A short interview and a catch up!

by with No Comment Professional Astrologer

With the Super Blue Moon in Pisces approaching us, I thought I’d come here and say hello.

It’s been a while since I wrote last.

I’m still in the UK but getting ready to fly back to Brazil soon. The transit from Saturn to my natal Sun/Mercury has been going on for months and the process of crystallising myself as an individual out there in the world is strong. Not only I had my MA graduation, but also many developments work wise.

Here I’m sharing a short interview I did for the MysticMag about my work and sensitivity if you’d like to find out more about what I’ve been up to this year: Astrology and Highly Sensitive People/Empaths

It’s very exciting and I can’t wait to be able to share more about it with you!

Are you a Highly Sensitive or an Empath? Let me know in the comments how you found out and how it’s been for you ever since. I’d love to hear from you!

Wishing you all a beautiful Full Moon in Pisces, full of achievable dreams and inspiration.

Just a warm welcome to Saturn in Pisces

by with 2 Comments Astrology and meInner lifeSearch for home

I’m having a Saturn transit again!

Do you know how I always talk about astrology as a tool to identify cycles within cycles? Our lives are made of events, emotions, and encounters – all that promoting different opportunities for growth. This is a strong part of my world view which is embedded in my work. 

When I talk about Constructive Astrology, I don’t mean it in a superficial, ‘Pollyanna’ or ‘Toxic Positivity’ way. Its more connected with responses and choices.

For example, many of these cycles might relate to hard lessons in life, or loss and grief. It seems like we somehow inevitably loose something when we grow. Even when you gain something, you’re automatically losing something else. When you become a mother, you lose your ability to only care for yourself (I’m not talking about specific cases, like when someone isn’t able to care for another). When you find your life partner, you lose your single self.

Life is non-negotiable growth.

And astrology can enhance this process by promoting awareness and enlightening choices and responses. 

For instance, I was just now pondering on Saturn’s approach to oppose my natal Sun and Mercury in Virgo. So many things come to mind, including an overwhelming feeling of sadness as I witness my parents getting older – Saturn is transiting my 4th house. Part of this cycle is about reclaiming my place in the world, as an adult. At the same time, it’s about acceptance and surrender. (Pisces)

Life has its cycles – birth, growth, decay, and death. There is absolutely nothing we can do about that, at least not yet (sigh of relief). No matter how much Botox, plastic surgery, and drinks of collagen we buy, the ageing process is inevitable. 

I see it in myself, not only in how comfortable I feel in my role as an expert (Sun in the 10th house), but in some of my new-born wrinkles. I don’t feel so young anymore. And neither are my parents. Or the people I grew up with. Places and customs also have changed tremendously. 

I suddenly seem to understand the feeling people start to have, as elders, almost as if slowly we stop belonging in this world. 

Year after year after year after year, we gradually start our exit. 

Not that I have started it yet, but there is a strange feeling of recognition, almost like a premonition. I foresee my future in my parents’ feelings and changes, with the world also rapidly changing around me, as I watch everything with a sort of nauseous perplexity. 

Me, getting old and obsolete? No, never. My parents? I thought they were eternal! 

Saturn is about the hard truths. 

It has barely shifted to Pisces and I’m already longing for home – I never thought I would want to go back to Brazil or idealise my life there. But something has changed. I miss my flat, my parents and friends that I barely saw the last time I was there. In a Saturnian fashion, I had no time to see them, I was too busy working on my dream life. 

Here it comes, the Piscean flavour again: The dream life. 

This year I have Saturn on my side to help me build it, brick by brick. For every realisation and acceptance of the realities of life, another piece can be solidly placed. This is what I mean about the choices and responses. As I lose my outdated feelings of youth, I start to embrace my reality and create what I really want to see happening. 

I take charge of my life.

I feel sick as I type these words sat on a cold bathroom floor somewhere in Bristol, as I don’t want to wake up my partner. I’d rather not burden him with these thoughts. For now, thanking Saturn, I let him dream.

Insightful eclipse season

by with 2 Comments Astrology and me

The current eclipse season has been an interesting one so far.

