood abuse and combat trauma to finding triumph through various healing modalities. We explore the critical differences between instinct and intuition, the "pussification" of the modern male, and how to build authentic self-confidence. Spencer also shares the story behind his darkest moment, the service dog who saved his life, his profound experiences with psychedelics (Psilocybin and Ibogaine), and how they catalyzed integrating years of therapy into true healing.

Whether you are a veteran, a survivor of childhood trauma, or someone looking to strengthen your mental resilience, this video provides a roadmap for moving from a "badge of trauma" to a "lighthouse of hope." Watch until the end to hear Spencer’s incredible dragon story and his advice on dating, setting boundaries, and why honoring your instincts is a radical act of self-protection.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn About:
- Complex PTSD and how "big T" and "little T" traumas compound
- How Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps reframe past perspectives
- The role of Psilocybin and Ibogaine in healing deep-seated shame and guilt
- The vital distinction between Safety vs. Security and Fear vs. Anxiety
- Practical tips for men on building authentic masculinity and for women on vetting partners by honoring instincts

Spencer’s new book, Winning the War Within, releases June 26, 2026.

If you have ever wondered what heals trauma or how to navigate the long road of healing from Complex PTSD (CPTSD), this deep dive offers both professional insight and raw, personal experience.

Connect with Spencer:
Website: https://www.spencercoursen.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/s.coursen/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxwzst3QHsORLLRzluNw7s6LW0G_O6HZc
The Safety Trap on Amazon: https://www.spencercoursen.com/the-safety-trap

Support the show

Connect with Kristin:
Website: kristinbirdwell.com
Instagram: @kristinbirdwell_
Facebook
YouTube

Kristin’s Book:
Sex, Drugs, & Soul
Spotify Audiobook

Peptides:
Oral Quicksilver GHK/Copper Peptide
https://elliemd.com/kristinbirdwell

Microdose 🍄
https://myfeelium.co/
password: opensesame
Code: kristin20 for 20% off

Subscribe to Pod:
YouTube
Spotify
Apple

Have a question or comment? Send it to Kristin!

Alexis & I discuss leaving the hard grind of the hypermasculine and slipping into a slower, fuller, more feminine way of being. She opens up about the night ayahuasca called her in, the decision to remove her IUD after twelve years, and how her libido and emotional depth surged back the moment she started listening to her body again.

We delve into the 10-second rule that draws men into deeper communication, the breath that pulls you out of survival mode, and the kind of softening that makes connection feel hotter, safer, and more genuine.

This is a rich, grounded, sensual dive into desire, self-mastery, nervous system truth, and what happens when you finally let your body lead.

Chapters:
00:00 - Introduction
01:22 - Self-Mastery & Shifting into the Feminine
07:18 - Medicine vs. Escape
09:42 - Communication Shifts After Softening
11:09 - Heard, Helped, or Held?
13:45 - Curiosity Over Defensiveness
15:30 - Nervous System Regulation Tools
20:02 - Polarity & Inspiring Masculine Presence
24:30 - Enthusiasm: The Feminine Superpower
27:25 - Setting Men Up to Win
32:10 - Speaking Desires Clearly
34:00 - Rebuilding Trust After Rupture
40:10 - Truth-Telling & Emotional Clarity
45:20 - Clarity in Dating & Relationships
53:02 - Expanding the Capacity to Feel
58:16 - Being Human & Remembering Why We're Here

Connect with Alexis:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexisquiterio
Website: https://stan.store/alexisquiterio

Support the show

Connect with Kristin:
Website: kristinbirdwell.com
Instagram: @kristinbirdwell_
Facebook
YouTube

Kristin’s Book:
Sex, Drugs, & Soul
Spotify Audiobook

Peptides:
Oral Quicksilver GHK/Copper Peptide
https://elliemd.com/kristinbirdwell

Microdose 🍄
https://myfeelium.co/
password: opensesame
Code: kristin20 for 20% off

Subscribe to Pod:
YouTube
Spotify
Apple

Connect with Todd Smith:
https://trueinnerfreedom.com/

Connect with Kristin:
Website
Instagram
YouTube

Kristin's Best-Selling Book:
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sex, Drugs, & Soul on Amazon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify Audiobook Link⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Subscribe to the Podcast:
YouTube
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

For 10% off pleasure goodies at WAANDS, use code SEXDRUGSSOUL.

