If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you know I LOVE Mercury Retrograde. I see it as a necessary time of re-calibration, as opposed to a time wrought with snafus and dread.
You see, Mercury, the planet that rules communication, travels very close to the Sun, and moves quickly in his orbit. It only takes Mercury 88 days to orbit the Sun as opposed to the Earth’s 365 days. Due to Mercury’s speed and elliptical pattern, at points he appears to pass the Earth, and then seemingly goes backward while Earth catches up and passes him. This dance between the Earth, Sun, and Mercury—an optical illusion at its finest—creates a beat, that for many, feels hard to dance with.
Think about it: speedy Mercury switches positions with planet Earth while they harmonize very different elliptical rhythms. It’s sort of like fast tempo and progressive chord changes of bebop jazz—abrupt and a bit in your face, but if you find the rhythm you can really groove. Especially since it’s all an illusion anyway. (Mercury does not actually travel backwards, he simply switches places with Earth as they both continue to travel around the Sun.)
Yet, this harmonization of offbeat rhythms certainly freaks a lot of people out. Words like pandemonium and mayhem are thrown about while Mercury travels retrograde. And as an astrologer who has tracked this phenomenon for a long time, I concur. Mercury retrograde can certainly feel wild at times; however, I find it potent medicine with a dose of good fortune (assuming it’s approached with a creative spirit and playfulness).
Remember, the recalibration of planetary speed follows natural law. It’s supposed to happen. Nothing’s wrong.
Nonetheless, Mercury Retrograde sets off the warning signals, causing many to go on the defense. Double check every message! Backup your computer! Halt your travel plans! Become suspicious of new opportunities! Worry!
If this sounds like you, I urge you to approach this period from a slightly different angle.
I celebrate Mercury Retrograde as an auspicious time, because in our go-go-go world, this is when we are meant to pause and review what we’ve already done to figure out what’s slipped through the cracks instead of charge forward heedlessly. We’re meant to notice that the beat changed, and there’s a new soloist on stage. We need to pay attention, listen, and recalibrate.
“As above, so below.” The planetary rhythms influence us, indeed. However, they are normal, natural, and aligned; not something to fight.
When we honor Mercury and utilize his retrograde pattern to reorganize, revisit, resituate, and reassess, it helps us to not only make substantially better decisions, but to catch our breath, too. I know I am not the only one who puts things off and rushes from one thing to the next. When we learn to honor Mercury’s retrograde pattern, we can succinctly tidy up our lives before diving head-first into our next chapter. And if we pay really close attention, we’ll understand it’s all an illusion anyway, so we might as well have some fun with it.
Mercury Retrograde is not something you need to fear, nor is it a time to halt forward motion.
In the fast-paced world we live in, we can utilize Mercury’s syncopated, asymmetrical and offbeat rhythm to find a new groove in our lives. It offers an opportunity to tidy up, chill out, and get crystal clear on exactly what you need to do to further align with your truth. It’s the perfect time to get unstuck and dance to a new beat. Syncopation simply breaks up monotony. And come on, who doesn’t like to groove?
So, while many view Mercury Retrograde as a time we should expect the worst, I see it as an opportunity to make wiser decisions, follow my gut instinct, and clean up issues from my past so I can align more with the present—and obtain clear directives on what to execute next.
5 Ways to Use Mercury Retrograde to Further Align With Your Truth
- Expect your intuition to increase and prepare to take action. More than usual, expect to receive intuitive messages. Instead of thinking about an answer or a solution, feel your answer. Mercury’s retrograde is a period when our intuition will become stronger, and if we work with it, instead of against it, we can move ahead faster. Over the next few weeks, make sure you tune in and follow your instincts—let your body guide you—and be prepared to take action on the wild insights you receive. Take the time to meditate, check in, and reconnect with yourself. Then dance to the beat of your insight.
- Become even more comfortable with all of your emotions. One of the key things you can learn is how to get comfortable with all of your emotions without needing to fix or deny them. Can you be present with everything that comes up for you emotionally? What do you need to do to strengthen this relationship with yourself? What support do you need to help you feel your emotions fully? Should you feel the need, give yourself permission to have a good cry—it’s okay. If crying is something you struggle with, rent some tear-jerkers and have a movie night to let yourself release and feel.
- Fix the glitches. Mercury Retrograde is a time to slow down and finally address our blind spots. When you listen more deeply, asking yourself where you are resisting your truth and not honoring your needs, you can find the glitch in your thinking, systems or communication. You can then turn towards breaking out of behaviors and patterns that hold you back and crush your individuality.
- Take care of you. During Mercury Retrograde, you’ll want to take special care of your body, your health habits, and the details of your life. This is a time for slow and steady self-care, with massive doses of meditation and cleaning sprinkled in. Tidy up. Do a detox. And most importantly rest. Seventeen days after Mercury Retrograde ends, we have the equinox—another time of recalibration. Be sure to set yourself up for success.