I know people struggling with different things and different areas of their life. And I also know that some are feeling rather inspired lately.

During this liminal space between new and full moon, in eclipse season, there is so much that we can do or become aware of. This time is a potentially powerful one, if you care to pay attention to.

What feelings have been coming up to you? What thoughts or needs are becoming insistent?

Since I finished my master’s dissertation, my time management has changed completely. The freedom to think about and learn new things has been exhilarating, until the feeling of overwhelm hit me the other day.

I’ll explain.

I was focusing a lot of my thinking on business, marketing and money mindset things. I felt I had enough of being so informal with my astrology practice, since this is the only thing I can see myself doing. For some reason, no, I am not normal and able to have a ‘side job’.

Perhaps the Scorpio rising ‘all or nothing’ attitude dictates how I do things. Perhaps not having kids or financial responsibilities of that sort enables me to. I don’t know.

What I know is that I could never just have a regular job and do my passion on my spare time. That never worked for me.

So there I was, feeling excited, learning a lot about business, and launches and money mindset, when a sudden feeling of overwhelm took me over. It was intense. So much so that I had to drop everything and go to my yoga mat and meditate.

Anything that would help me regain balance was welcomed.

And that’s when I realised the solar eclipse was happening in my twelfth house and on my natal Pluto. I was dealing with things that were deeply unconscious and part of many generations’ story in my family.

The days went by, with the intense emotional release of that day still in my awareness.

Then boom, another massive insight!

I realised that I am a highly sensitive person.

Have you heard about HSP and Elaine Aron’s work? This is such a huge game changer for me, that I will have to write a whole post about it.

For now, I just want to say, eclipse season can be powerful for insights and clarity around your path and purpose in life. Watch those intense feelings and events, they have something to tell you that can be utterly empowering. If you care to pay attention to…

Slowly coming back

by with 3 Comments Astrology and meProfessional Astrologer

I finally completed my master’s degree.

(Nothing else to be done other than wait for my dissertation to be marked)

I am so happy to have managed it, but then, at the same time, it is also such a strange feeling. To finish something that you were dedicating your full attention and commitment for 4 years is bittersweet. On one hand the great feeling of accomplishment: you managed, you did it, after so many sleepless nights and stressing over deadlines and whatnots. But at the same time: what now? I feel a little empty…

Have you experienced anything like that before too?

It hasn’t even been a month since I submitted my thesis and I’m already feeling anxious with the need to be busy again. To have my sense of purpose validated by external activities.

And that leads me back to astrology.

Life is cyclic, seasonal. We breath in, breath out. Why do we so easily forget that and keep trying to ‘breath out’ all the time?

Back to astrology: new moon, transits to the IC, planets progressing into the twelfth house, progressed new moons, retrograde planets…

Life is also about resting, about quietly gestating or preparing the ground for a new phase.

Let there be balance. (a reminder to myself)

October is such an interesting month astrologically. Many planets still moving retrograde, with Mars in Gemini joining in the backwards motion soon, and the start of eclipse season. We are in a period for evaluation and creative envisioning. What would you like your life to look like? What direction do you want things to go?

I am here writing this to remind you (and myself) that these times of contraction and introspection are valuable and necessary for creation. The conception of an idea is as important as its execution.

I’ll be back soon with more, and I wish you all a great time of rest.

New Moon Eclipse musings

by with 2 Comments Astrological InsightsAstrology and meSearch for home

Happy new moon solar eclipse!

I have wanted to come here and write a blog post for a while now, but have been so busy that it was almost impossible.

I’m all packed and ready to go again. London still feels like home, but the world is calling me. Next destination: Athens.

Let the digital nomadic life begin!

I heard that some astrologers talk about eclipses not being a good time to begin anything, but I am a strong believer of connecting with your instincts and feelings as a way of knowing better. A way of knowing what is better for YOU.

When it comes to natal charts, no astrological rule can be absolute.

Eclipses are not always traumatic, as observed by Bernadette Brady, sometimes eclipses can reflect very happy changes. This is how I personally feel now. This is a very happy change for me and my partner, who btw has the new moon eclipse right on his Venus and DSC, talk about timings!