Connect with Todd Smith:
https://trueinnerfreedom.com/

Connect with Kristin:
Website
Instagram
YouTube

Kristin's Best-Selling Book:
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sex, Drugs, & Soul on Amazon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify Audiobook Link⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Subscribe to the Podcast:
YouTube
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

For 10% off pleasure goodies at WAANDS, use code SEXDRUGSSOUL.

Connect with Todd Smith:
https://trueinnerfreedom.com/

Connect with Kristin:
Website
Instagram
YouTube

Kristin's Best-Selling Book:
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sex, Drugs, & Soul on Amazon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify Audiobook Link⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Subscribe to the Podcast:
YouTube
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

For 10% off pleasure goodies at WAANDS, use code SEXDRUGSSOUL.

Have a question or comment? Send it to Kristin!

For the 100th episode, I sit down with Courtney Johnson, a branding expert, author, and former ghostwriter who makes personal branding feel like emotional foreplay, rather than just marketing.

We get into the fear of being seen, the cringe, the emotional work behind content creation, and why consistency is the real magic. Courtney shares how an accidental six-gram mushroom trip rewired her life, how psychedelics fuel her creativity, and why microdosing for business sometimes beats any strategy.

We talk manifestation versus action, breaking up with the spiritual community, identifying your value above other values, emotional intelligence in the age of AI, and why building a personal brand is basically training your nervous system to be witnessed.

Short, spicy, a little feral, and perfect for anyone who wants personal branding advice that actually lands.

Timestamps
00:00 Celebrating Milestones and Embracing Cringe
02:52 The Emotional Journey of Personal Branding
06:00 Exploring Psychedelics and Personal Transformation
08:58 Breaking Up with the Spiritual Community
12:04 Marketing as an Art Form
14:53 The Power of Consistency in Podcasting
29:51 Balancing Masculine and Feminine Energies in Content Creation
33:04 The Challenges of Writing a Book
36:32 Embracing Cringe and Feedback in Growth
38:02 Claiming Desires and Overcoming Blocks
40:59 The Importance of Structure for Creativity
43:35 Being 100% Human: Embracing Flaws and Growth
44:02 Shifting Self-Talk and Beliefs for Success
50:03 Letting Go of Toxic Relationships
52:14 Pursuing Dreams and Making an Impact

Connect with Courtney:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/courtlynnjohnson/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@courtney..johnson
Courtney's Content Club: https://stan.store/affiliates/926b55e4-c2a2-48d7-bc3e-723377fbd413

Support the show

Connect with Kristin:
Website: kristinbirdwell.com
Instagram: @kristinbirdwell_
Facebook
YouTube

Kristin’s Book:
Sex, Drugs, & Soul
Spotify Audiobook

Peptides:
Oral Quicksilver GHK/Copper Peptide
https://elliemd.com/kristinbirdwell

Microdose 🍄
https://myfeelium.co/
password: opensesame
Code: kristin20 for 20% off

Subscribe to Pod:
YouTube
Spotify
Apple

Have a question or comment? Send it to Kristin!

In this episode, I sit down with Lora Cheadle, former attorney turned betrayal recovery coach, somatic therapist, intuitive channel, and author of FLAUNT! and It’s Not Burnout, It’s Betrayal.

And this conversation goes everywhere: infidelity, identity collapse, somatic grief, self-abandonment, the gift inside the rupture, spiritual downloads, sacred travel, Egypt codes, plant medicine, and the radical art of rebuilding your truth from the inside out.

Lora shares the story of discovering her husband’s 15-year, multi-partner affair… and how it became the catalyst for BOTH of them to dismantle old identities, release generational trauma, and rebuild a marriage on truth instead of performance.

