Your Mercury Retrograde Survival Guide

TRANSCRIPT:

Deb Sheppard 00:00
We are going to talk about today how to thrive through Mercury, while Mercury is in retrograde, and for people that this may be: What are you talking about Mercury in Retrograde? We are going to explain this, but it is one of our planets in our solar system – actually the planet that’s closest to the sun, we are number three. So we’re the third rock from the sun. You were actually born during Mercury Retrograde. And when we found that out, you kind of went, that makes so much sense. It was really just awareness.

Dana 00:38
Because I have to do everything more than once.

Dana 00:40
In one year

Deb Sheppard 00:40
When Mercury’s in retrograde to understand how this works, and what happens to our planet, and to get the best out of when this is going on so that we are prepared. We’re not feeling overwhelmed, we can’t manage things, things like that, for 2023, we will go into retrograde three times this year, for three weeks. And then the first time this year is April 21, through May 14 During my birthday. So that means I get to celebrate it for three weeks, right next time is August through September and then December through January 1. So definitely want to understand that. To go back a little bit in science, the planet Earth, it takes 365 days for us to circle the sun. And that’s what we have different seasons and how we rotate and what happens to Mercury. It is like fast, Speedy Gonzalez it goes around the sun 88 times, which is pretty-

Deb Sheppard 00:42
In one year. So because of how we align, that causes certain things to happen to Mother Earth, our planet, that affects our energy. It’s all about a vibration and about energy. And I think there’s an example about… because what happens is it looks like, if you’re looking at a telescope, the perception is that mercury during this time, looks like it’s actually going backwards in our solar system. It is not going backwards because that would really mess, of course, everything up but the illusion of it.

Dana 02:06
It’s an optical illusion.

Deb Sheppard 02:07
Absolutely. And one of the examples was about a car, like if you’re driving and a car’s going by you faster. It looks like it’s actually moving slower or the car you’re past just for-

Dana 02:17
just for a second. Yeah, yeah.

Deb Sheppard 02:19
So we know we have that optical illusion of how things happen. And that’s that per idea perceptions like what’s, what’s happening. So that’s what happens with mercury. And it occurs, depending on how we’re aligned up with the sun, that it affects our planet.

Dana 02:34
Boy, does it affect our planet.

Deb Sheppard 02:37
Whenever it happens, people now go, Oh, my God, Mercury’s in retrograde! What we want to talk about is how to understand what happens and what things you can do to be prepared. Yeah. And of course, it happens. It’s there. And we start talking about Mercury’s in retrograde. And I find that prior to it happening, I already start seeing things occurring, things popping up.

Dana 02:59
Yeah.

Deb Sheppard 02:59
And also I want to talk about that Mercury’s in retrograde this time during the Taurus, and I am a Taurus. So…

Dana 03:08
Uh-Oh

Deb Sheppard 03:09
It’s me on steroids, Dana.

Dana 03:12
Oh, God.

Deb Sheppard 03:13
Pull out your bottle of wine!

Dana 03:14
How much procrastination are we going to run into this time?

Deb Sheppard 03:18
Oh it’s because Mercury’s in retrograde. One of the things that I think people get in fear is Oh, my goodness, I have to be you know, worried. But what I like to say is, just like if you’re traveling during the holidays, if you’re, you’re traveling during bad weather, if you’re a person that drives to and from work and it’s rush hour, you are more prepared. You know, you’ve got to pay attention, you’ve got to think about things ahead, you got to plan, you just can’t, you know, consider everything’s gonna be okay. And that’s about Mercury in Retrograde. What I like knowing about it is it gives me an opportunity to rethink things and slow down. Biggest thing that we find in Mercury in Retrograde is communication on all levels.

Dana 03:56
Right.

Deb Sheppard 03:57
And it’s something that that’s what our livelihood is, we communicate with people, we talk to people and in our industry, these last couple of years, especially it’s social media, it’s we’re all on emails, everything is, you know, podcast, all communication, and it’s all based on media. And so, there may be times where there’s frustrations, that’s the number one. It may take a couple of times to get your email to be received or sent. I think the biggest thing is to pay attention to is how things are interpreted. And it’s to be really aware of what you’re saying, to take pause, to reread your email

Dana 04:40
To listen. That’s one of the biggest things is listen, because when somebody’s communicating with you too you can take things completely wrong. Or they feel like you’re not hearing them. Which is also a communication issue.