No, I didn’t plan or calculated to move countries on a new moon eclipse. Although a professional astrologer, I don’t always keep an eye on the ephemeris when it comes to making decisions. Maybe I should, but oftentimes I see beautiful synchronicities in life events happen naturally.

Like this one now, for example.

Anyhow, this new moon eclipse has a very beautiful energy with Venus and Jupiter conjoined in Pisces (at the very degree of Venus’ exaltation!). Abundance, forgiveness, healing, moving on to the next stage of our lives, cleaner from emotional debris. Inspiration, artistic and spiritual as well, are also potentially a great part of this configuration.

What would an inspiring life look like to YOU? How could you bring that to fruition?

Today is the day to ponder on that. To love yourself and to hold your deepest values close to your heart. To think of ways where you can align all different dimension of your life (your job, your relationships, your daily routines, etc) with those values. A perfect time also to inhabit you body – to nourish, look after and enjoy the pleasures of having one.

Give yourself a massive hug and whisper to yourself how much you appreciate all the effort.

The sabian symbols for this new moon configuration is also massively inspiring. For 10 degrees Taurus is ‘A woman sprinkling flowers’ and 27 degrees Pisces ‘A fertile garden under the full moon’.

What flowers would you like to see growing in the garden of your life? The ground is fertile now, be wise and present with the seeds you will be sprinkling.

Happy gardening everyone.

Transiting Nodes part 2

by with No Comment Astrological InsightsAstrology and me

And here comes the lunar nodes again!

Over the years I have noticed a great interest in one of my blog posts called ‘Transiting Nodes’ , I just recently re-read and (apart from some typos :/ which my Virgo planets couldn’t help but notice) it dawned on me that here I am going through another interesting transit from the Nodes that I could share.

At the risk of sounding a bit ageist, (I am not!), I have to say that there is something quite interesting that happens when you’re interested in astrology for long enough as an adult.

(no, doing astrology when you’re 10 years old does not count here, sorry)

You get to see, little by little, all sorts of transits happening and being reflected by circumstances in your life. You learn astrology from another, more experiential, angle.

For example, in the article mentioned above, I was writing my observations when transiting North Node of the Moon made a conjunction to my ASC back in early 2013. That happened simultaneously with my Saturn return and a lot of lessons surrounding the Scorpio archetype and my personal experience of those symbols in my chart.

Now, transiting North Node in Taurus is making an exact conjunction to my DSC, the opposite transit to the one I had back in 2013.

What do I observe here? How is this playing out now?

A lot of it seems to be about relationships, at least in my life because my natal lunar North Node is in the 7th house anyway. So as much as I believe in the connection between the nodes and karmic relationships in general, I’m still not a hundred percent sure if this is because of my natal signature or not. And also, obviously, these transits were activating the ASC-DSC axis, the relationship axis.

But here are my insights nevertheless:

When I had my lunar node return, just a few months before the transit I’m having now, I was getting involved with a person that I’m still currently in a relationship with. Mind you, isolating transits is never a great policy, if there is something big happening to you, it might be worth checking everything that’s going on in the sky.

(In many occasions I see people commenting on an intense full Moon and how emotionally difficult it feels but they are also having a challenging transit from Pluto to their natal Moon. Yes, the full Moon might reflect an enhanced emotional atmosphere, but the Pluto transit is reflecting a challenge and change that is a lot deeper and more endurable.)

So I would say always keep an eye in every transit to your natal chart, know your planet’s degrees by heart, etc.

My other transits are also pointing out to changes in relationships, Pluto is trine my natal Venus, progressed Venus was conjoined Saturn, etc. But also the lunar node is conjoined my DSC – the way that this seems to be playing out for me is very much connected with changing the type of people that I get involved with.

Yes, the relationship seems to have a more karmic feeling as well, the amount of compatibility I have with this person is very different from what I felt before. There is no glamour or an overly romantic aura this time. Instead, there seems to be something very fundamentally human and ‘easy’.

I don’t mean easy as not having difficult feelings being triggered, I mean easy as to how we deal with those feelings together, how we can easily communicate with each other, etc.

