1
general::
Also, in a pickle or spot. In a difficult or embarrassing situation, in a dilemma. For example, I was really in a fix when I missed the plane, or Lost and out of gas? how did we get in such a pickle? or John had lost all his money in the crap game? now he was in a spot. The first of these colloquial usages dates from the early 1800s; pickle in the sense of a mess or quandary, sometimes put as in a pretty pickle, dates from the 1500s; spot, also put as in a bad spot or tough spot, dates from the early 1900s. Also see IN A BIND; IN DEEP, def. 2; IN THE SOUP; IN TROUBLE; ON THE SPOT.
American Heritage Idioms
2
general::
Phrase(s): *in a fix
Fig. in a bad situation. (*Typically: be ~; get [into] ~.) • I really got myself into a fix. I owe a lot of money on my taxes. • John is in a fix because he lost his wallet. • John got into a fix.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs