inner saboteurs – Julia Fry – Psychotherapist, Neurodivergence Coach, Writer, Poet, Artist.

How to stop paternalism triggering your inner saboteurs

image shows a heart made with oil pastel — Fiery Heart (2020)
oil pastel and clay on paper

I want to explore how patriarchal belief systems get into our nervous systems / psyches / energy bodies as spirits of sickness, and what we can do to remove them. In this article I’ll look at what spirits of sickness are, and how they’re related to our inner saboteurs and exiled vulnerable parts of us. Then I’ll explore the power that awareness of them brings, and some ways of releasing their power over us. Some of this might sound strange, so I invite you to open your mind, and listen with your heart. Here we go!

Can we trust Gremlins, Inner Critics, Saboteurs and Critters?

Befriending the Voices Inside

Abstract art of inner parts emerging through creative expression, symbolising acceptance in therapy. — Inner Selves
Julia Fry
2026

Anxiety is often spoken about as a problem to be fixed, medicated, or mindset-hacked away. Yet in the therapy room and in my own life, anxiety has shown up as something more complex: a protective part, a messenger from deeper hurt, and sometimes a sign that something stranger is moving through the nervous system. In this article, I share my journey with gremlins, inner critics, parts-work and “critters”, and how creativity and compassion help us move from fighting ourselves to befriending what lives inside.

This is written for anyone who feels hijacked by anxiety or critical voices and is curious about a gentler, more creative way of relating to them.