So from 2013 when I was learning how to refine my attitudes and choices regarding relationships, for example how my own behaviour had an impact on my happiness or how to take more responsibility for the choices I made, I now came to the other side. How much can we grow when we make these choices based on actual compatibility, the lesson isn’t so focused on dealing with the consequences of my actions in relationships, but simply to relate.

When you are finally with the ‘right person’ the lessons and growth won’t stop there. What happens is that another kind of growth begins, a growth in togetherness. The old scripts are uncomfortably challenged again and again, old traumas are triggered, but there is someone else there with you. The dynamic is different.

So I still believe that transits from the lunar nodes point out to important developments and some kind of karmic growth. Relevant people seems to show up. (nodes in synastry seems to have the same effect)

Have you noticed the nodes transiting something in your chart? How did that play out for you?

Pisces all around: Inspiration and Creation

by with No Comment Astrological Insights

Today transiting Sun is very close to Jupiter at 15 degrees in Pisces. After this week’s new moon in Pisces, the general vibe seems to be very hopeful and dreamy. (I also just realised that my progressed moon has moved to Pisces about a week ago!)

Yes, as I have already spoken about it lots of times, astrology is very much reliant on context – I believe we can only manifest things that we have the tools to create. In the same way, context is what gives flesh to the bones, in this case, to astrological symbolism.

So Jupiter and Sun are both travelling together in the sky, what are you going to wish for in your life?

I was quickly checking a list of fixed stars and came upon this one here, saying that 15 degrees Pisces is the fixed star ‘Achernar’, also known for ‘sudden success in public office, religious benefits, access to another realm’. I am particularly interested in the ‘access to another realm’, because with this powerful emphasis in Pisces, this definitely rings true.

This whole week has been resonating with this kind of energy to me, hopeful, watery and somehow abundant. But, as it would, a tad foggy… more like a surrounding feeling, a timid sensation.

Fertility.

If you knew your garden had the most powerfully fertile soil, what would you grow in there?

The current emphasis in Pisces, as well as the coming conjunction between Jupiter and Neptune at 23 Pisces happening in April holds a somewhat powerful energy.

Dreams are more vivid.

Pisces, the sign co-ruled by Neptune and Jupiter, naturally connected with the mysteries of the 12th house, seems to be symbolically carrying a very precious seed of potential.

Sure illusions and disillusionment, addictions or victimisation could also be in the picture there. But for now, let’s stay with its most positive potential, because what really drives that is you and your consciousness.

Yes, that’s it, read it again, you.

We are the conductors of these potentials and this is the main reason why I believe in brainstorming as much potential as possible when I’m seeing a client, rather than telling them something is a hundred percent concrete.

Astrological symbols are reliant on context, a Mars-Uranus individual will express the tendencies in various different ways according to cultural upbringing, life’s situations and levels of awareness. There isn’t a formula that works in every circumstance, there is no absolute when it comes to interpreting astrology. No matter how much some astrologers may plead otherwise, I continue to strongly disagree.

So, after reading this, close your eyes and think about Pisces energy and the mysterious waters reflected by the last of the zodiac signs. The sign that somehow represents completion, other realms and the longing to transcend. Spirituality, soulfulness, art, compassion, uplifting… these are some of the topics that comes to mind.

The wishing well.

Where is Pisces placed in your chart? Do you have anything in it? And, more importantly, how would a more fulfilling and creative life look like for you? Where could you serve as a channel to the higher realms? Even if it seems mundane at first sight, following your joy and doing something with your heart can prove to be healing beyond your sense of individuality. It has power and it somehow creates a certain aura. Have you been around someone that was just in their flow? How contagious was that?

We are not separated.

The more you are you, the more I am able to be me.

During this strong Pisces emphasis, one of the best potentials could be to find or manifest your flow.

Happy Pisces season!

Last Full Moon in Leo, the IC, insights, and novelty.

by with No Comment Astrology and meInner life

Last week there was a full moon in Leo, square the nodes, and it only dawned on me now that it was opposing my progressed Moon in Aquarius.