Deb Sheppard 04:57
What is the line that you say? and I wrote it down.

Dana 05:00
Oh my, this is probably one of my biggest frustrations in life in general,

Deb Sheppard 05:04
And then add Mercury to retrograde with it yeah.

Dana 05:06
Is people listen to respond, instead of listening to understand and I say this all the time is you have to listen to understand first, and, and absorb what somebody’s telling you before you respond

Deb Sheppard 05:24
correct.

Dana 05:25
And yeah

Deb Sheppard 05:27
And if you have a little post it note and you write that down, where you put it in your phone, or you put it in your cubicle, you put it in your car, and put, listen, not to respond, listen, listen to understand, it will help you get through Mercury retrograde. And if you actually take those three weeks, and learn how to do that, it will actually change your life, because we don’t take time to listen to other people. And I think when people are not heard, they become more frustrated.

Dana 05:57
Anger comes up. Yeah. And that’s how you piss someone off.

Deb Sheppard 06:02
But Mercury in Retrograde causes so much more frustration. And I know when people assume that they know your problem, or they try to address it, they’re not understanding that there’s more or the person just needs to be heard. And how many times we just want someone to take the time to listen to our story or listen to what we have to say,

Dana 06:21
Right, right.

Deb Sheppard 06:21
And we want to compare we want to fix it, we want to move on, whatever whatever the situation is, instead of taking that time. That’s what’s going to be huge when it comes to when Mercury’s in retrograde. So we want everyone to be prepared and to pay attention that if you’re traveling, which we probably will be during this time, is to overly plan. And I know that sometimes people go, Oh, I’m just gonna trust the universe. I’m just gonna let things happen. I’m gonna be okay

Dana 06:50
Willy nilly.

Deb Sheppard 06:51
And that’s okay. That’s totally okay if you have that energy. But if you’re a person that feels like you have to be there at a certain time, and you want things to flow, and you and you feel like there’s other people involved, double check, if not triple check your plans.

Dana 07:05
Yeah.

Deb Sheppard 07:05
And then have the ability to be flexible. And that is Mercury in Retrograde brings is the ability to say, are you going to be able to bend? Are you gonna be able to be flexible? Can you see the bigger picture? Is there another way to do it. And there’s a saying that I’m not always in alignment with, is, well, everything happens for a reason. And you know, that’s not one of my go tos. But sometimes when plans change, is there going to be a better situation or things that happen in a way that-

Deb Sheppard 07:32
there might be a higher purpose for that.

Dana 07:33
I think, that’s probably the biggest thing is, If you- you’re aware, you can manage it and just slowing down and re-looking at things. Including, if you’re dealing with stuff from your past or it really starts it bubbles that stuff up. Oh, it brings it up so that you can look at it and really look at it. So even you know contracts, Yes, but really looking at things around you.

Deb Sheppard 07:33
-a higher purpose. So be, if you can, be open to that as well. One thing is to read all the details, I know, we get really busy, we’re a drive through society. And we want things done. And we have a lot on our plate. And we just want to check it off. If you’re signing anything, or you’re trying to make an agreement on any level, reread it at least twice. My advice, and I wrote this down. So I thought, hmm I need to pay attention to this, is get another set of eyes to read something. Because I know there are times that we get used to reading something or we’re assuming what might be in the agreement. And there may be a couple of things in there that are little kinks. And we may want to question it or go a little bit deeper in it. So if you’re signing any agreement whatsoever, some people said, Oh, don’t sign anything during Mercury Retrograde, we all have lives, lives go on, we can’t pause nine weeks out of the year because Mercury’s in retrograde. What we want to do is just double check, triple check, and make sure everything is okay before.

Deb Sheppard 09:00
Great point you bring up because this is what I was telling the students in the program is, they’re seeing things come up from the past and they thought they dealt with and during Mercury retrograde, and I would assume maybe if you’re a Taurus or there’s some alignment with Tauruses, that those things can come up for you to review and we may get frustrated, we may feel like we can’t communicate how we feel emotionally or not understand why these emotions are coming up.

Dana 09:24
I think it’s for everyone, because we’re all under the sign of mercury. In mercury, Mercury Retrograde, we’re all under the sign of Taurus right now.

Deb Sheppard 09:32
Right.

Dana 09:32
So that goes I think for every astrological [sign] but I think it probably is going to be hardest on Tauruses yeah.

