We have all been experiencing the effects of all the planetary alignments over the last couple of months. It usually isn't "normal" to have so many planets retrograding at once, but because we have 6 planets and a comet making some serious shifts, it's really no wonder we are all feeling the effects of this monumental energetic time. As an overview of what's been happening in the cosmos and when we can expect it to all end, let's take a look at the Retrograde Rundown.Jupiter (the planet of luck, abundance and expansion), started this lovely retrograde of planetary energy, back on March 8th, in the sign of Scorpio (the sign of transformation, death & rebirth, and all things mysterious, spiritual and philosophical), and finally stopped retrograding on July 10th.This energetic shift brought about the want, need, and desire, to detox and purify ourselves; mind, body, and Soul. It gave us an opportunity to go within ourselves as retrogrades trigger us to do. When planets aren't in retrograde, the energy they carry will usually be expressed outwards, so when a planet slips into a retrograde position, that outward energy turns inward. It's a time of quiet reflection; reviewing our inner most thoughts and feelings, recognizing what we are no longer in alignment with, and see how we are progressing on our own spiritual journey.
When Jupiter went direct again in Scorpio on July 10th, all of that inner reflection and introspection had a chance to be brought to the outside world. What we learned, (or ignored to learn), about our inner selves, then had an opportunity to be re-edited and revised as we then integrated it into our lives. This was a hard time for a lot of people, as realizing what you ACTUAL believe in, versus what you've been programmed to believe in, is a hard pill to swallow. Some even had huge life altering events take place that couldn't be avoided or ignored, only happen to really raise the question of whether or not the path currently being traveled was one of our heart's desire, or one of unconscious programming. This transit's mission, and overall theme. was to make you ask yourself: Am I truly HAPPY with my life? And in what areas of life do I want change?
Saturn (the planet of karma), joined the retrograde party on April 17th in the sign of Capricorn (the sign of order, responsibilities, and career), and won't stop until September 6th. This planetary energy has us again examining the words we speak, to others, but most importantly, how we speak to ourselves.This energy is about restriction and limitations and how what we tell ourselves could potentially be limiting us in the world where career and family responsibilities are concerned. Our inner tape, our inner dialogue, has a huge impact on the way we see, and interact with the world. When Saturn went retrograde, suddenly our past, present, and future blurred together and we were able to see how the way we SPEAK in our minds directly impacts our outer world.The realizations and lessons triggered and learned within this transit are very hard lessons to learn, but once Saturn goes direct on September 6th, we will have the opportunity to put what we've learned about the effects of our self-talk into action. You may find yourself very aware of the inner tape and what you tell yourself, and because you're aware, you have the ability to re-edit and revise the recording in your head. If you become aware of the fact your inner chat is heavy and negative towards yourself, a particular area of life, or belief, you will have the ability to enforce a more positive attitude and infuse your words with positive energy, creating positive outwardly effects.Pluto (the planet of power, and control), began to retrograde on April 22nd in the serious, stable sign of Capricorn who focuses on life's responsibilities and career goals. This retrograde will unleash your inner warrior, and make you stand up for yourself when trying to regain control of you've lost, or help you let go of control if it's been an all consuming quest for you.During this retrograde, you will very clearly see your power struggles and the control issues come to light. You will see the power that you've given to others and the ways you are controlled by outer influences and other people. If you are being controlled, or under the power of someone else, this will surface during the retrograde and then you will have the opportunity to do something about it once Pluto goes direct on September 30th.This can be a very difficult time for us as we identify our own power and control issues, and then evaluate whether or not we hold our power or if we've given it away. Many relationships and friendships, even business partnerships, will dissolve under this planetary influence as we rid ourselves of those that have power and control over us. We even have the ability to let go of things that we recognize within ourselves that we hold power and control over. This is a time for elimination. Many of us have had past events re-occur for us to finally deal with them, and put an ending to the power struggle both in our inner and outer worlds.Neptune (the planet of spirituality, and illusions), entered the parade of retrograde on June 18th, in the dreamy, delusional, escapist planet of Pisces. This is a pretty intense transit as it brings up all of the emotions and pains that we try so tirelessly to escape from.When Neptune retrogrades, we find ourselves going inward to explore the spiritual side of ourselves which triggers a time of self-development in this area. We are now on a quest for truth, even if it means uncovering our deep emotional scars and having the realization of how we have been avoiding them, escaping them, and simply put, pretending they don't even exist.This will have anxiety and fears at the forefront of our experiences, as we have to identify the reasons why these emotions even exist within us in the first place. Pain from childhood, past relationships, past illness, traumas, and life experiences, will rise up and reveal how they have become such a great part of who we are as we include those scars as a part of our stories we tell ourselves and others. We get to re-examine whether or not we still identify with the pain, and whether we can transform that pain into power.Many of us are seeing situations that once caused us harm come back to life and this experience alone is enough to trigger these negative feelings within us. We can't run from these thoughts and feelings anymore. We have to acknowledge and process these pains in order to release them. We need to be lighter as we move forward in life with a new mind frame of how we deal with the not-so-pleasant things life exposes us to.