I have been keeping super busy, trying new mediums and ways to channel creativity and fill my days with astrology work. It has been truly exciting but it’s so easy to lose track of balance and end up overdoing something – in particular, overworking and not paying enough attention to the need for conscious down time.

I had a mini health crisis on the day of the full moon, with food poisoning and a lot of purging and lacking energy to do anything else other than rest. The situation then got me thinking, what was I not paying attention to?

Looking into the symbolism of the IC for a talk I gave to the AFAN yesterday was so insightful (again). Growth is remembering, as we spirally move from stretching out of, to falling back into our patterns again and again.

One of my favourite things about astrology is its relationship to cycles. The beauty and reassurance of cycles. Everything has its right time, don’t you worry. This too shall pass, etc.

Gardening can be really useful in that way too, as we interact with land and weather, we see the ciclic motion in which life unfolds. No need for anxiety, no need to rush or resent. There is a right time for everything.

Astrology too, can help us with that, and as I worked on my presentation for yesterday’s talk, the importance of the IC was highlighted as, amongst other things, our place of rest. And by rest here, I don’t mean going to sleep every night. I am thinking of conscious rest, ritualistic down time as opposed to closing our eyes and drifting away.

(nothing wrong with that, we obviously need a good night of sleep in order to heal and recharge daily)

How many of you out there have given importance to down time as much as you do to productivity? Do you place those activities in your calendar as you do with the other ‘more serious’ ones?

After this insightful, even if painful, full moon in Leo (which rules creativity, inner child and self expression) I was reminded to hear and consider those needs more seriously.

Novelty also deserves to have an important place in our busy schedules.

Jupiter, Mars in Capricorn and professional developments

by with 2 Comments Astrology and meProfessional Astrologer

This post is really meant to be a short one.

With the current energy of Mars moving to Capricorn (as well as my progressed Ascendant just on the edge of that very same shift – from Sagittarius to Capricorn), I felt the urge to use my creative energy more wisely and productively. To harness and make something more tangible with it.

Transiting Mars is also very close to my natal Jupiter in the second house, the house where values and resources are found, and at the same time, transiting Jupiter is opposing my Sun-Mercury conjunction in the 10th house of career and visibility.

Anyway, I am loving the new guts that I just found within myself to (finally) start posting videos on my YouTube Channel AND begin a podcast all by myself. Phew, so much new stuff happening to me professionally, I am truly excited and I hope that you enjoy the new format and content.

For now I am planning on keeping the podcast short – 15 or 20 mins max – and mainly focus on reflections and personal thoughts/experiences with astrology coming out every Monday, whereas the videos will be more teaching based. Case studies, classes, tools and tips on how to work with astrology every Tuesday.

I still want to write here more regularly (Thursdays) as well as it is such a passion of mine. (a kind of love and hate one)

On top of all of this, I am beginning to be more hands on with my masters dissertation/research, the reading and planning and applying phase is sort of over for now, and I finally got my questionnaire’s first draft ready and sent to my supervisor! Hurray!

(In fact, I literally just got his positive feedback and I’m moving on to a pilot study – I feel so excited that I could jump and dance around my room, if only I had space to do that…[my room is so tiny])

Smiles.

Hope you are enjoying and making the most of the current Jupiter in Pisces and Mars in Capricorn too.

Mercurial Wanderings under Venus Retrograde…

by with No Comment Astrological InsightsAstrology and meInner life

Venus has turned retrograde with the last full moon in Gemini and has been hovering around Pluto for quite some time now and this post is a reflexive product of it somehow. As usual a mix of personal experience and food for thought which I hope you might find useful, or inspiring, or at least entertaining. 

Mercurial wanderings…

I sometimes find it amusing the way that our society works. Not that I am completely outside of it, of course not. But with the strong Aquarian, Uranian, 11th house and out of bounds emphasis in my natal chart, I confess that it feels like I am ‘out of bounds’ myself most of the time. I don’t think I always fully understand the logic behind some of our taken for granted agreements. 

