Mercury is our planetary Messenger.
Three to four times per year, Mercury appears to move backwards. This is an optical illusion relative to us on Earth. But whether or not Mercury scoots backwards in reality, our experience of the planet is changed.
During Mercury retrograde periods, our thought processes, communications, travels, and our experience of time becomes less linear and more swirly. Make space in your schedule to accommodate unexpected events and the need to be more introspective.
Mercury retrograde is not cause for fear. It is no reason to stop your life. However, do note that it is not the best time to sign contracts or make permanent decisions, as we don’t have all the necessary information until Mercury goes direct and clears its shadow.
Mercury Retrograde Medicine
The shorthand for retrograde is “Rx” – welcome this frequent transit as necessary medicine.
During Mercury Rx, business is not as usual. These periods transport us beyond duality and into the realm of “crazy wisdom.” Technology can breakdown. Travels can become delayed. Items can be lost.
Allow the plot to thicken. Take twists and turns in stride. It is best to remain mentally flexible, adaptable, and open to the gifts inside these inconveniences. When they occur, see them as signs and opportunities to breathe more deeply.
Look for the spiritual message behind whatever is happening.
Re-do, Refresh, Restart
Think of this as an editing time. Decisions change. Delays, miscommunications, and misdirections shift our course.
Mercury Rx brings the medicine of repetition – of going back again.
“Re” words. Rethink. Reconsider. Revise. Reflect. Revisit. Retrace our steps. Reverse. Renegotiate. Remember. Review. Repair.
A period for second chances. A time to reminisce. Deja vu. People from our past can return to our lives. We circle back to unfinished business.
The 3 Phases of Mercury Rx
Phase 1: Mercury travels Direct February 19-March 5th (from 16-29 degrees Pisces). This is the foreshadowing phase. Themes of what will be revised, reworked, and rewritten, begin seeping in. Notice what is arising. Generally, this is a good time to backup computers and electronic devices and get your car checked out.
[Some examples from my own life: I was called away for an unexpected trip to attend a family member who is passing. On my way, the check engine light came on in my car. My partner started talking to me about getting a new car. I had to shuffle around my schedule to accommodate this unplanned travel. My travels were then extended. I need to make space for grief and processing as my beloved family member passes.]
Phase 2: Mercury travels Retrograde March 5th-March 28th (from 29-16 degrees Pisces). See the full description of this transit below.
Phase 3: Mercury travels Direct March 28-April 16 (from 16-29 degrees Pisces). Clean up. Clear out. Complete. Mercury officially clears the retrograde zone on April 17th. Close this chapter. Resume decision-making and contract signing. More forward fully on whatever progress was made during the Rx. Full steam ahead!
[As I rushed to visit my family member, I got a speeding ticket. The court date was set for April 16. I expect to be driving a new car by that date as well.]
Mercury Retrograde in Pisces March 5th-28th, 2019
This particular Mercury Rx cycle is even dreamier and more confusing than usual. It is in the watery, oceanic sign of Pisces. Waterways, fluids, and plumbing can be affected. We are entranced.
Sensitivity and subjectivity are heightened. We absorb everything, become flooded with emotion. It is normal to feel anxiety and paranoia as our thoughts and emotions swirl in waves that defy logic. Make space to feel, to dream, and to cry. Allow yourself time to retreat, regroup, and fill your cup. Accept that clarity may not come until this transit is over.
This Mercury Rx begins with Mercury in close contact to Chiron, the Wounded Healer asteroid. Learn about Chiron here. March 2-9 can be particularly tender for the mind and the voice. Painful communications can arise. Words can wound. Thoughts can cause suffering. Words and thoughts can also create healing. Have compassion. Allow your mind to be cleansed of thought patterns that do not serve. This is a time where we can gain understandings that are healing for us, and build a bridge beyond disconnect. Say prayers and share blessings. Offer forgiveness.
Communications during this Mercury Rx can be evasive, indirect, or downright dishonest. Practice speaking truthfully, yet tenderly. Watch for deceit, treachery, and woolgathering. We may try to tune out hypersensitivities by numbing, escaping, and avoiding. Be conscious. Sometimes a meditation session and some alone time is all that is needed to calm swirling tides. Music and water can be particularly therapeutic in aiding release. Welcome a good cry. Let things flow.
Miscommunications are common during Mercury Rx. Double check emails before hitting send. Listen to others closely, and summarize what you heard them say to make sure you heard them accurately.
As much as you are able, avoid taking things personally. People are in a deeply subjective emotional experience. We are seeing and hearing through the veil – experiencing things as they appear to us, in images and sensations, rather than as they truly are.
This is a great time to work behind-the-scenes. Intuition, creativity, and inspiration are enhanced. We can easily traverse to spiritual realms. Rather than try to hammer away in the material realm, relax and work with the subtlest spiritual forces. Speak to the divine. Access states of bliss and flow. Channel healing energies. Relax into your highest ideals. Surrender to your wildest imaginings.
March 13-16 are especially ripe for manifesting big dreams. Allow it.
Blessings on your Retrograde journey. Enjoy the swim! See you when we come to shore, all nice and clean and clear and dry, in mid-April.
Want to know more about how Mercury Rx and the current astrology impacts your personal chart? Book an intuitive astrology reading with Virginia here.
Follow Virginia on Instagram.
Mercury Retrograde in Pisces 2019 for your Sign
Aries: I reconnect with Spirit.
Taurus: I reinvest in community.
Gemini: I revise my purpose.
Cancer: I remember freedom.
Leo: I am reborn.
Virgo: I rejuvenate my relationships.
Libra: I restore my health.
Scorpio: I replenish creativity.
Sagittarius: I remake home.
Capricorn: I rethink my perceptions.
Aquarius: I release obstacles to prosperity.
Pisces: I re-dream my sense of self.