Mars began it's retrograde on June 26th, and will soon be ending on August 27th. This planetary alignment is a bit more intense than the others due to the fact that Mars (the planet of energy, action, and passion), only retrogrades every 2 years. And thank goodness for that! Mars' energy retrogrades in 2 signs during it's transit in both Aquarius (the planet of free thinking, individualism, rebellion, and freedom), and Capricorn (the steadfast, serious, responsible and career oriented sign). Because planetary energy is normally exerted outward, when a retrograde takes place, that energy turns inward making us feel unmotivated, slower, lethargic, and less passionate.Our sex lives make take a hit as we really aren't as energetic and sexually driven as we normally are. It's not a great time to start new projects or engage in new relationships as the passion and action energy just isn't there. Because Mars started its retrograde cycle in Capricorn, we may have lost our energy and focus on our projects and creative endeavors. We may have stepped back on our responsibilities in life and the commitments we made to others.Many of us found ourselves under the feeling of huge, overwhelming pressures which can quickly transform into anger and irritability. We suddenly had old disagreements and endings rise up to be rehashed again, and we find our minds stuck in old, hurtful events.Once Mars slipped into Aquarius, the energy shifted to a place of resistance and rebellion if things weren't going, or turning out the way we had hoped. We found ourselves reliving past situations that we once thought were perfect for us, and how they suddenly fell apart. This is a very challenging time emotionally as we navigate through our anger, sadness, and anxiety. Depression seems to sneak in and take over without even being noticed until it was too late. Conflict has been at an all time high, and without doing the deep, inner-work to resolve our inner conflict, this energy expressed outwardly could be very detrimental to existing relationships and projects.Luckily, when Mars slips back into Capricorn again, we are able to "get a grip" so to speak, and see clearly how and why, these issues are coming up for us. The beautiful Capricorn energy is able to organize our thoughts and feelings in a way that doesn't seem to be as overwhelming to process, as we move towards the bigger picture in life, achieving our end goal.Mercury (the planet of communication, technology, and travel), started to retrograde July 26th in the sign of Leo (the sign of confidence, chattiness, and pride), and won't stop until August 19th. We are most familiar with Mercury retrogrades, as it is one of the most frequent retrograde transit we experience three or four times a year.During a Mercury retrograde, it is common to experience miscommunications, technology breakdowns and malfunctions, and wonky travel plans. Because this transit is taking place in Leo, we will experience complete social awkwardness as the way we are use to communicating with clarity and confidence, will be confused and chaotic.The way our brains receive and process information gets muddled. We can experience extreme brain fog and feel like suddenly we are unable to speak properly and be heard in the way we want to be heard. This is a time when frustrations can arise and trigger our inner voices. By the time Mercury goes direct, it will be in the sign of Virgo which will cause us to move more innerward to rehash all of the ways we tried to express ourselves and just didn't have it turn out the way we hoped for.By this point, we have accepted our brain fog, accepted that social interaction just isn't working during this time, and just feel a bit more settled in a quieter setting.Finally, Chiron (the wounded healer), started its retrograde adventure on July 5th, and will hold strong in retrograde position until December 8th. This transit brings the greatest, and most intense healing, as we have no other choice but to face our wounds head on. Our inner triggers, wounds, and perceived weaknesses, are illuminated in such a way that there is no way they can be ignored.During a retrograde, everything slows down so we can look into these issues and identify how they have subconsciously been effecting our lives. Although this energy can be very difficult to navigate, these issues aren't arising to cause us more suffering, instead they are being spotlighted so we can identify the source of the pain, and transform that pain into power. Chiron's energy teaches us to not be a victim and fall into self-pity, but rather to identify as a warrior who carries many wounds as he stands proud surviving a great battle.We will face this battle alone within ourselves until Chiron goes direct. We will then have the chance to take action on making changes and setting boundaries in our lives in order to rise in the power of accepting our struggles, instead of allowing them to keep us in a place of pain and suffering.This is definitely a powerful time, with huge energy shifts supporting our inner work, supporting revisions and editing ourselves in an authentic light. If nothing else, this retrograde season has given us the gift to break free of old programming and patterns, both in our ways of thinking and feeling. We can now embrace our true thoughts, feelings, and desires, and understand how we are ultimately creating and building our own future.As always, should you require assistance navigating these energy seas, book a session online and I can help you see your life from an objective angle and advise you how to adjust your energy and mindset for success.To keep up to date on all of these transits as they progress and go direct and how it will effect you, sign up for the newsletter if you haven't already! I have some really cool things being launched over the next few months and newsletter subscribers will be the first to hear about it, and of course receive great promo codes to get access to products and services at a discounted rate.Many blessings to you during this time!