Timestamps:
00:00 – What’s turning Lora on in life
01:05 – Expectation vs. desire: how your inner state shapes your reality
03:00 – Lora’s transition from attorney → burnout → betrayal coach
04:20 – The moment she discovered a 15-year affair
05:30 – Rebuilding identity after betrayal & staying in the marriage
06:30 – The REAL first steps after discovering infidelity
07:50 – Blame, shame, shock, & why you must stop before you act
08:40 – Self-betrayal, “good girl” conditioning & performance mode
09:40 – Knowing something vs. embodying it
11:55 – Reawakening intuition, somatics, & energy healing
13:30 – Did we choose our lessons? The game board of life
14:20 – The Librarians: Lora’s channeled guides & Akashic lessons
16:00 – Understanding your soul story like a TV series
17:20 – Co-creating your reality with cosmic free will
19:00 – The gifts inside betrayal (for both partners)
22:00 – Rebuilding authentic relationships without the masks
23:40 – The FLAUNT! Framework (Find your Fetish → Trust your Truth)
26:00 – How to accept unconditionally without sacrificing yourself
27:20 – Navigating the non-linear nature of healing
28:30 – Dark night of the ego vs dark night of the soul
29:30 – How to rebuild self-trust after collapse
31:45 – Creating spaciousness to receive guidance
33:00 – Letting yourself evolve + writing in cycles
38:40 – Sacred travel: Egypt, Sekhmet, Dendera & receiving codes
40:20 – Mystical experiences + light language activation
43:00 – Plant medicine journeys (San Pedro) & consciousness work
45:00 – Meditation styles for ADHD, anxious, or embodied minds
46:20 – Holding compassion when you’ve been the betrayer too
47:30 – What is truly “profane”?
48:15 – Life as an experiment + playing with the messiness

Connect with Lora:
Website - https://loracheadle.com/
Download Lora’s Betrayal Recovery Guide: betrayalrecoveryguide.com

Support the show

Connect with Kristin:
Website: kristinbirdwell.com
Instagram: @kristinbirdwell_
Facebook
YouTube

Kristin’s Book:
Sex, Drugs, & Soul
Spotify Audiobook

Peptides:
Oral Quicksilver GHK/Copper Peptide
https://elliemd.com/kristinbirdwell

Microdose 🍄
https://myfeelium.co/
password: opensesame
Code: kristin20 for 20% off

Subscribe to Pod:
YouTube
Spotify
Apple

Have a question or comment? Send it to Kristin!

What do you call a pastor who trades Bible verses for breathwork and starts preaching the gospel of pleasure?

In this episode, I chat with Anthony Michael, a former pastor turned tantra teacher, community builder, and “minister of pleasure.” Together, we dive into the intersection of religion, sexuality, and sacred embodiment.

From his 17 years in ministry to creating tantric play parties and a thriving conscious community in Houston, Anthony shares the radical journey of transforming guilt into grace and discovering how sex can be a prayer and pleasure can be devotion.

🎧 Inside:

• What happens when a pastor discovers Tantra
• Healing religious shame and sexual repression
• Why “safe masculine presence” makes the feminine bloom
• How divorce, desire, and devotion became his catalysts
• Finding God in orgasm
• The divine masculine, safe presence, and embodied leadership
•  Rewriting your gospel through love, wholeness & desire
• The surprising overlap between theology and sexuality

A conversation for anyone who’s ever felt torn between God and pleasure, holiness and wholeness. Spoiler: they might just be the same thing.

Timestamps:
00:00 – Welcome & “What’s turning you on right now?”
02:00 – From pastor to tantra: the safe masculine presence
05:30 – Growing up in the church & early call to ministry
09:00 – AOL chatrooms, Jesus moments, and hearing “the call”
11:00 – Seminary stories & inclusive churches
13:30 – Divorce, sexual awakening, & first casual encounters
17:00 – Getting fired from church 
20:00 – Redefining sex, casual connection, and healing codependency
22:30 – Meeting Samantha on Tinder & birth of Houston’s Tantra community
26:00 – From sermons to sacred sex: ministry of pleasure
31:00 – Codependency, control, & inner work
33:00 – Reimagining Jesus, Christ consciousness, & inner divinity
37:00 – God in the bedroom: “Jesus would fuck—and he’d be good at it”
40:00 – Mary Magdalene, Gnostic Gospels, & divine union
44:00 – Creating safe spaces for sensuality & shadow
46:30 – Potential vs. kinetic energy: the physics of a play party
49:00 – Breath, sound, & grounding in Tantra
50:00 – What his younger preacher self would say now
51:00 – If I preached today… “The gospel of oneness and sex as sacred”
01:02:00 – Divine masculine/feminine and shifting collective energies

Connect with Anthony:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/anthony._michael/

Support the show

Connect with Kristin:
Website: kristinbirdwell.com
Instagram: @kristinbirdwell_
Facebook
YouTube

Kristin’s Book:
Sex, Drugs, & Soul
Spotify Audiobook

Peptides:
Oral Quicksilver GHK/Copper Peptide
https://elliemd.com/kristinbirdwell

Microdose 🍄
https://myfeelium.co/
password: opensesame
Code: kristin20 for 20% off

Subscribe to Pod:
YouTube
Spotify
Apple