Hello friends!
I’m not sure about you, but Mercury Retrograde has been handing me all the goodies over the last couple of weeks. I got the flu and was bed-ridden for a week. I am currently having car trouble, something to do with the oil in the car. I’ve also had issues with technology not working well. In fact, I wrote a beautiful blog post over the weekend about change and transition, and I accidentally deleted it! (But, if you are signed up for my newsletter, I re-wrote something similar and sent it out!).
I am sure you have had your share of hardships with this difficult astrological transition. But, I want to offer you some words of encouragement during this time. I have been reflecting on how I’ve been dealing with this round of Mercury Retrograde, and I was really glad to notice that, in my opinion, I have been handling it pretty well. When I took some time to think about what techniques have worked best for me, I found that I had 3 top tips. So, I want to share them with you, in the hopes that perhaps they can help you ride out this time with some more grace, confidence, alignment, and empowerment.
1. Mindfulness
A technique that I have been using to get through this time is to remember that I am a blip on the timeline of the world. While my life is important to me, all of the seemingly “huge” issues I am currently facing will not matter in the not-too-distant future. I can release any expectations I have about how things “should” be and just focus on how things are. One way to do this is to practice mindfulness. When something happens, instead of getting lost in thinking about ‘what if’s”, I find it helpful to stop, take a deep breath, and engage all 5 senses. I notice 5 things I can: see, smell, taste, touch, and hear in the moment. This helps by bringing the awareness into the direct experience you are having in the present moment, and leaving the overthinking behind. By enacting this skill, you are allowing your higher level brain waves to take a break, and letting the sensations of your body take your attention.
2. See the lesson
Another technique that helps me deal with Mercury Retrograde is to ask myself “What can I learn here?” Many times, when we are experiencing a hardship or difficulty, there is a lesson. We continue to receive lessons in order to put what we have already learned into practice. So, the next time you have a hard thing happen in your life, I invite you to pause, and ask yourself “What is this teaching me?” or “What is the lesson here?” and journal about it. There are lessons to be learned in every thing that happens. Use even the little things to try to learn more about your behavior and your reactions. When you do this, it can help prepare you for the next time a similar thing happens. You can start to understand your triggers and respond to the situation more skillfully than before.
3. Affirmations
While I was bedridden during the flu, I read A LOT of books. One of my all-time favorites is Louse Hay’s You Can Heal Your Life and I took the time while sick to flip through it again. In it, she describes a really powerful affirmation that can help. I have adopted it during Mercury Retrograde, and I think it is helping me feel a lot better about things happening in my life. During this section of the book, Louise talks about how we beat ourselves up in our mind constantly throughout the day. We don’t hesitate to reprimand ourselves, talk down to ourselves, and belittle ourselves. We spend so much time ruminating on all the problems in our lives. One thing she says in the book is, if we have enough time and energy to ruminate on the problem, then we have enough time to put that aside and do something nice for ourselves. Louise suggests that we interrupt the process of self-punishment with this simple affirmation: “I approve of myself.” When I have been having unkind thoughts about myself, or when I keep thinking about a problem over and over to seemingly no end, I have caught myself and replaced the thoughts by saying “I approve of myself. No matter what, I approve of myself.” I swear, this simple thought shift has made ALL the difference! I feel such compassion for myself in those moments. I remind myself that I am only human, and I am doing my best. And, I remind myself that I am worthy of care, gentleness and patience. A self-compassion practice has been shown to increase feelings of purpose and overall life satisfaction- all total plusses in my book!
Those are my top tips for dealing with this Mercury Retrograde. I hope you find them helpful now, or anytime of year that you are dealing with unpleasant situations. Don’t forget to reach out for help if you need it. It is ok to not be ok, and it is ok to ask for guidance during these times. I am here for you.
What are your tips for dealing with Mercury Retrograde? Comment with them below!
Love,
Elise