I see a powerfully strong Capricorn theme when it comes to work ethics, productivity, goals, and visions of success. Ambition is very high rated, material gratification too. But I am also especially thinking about the idea of ‘professionalism’ here. 

When did we stop valuing humanness and buying into this concept that absolute detachment equals a more ‘professional’ and capable approach? Don’t get me wrong, I understand the need for ethics, in a deeper sense, I would say. But the coldness that usually accompanies the generally accepted ‘professionalism’ really hugs me, no, I mean bugs me. 

Another thing that comes to mind is how value is attributed to money and how much not having money has a detrimental effect on self-esteem. It is difficult to value yourself if not having enough money prevents you from having a voice, from making choices and being considered important by other members of society. 

As my secondary progressed ascendant slowly transitions from Sagittarius into Capricorn (it has already made the shift in Solar Arc direction last year), the more I see myself valuing professionalism and the material realm without losing sight of some of the questions stated above. I have most of the time considered myself a freedom loving and informal type of person – always hated the hypocrisy that sometimes being ‘professional’ makes you comply with.

But now I see myself getting increasingly tired of the hippish approach to life and really feeling the need to gather all my professional experience (which by now is kind of considerable as I’m no spring chick anymore…) and put it into one place. Have a brand – (did I really say that?!) – and make a proper income (whatever that means) solo from astrology work. Get myself deeply involved with the potential productivity, which is quite vast considering the possibilities that the internet and digital era offers us.   

You see, these words seem like a great example of what we could be doing during this cycle of retrogradation from Venus in Capricorn. Ask ourselves where we are going and if that place is truly aligned with our core values. I would also say, as I think about the shift that my progressed ascendant seems to be reflecting, this could be a great time for catching up with your shifting values too. What important and major themes in your life are slowly fading and losing their grip on you now? How aligned are you with your natural changes and the resulting new-born values within it? 

Recently, while I was trying to relax and enjoy the holiday season, I decided to reread my last journal – another great thing to do during one of the fast-moving planets’ cycles of retrogradation. It can be wonderfully insightful to be able to see your process and how (surprisingly) congruent it usually is with how you intuitively feel from moment to moment. 

This time I was surprised to see how much had been written about my search for a fulfilling relationship (another relevant topic for this Venus retrograde period) and how to get there by being clear about what I really want – my natal Venus/Neptune square has been transited by Pluto, whilst progressed Venus conjoined natal Saturn.

There is no healthy relationship without healthy boundaries. 

I can’t remember where I read this, or who mentioned it to me, but it is so true. 

In one entry from my journal, I wrote: 

‘Is this what self-worth looks like? Making difficult choices that puts your mental/emotional/physical wellbeing first? I guess so. His love life is a mess that I don’t want to be part of – There is no role for me there, at least, there isn’t a role that I am willing to play.’    

And later I wrote:

‘It is exciting to be able to be more myself and less of what people want me to be’, with the conclusion that more validation coming from within gives space for authenticity to be truly expressed out there. 

If you don’t feel comfortable being yourself around someone, or if that person does not support your authenticity and shows no appreciation for who you are, always making demeaning comments or trying to change you into what they want you to be, it is a sign that this might not be the right relationship for you. 

Remember, you are nobody else’s dream! (that used to be a little note to myself, natal Venus-Neptune’s things…) 

And these thoughts also remind me of psychotherapist Mark Vernon’s great article ‘What is Love?’ where, amongst other things, the author discuss the idea that love grows through conflict – and that in fact, the secret of a successful relationship many times is in our capacity to deal with disagreement and not necessarily in our capacity to love. In his words ‘an inability to handle conflict is a good predictor of divorce’.

According to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry ‘experience shows us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking together in the same direction’, and for that to happen, we have the obligation (with ourselves, more than anyone else) to know our values! To be (absolutely) aware of the importance and urgency of asking ourselves: what do I value the most in life, partnerships, career, daily choices, etc?! With Venus retrograde this is the perfect time for you to seriously (Capricorn) and deeply (conjoined Pluto) ask yourself these questions, get to the bottom-line of your core values and how much they might be changing. Cath up with them, ponder on them. Befriend them, for in a way, your values define who you are.