- Go backward to go forward. Mercury Retrograde beckons review. While on the one hand you’ll want to consider your year to date, on the other you may even want to throw back to your childhood, too. Visit old friends. Pick up the phone to connect with someone you’ve lost touch with. Write a letter to someone from your past. Look at pictures and get nostalgic. You never know the healing that will ensue!
Enjoy this Mercury Retrograde, and use this time to slow down and find a new groove. When Mercury goes direct, you’ll be able to step into a new beginning.
I love hearing what’s coming up for you—tell me how you’re planning to do this Mercury Retrograde differently. Leave me a comment and let me know!
21 Comments
Chrissy Tustison 12/04/17
I haven’t heard this take on Mercury retrograde before, and I think I’ve been needing to! Absolutely love your perspective on this. You’ve given me some great ideas for how to work with the rhythms of the planets and myself over the next few weeks. By the way, I just discovered your blog and love it! Keep writing 🙂
jracioppi 12/04/17
Hi Chrissy! Thank you so much:) I am so grateful you are here. This comment means the world to me. Big hugs.
Angie 03/12/18
Yes, I agree! Thank you for this new take on mercury retrograde 🙂 I like your perspective on it a whole lot better than other articles I’ve read! Thanks for the tips 👍
Jo 01/03/19
Thank you! I too haven’t heard this take on Mercury Retrograde before and it completely resonated. I was mentally ticking off the alignments!
Johanne Laflamme 03/01/19
J’ai eu 5 pontages coronariens en mercure rétrograde.😒😏🤣🙏🏻❤️
Manuel Carvalho 03/01/19
Hi Jennifer,
I’m a guy… yes, and a guy from a far-off country… I have to leave my present apartment (rising rent prices in Lisbon) and buy a new one (along with doing minor recovery work in it) squarely on the 5th March-28th March 2019 Mercury retrograde period… and I simply can’t postpone or work around it. I know it’s not a coincidence it turns out this way, and I know there’s a theme and a reason to it… reading your words helped out. Thanks, from the heart.
Anastasiya 03/04/19
This spoke so much to my way of thinking. Thank you for being you and sharing your knowledge!!
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[…] ache and struggling. It’s like mass—it might probably’t be created or destroyed. So this Mercury retrograde, let’s all breathe in and keep nonetheless. Given that Mercury laws conversation, take into consideration digging inward. Letting the dialog […]
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[…] struggling. It’s like mass—it will probably’t be created or destroyed. So this Mercury retrograde, let’s all breathe in and keep nonetheless. Given that Mercury regulations conversation, take into accounts digging inward. Letting the dialog […]
Sara Tea 03/07/19
I can here cause I was googling “why do I feel more motivated, clear & things come into alignment for me during mercury retrograde”
Was hoping for an alternative take, thanks.
Sarah 03/09/19
Sarah tea. Same goes for me too I was looking for the exact same topic across the web. An article that resonates with how clear and motivated one can become during retrograde. Everyone talks about the stuggle during this time period and I feel completely different about the whole idea. Its crazy to find your comment and that someone else was infact searching for the same answer as I and experiencing the same things. May I ask what your star sign is? I’m unsure if that has anything to do with it but Im curious to say the least if it does or doesn’t have anything to do with what you were sharing about. Mine is Scorpio 🙂
Sarah 03/09/19
I was wonder if you too were a Scorpio by any chance bc I too feel this way at Mercury retrograde.
Molly 11/22/19
Same! Was looking for why I experience the opposite of most during a retrograde ! I actually feel a day or few of aches and mild depression /energy slump coming out of a retrograde.
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Saumya 03/16/19
Hey Jen,
I needed this. Thank you for this refreshing take on mercury retrograde!
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Ms. Love 07/20/19
I just signed up for a training program and spent $. It felt very right and my intuition said yes. It will be a huge change. I had no idea it was RM now. I appreciate your article because I felt this decision was totally in line with my spirit and something I wish I could have done a long time ago. I felt more reassured that it’s not always a bad thing when it’s truly in allignment with your heart. Thank you
Saggie Ascendant Girl 11/20/19
For me, this November 2019 M-Retro was such a great break from all the earthly world. I had also a better communication with my love interest (Capri Sun, Leo Asc) and I felt much more nurtured emotionally by him and by myself, kind of purification and reconnection deal. In family matters, I spoke up what I want, and even I was scared and thought it could be uncomfortable, turned out to be very soft and accepted. I loved the season! 💖
Sam 06/10/20
I agree with you, the retrograde period of Mercury and other planets is not the time to panic. The fact is that I use this period to my advantage. When celestial bodies move in the opposite direction, I move with them. I think of some past situations that I would like to change, I choose a suitable planet in retrograde light and correct what I consider to be violated.