Mercury Retrograde De-mystified

Art: @cult.class

This morning I read a post by @lizworthtarot saying she was tired of people fear-mongering about astrological events such as Mercury retrograde, and it inspired me to provide some explanation about this period of time, which begins 29 May and runs until 22-23 June.

❌ Fear – Mercury retrograde is a terrible time to enter into contracts, travel or make big purchases.
✅ Fact – Mercury is the planet associated with mental activity, planning and communication, so the conventional wisdom is when this planet is retrograde (or appearing to move backwards in the sky) that the areas of life related to it tend to go haywire. Is this sometimes true? YES. However, every Mercury retrograde does not affect every person in the same way! For instance:

⚡People born with Mercury retrograde tend to find that things in Mercury-ruled areas go MORE smoothly during retrograde periods; and
⚡If Mercury is making contact with one of your personal planets during the retrograde, you might feel its effects more strongly – otherwise it may pass by unnoticed for you.

To understand whether either of these applies to you, you will need to have an understanding of your birth chart (DM me if you would like help with this!)

Ultimately, sometimes you have to make a big decision during Mercury retrograde, and that's OK. The best recommendation is to take your time if you can, and read the fine print — decisions made in haste are more likely to require revision later.

❌ Fear – Mercury retrograde is a time when all your exes get back in touch and your technology breaks down.
✅ Fact — Sometimes these things do happen. My husband once dropped his phone into the ocean and lost all his photos when Mercury was retrograde in Pisces. 🤦‍♀️ As with everything in astrology, forewarned is forearmed. If you're concerned, make sure your devices are backed up.

As far as exes are concerned, Mercury retrograde is a time when we are asked to revise, re-do and reconsider. Sometimes people from the past re-emerge...

If this happens, it can be an opportunity to consider if there was something left unsaid, and whether we need to say it. Or, it may be a testament to the fact that we've grown and moved on from that situation, which can be empowering rather than frightening. 👊

✅ Fact — every Mercury retrograde is not the same! The sign it retrogrades in will influence the 'flavour'. In this case, Mercury is retrograde in its home sign of Gemini. Gemini's symbol is the twins, so we may called to examine past choices between two alternatives, and decide whether we chose the right one based on the information we now have.

Finally, like all transits, Mercury retrograde is transient. Whatever happens, big, small or nothing at all, this too shall pass. ✌

Art: @cult.class