Navigating Mercury Retrograde

You may have heard a lot of people talking about mercury retrograde, there's lots of posts on social media at the moment regarding this, and it's quite the hot topic, and everyone is talking about it. Mostly it gets a lot of attention because of the chaos it's believed to cause, and the effect it can have on us overall. But there are ways we can navigate mercury retrograde, and we are going to get into it here. Like everything in this life, I always look to see a way of learning and an opportunity for growth. This is my mercury retrograde survival guide.

Classically people talk about the retrograde as a time when travel plans can be disrupted, it's considered a bad time to make major decisions, communication is highlighted, and things just don't quite go the way they should. Personally I try to not dwell on that side of things too much as I believe if we start anticipating things could go wrong, invariably they will. That being said, I find a retrograde phase can be particularly impacting on my emotions, and this second mercury retrograde of 2022 I am experiencing a lot of internet related issues. This period could be challenging, but I am going to share some of the things I am doing to ride the wave of a retrograde storm.

What Is Mercury Retrograde?

Now I am no astrologer, but here are a few basic pointers about what exactly mercury retrograde means. This mercury retrograde period runs from May 10th - June 3rd 2022. This year we will experience 3 retrogrades, the third one happening on September 9th - October 2nd 2022

Mercury orbits the sun every 88 days, whereas the earth takes 365. As mercury moves faster than the sun an optical illusion occurs, and it appears that mercury is moving backwards, when in actual fact it's not. Imagine being in a speeding car, with another car alongside you. If you were to speed up, and go faster than the other car, it would appear that the car is moving backwards. When actually it is just slowing down, and this is what is happening with the sun and mercury. This is the illusion of the planet mercury, and mercury appears to be moving backwards, but it's actually moving faster than the sun.

What Could Possibly Go Wrong

Mercury is the ruler of communication, and this gets particularly highlighted during this period. There is often talk of friends falling out, couples arguing more. The dynamics between relationships can alter, and things can tend to feel a little out of balance.

Text messages might not get sent, social media apps may not work properly (this is me right now), computers crash unexpectedly, and your Wi-Fi may not be working properly (also me right now).

This is also a time when travel notoriously heads into chaos, flights get disrupted, trains get cancelled, cars break down and so on.

People also believe this is not a good time to make important life decisions, and to pause on anything big.

This can all seem a little scary when it's put like that, and whilst a retrograde can be challenging, I really don't think it's something we should be fearing.

How To Avoid the Chaos

A retrograde seems to come hand in hand with a lot of dread, and don't get me wrong I believe the power of retrograde can be pretty forceful, but the best thing we can do to navigate these waters is to chill out. Take a deep breath and relax.

This is a great time to pause a little, and I am always in favour of that. We move at such a fast pace nowadays, so any excuse to slow down is and should always be welcome. Mimic the illusion of mercury and the sun, and allow everything to continue rushing past you, as you take a slower stance.

Use this period for some quiet time, make time daily to meditate. Spend time journaling. Switch off your phone, put the electronics down and spend time in nature. Do some grounding, touch your feet and hands to the earth, this will really help to pull you back into stability, if the retrograde has left you feeling a little out of sorts.

I've felt quite foggy in my brain the last few days and I've felt the need to sleep more. Rest and get some early nights. Listen to your body, it will tell you what it needs.

We can learn a lot about ourselves during these times. Frustration and annoyance at things and people, I find, can be highlighted right now. Pay attention to what's coming up, and take some time to learn how this is triggering you. What can you do to make this feeling better?

Now I don't suggest you anticipate something to go wrong, but if you can accept that things possibly may not occur the way you imagined, our experience will be a whole lot different. We are always trying to control outcomes in life, and it's something we really need to do less of, so this is a perfect time to really lean into this practice. Let it all unfold as it should, and if your flight gets delayed, it gets delayed. What can you do with that newly found time? Read that book you’ve been meaning to, call a friend you haven't spoken to in a while etc.

Ditch The Fear

Don't get caught up in the fear of this time. There is always opportunity, and this is an opportunity to really lean into your patient side, and nurture its growth. Listen to your intuition, seek your inner guidance. It's probably telling you to sit quietly on the couch, so do just that. This is a time to retreat and pamper, and then you will be ready for the next phase in this magical journey of life.