28 January 2008

Love and Saturn Retrograde ~ Understanding the anxiety and getting past the fear of intimacy

“A man who has not passed through the inferno of his passions has never overcome them.” CG Jung


We all have our share of intimacy fears that develop during our childhood and difficult early relationship experiences, but for most of us, our desire to be with another - to open our Self and share our inner being with someone - is much stronger than our fears. Because our inherent drive to be with someone is so powerful, we put ourselves out there and hope for the best. Through connecting with and interacting with others romantically, we get to know ourselves and learn about our own needs and desires when it comes to relating.

For a person with Saturn retrograde in the natal chart, intimacy fears are enormous. They may have an easy time connecting with others (depending on other factors in their chart) and could be very friendly and seemingly outgoing, but if you take a closer look you will soon realize that the Saturn retrograde person gets along fabulously with strangers or ‘new’ friends but tends to shut off - castrate - those who grow to love him or her or anyone who gets close enough to notice the fine cracks in the façade the native presents to others. There is a very tender and vulnerable emotional infant lurking within the Saturn retrograde native…this may be a very small aspect of the soul, or it could be a huge part of the personality, but beneath the strongly contained ego that appears to have it all together, there is a child wanting to be loved for who he or she is… an infant wanting to be nurtured and cherished and most of all, understood and appreciated. The fear of not being good enough, not being what is expected, of being weak and vulnerable to others or worse, superseded or totally unneeded by anyone, drives the Soul with Saturn retrograde deeper and deeper into a cocoon of their own making…an isolated and lonely place to be, a stranger in the shadows watching others and wondering why he (or she) feels so horribly alone.

The Saturn retrograde individual is like a sponge that absorbs all of the energy around him (her) and intuitively knows what is going on and how to protect the self within that atmosphere…he may also take on the beliefs or thought patterns of others, especially in youth, without even being aware that these beliefs aren’t really his own but were absorbed from the family or society/culture he was raised in. There is a (karmic) distortion in the personality that allows the external world to permeate the Soul, rendering the Saturn retrograde native’s early attempts at constructing boundaries ineffective. As the ego develops, it learns to construct higher and thicker emotional walls, extremely defensive barriers, and a reserve with others that says, “Do NOT approach.” Of course those superficially involved with the native may not sense or feel any of this because the fears aren’t activated until the Saturn retro individual grows closer or more involved with a person. Let him (or her) fall in Love and Bam…the fear floods in and the walls come up. The worries that the loved one will not love the ‘true’ self can be so strong that they distance themselves or sever the relationship in order to protect the loved one…and the Self.

Ironically, if they would move toward the lover, open to the lover, and find a way to let down the barriers...

Read the rest of my article, Love and Saturn Retrograde

Currently reading: Women Who Run With the Wolves ~ Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype by Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Ph. D. Highly recommend...I already AM a Wild Woman, LOL

07 January 2008

Heads up! Mercury Retrograde...coming soon

Mercury is retrograde from 1/28/08 - 2/18/08

We will enter the Mercury retrograde 'shadow' period at 8 degrees of Aquarius on January 13, 2008 - Mercury will return to this degree again and pass over this point February 18th as he stations direct and prepares to leave the storm on February 23rd. Prepare to rethink, redraw, replan, renegotiate, etc something that is happening this weekend (January 12 -13) around then (February 19 - 23)! This Mercury retrograde will stir up the most trouble for Aquarius, Leo, Scorpio, and Taurus - particularly the degrees ranging from 7 - 24 in these signs. Check your natal charts to see where your Sun (or other planets) lie in any of these signs to see how this Mercury retro will affect you (or let me do it for you! Online Consultations and Readings)

On January 25, Mercury enters its 'Storm' (this is when the planet
moves less than 40 minutes of arc per day) so if you have a lot of things you need to get started, I advise you get it moving now...Mercury finally stalls...

Read more about this Mercury retro, the aspects Mercury makes during this retrograde period, how Mercury retro expresses itself in Aquarius, and much more, including information about Mercury and Karma...pop in to my website!

Currently reading: Changing the Course of Autism: A Scientific Approach for Parents & Physicians by Bryan Jepson, MD and Dangerous Grains: Why Gluten Cereal Grains may be hazardous to your health by James Braly, MD & Ron Hoggan, MA