Deb Sheppard 09:41
And for Taurus, it’s our birthday time. So it’s like, you know, but I think just you know, being more Well, I have some some other guidance to give everyone, but when we talk about being prepared, it isn’t being overly prepared and anxious. But understanding [when] your frustrations come up, what are you going to do? And It’s always taking a deep breath, It’s getting in nature, it is, you know, me, my go to is comedy. So having something that is humorous to help us through it. If there are people around you, you’re one of my go tos is like, I don’t understand this, can you fix it? and especially when it comes to electronics, and of course, we have a student in our program, Gretchen, that drives her crazy since beginning because she she affects electronics all the time. And she’s just like, Oh, don’t tell me Mercury’s in retrograde. When these things are happening, it is a time to walk away and-

Deb Sheppard 10:31
Pause, Yeah. Get into nature, go to lunch, go have a coffee break, you know, whatever that looks like that you can do and then coming back. And for me, it’s, uh, handed over to you. Not everyone can do that. Because you have more patience when it comes to these kinds of electronics. As they do affect anyone that has been doing readings or does a psychic work.

Dana 10:31
Pause.

Dana 10:49
Yeah, I have patients with electronics, but I have no patience for people who don’t listen.

Deb Sheppard 10:55
I hear it on the phone. It’s like, would you let me finish what I’m trying to tell you? Because that’s the big thing is people just, they think they understand and they may. But if you’re not listening to other people, or you know, you’re you’re not listening,

Dana 11:10
interrupting,

Deb Sheppard 11:11
yeah interrupting, then you will feel more of the frustration. Things are going to take longer to resolve. Yeah, so that’s the big thing. So the, the one thing that I think is important is is taking time to be quiet. So when things are on overload, give yourself permission to walk away, step away. You know, listen to some music, do anything, make a throw golf, go for a walk, pet your dog, pet your cat, whatever it means to create another shift of your vibration, your energy so that you can go forward and then that mantra of Mercury’s in retrograde, Mercury’s in retrograde.

Dana 11:44
or I can do this, I can do this.

Deb Sheppard 11:47
The thing about the Taurus, the sign of Taurus, it’s about material things, value, stability, that’s so important for a Taurus. That’s one of our Go tos is, we, our surroundings are really important, how people perceive us and how we feel in our bodies. So even if you’re not a Taurus, these things are going to come up around this time of year of how do you feel about yourself? How are your finances? Are you reevaluating how you’re spending? Are you looking deeper and how things should be changed, the self esteem is a big one. So if you feel like people are not honoring you, by listening is one, or seeing your value, or putting you down, these things may be more intense during these three weeks.

Deb Sheppard 12:34
So if someone is really being challenging, or there’s not a lot of respect, if you’re not feeling good about yourself, this is again, maybe old stuff that’s coming up that you want to take time to see your worth and value. Look at your finances, how are you spending your money? But at the same time, taking time to spend money on yourself to make you feel good. So if it means getting a massage or a facial, or connecting with someone that is very supportive and things like that, nurturing yourself, these are going to be qualities that’s going to help you during this time. Especially if your self esteem is feeling a little bit beat up. Tauruses love being in our home. So when there’s that balance of taking care of your home, and how much you’re spending and where those finances are, and if it is, how I need to go shopping, which is you know, a go to, for me. Pay attention.

Dana 13:24
Totally!

Deb Sheppard 13:24
Yeah. Pay attention. Make sure maybe it’s not a budget or how much of that are you spending, you know, what can you do that could provide that same feeling without overdoing that and still having the stability?

Dana 13:36
And that’s what makes sense.

Deb Sheppard 13:37
Yeah, being out in nature is so important. It could even be, taking time out of your day, to take that hot bath or hot shower or not returning phone calls or checking on all those emails. I mean, that self esteem and self love can be just quieting yourself down and reading a good book that gives you a lot of pleasure. So, the other thing is, if because, you know, I’m a procrastinator, you know, during Mercury Retrograde when you get frustrated, I think there’s a real chance of I don’t want to do it.

Dana 14:09
Yeah, yeah,

Deb Sheppard 14:10
I this is too much work. I don’t want to do it. I just, oh, you know, kind of feeling.

Dana 14:16
anger?

Deb Sheppard 14:17
Anger, and just you guys know, Dana is really good about doing this. She breaks things down for me. So I don’t feel so overwhelmed when I look at it. And I think that’s a trait of Taurus that if there’s too much to look at, we just walk away.

Dana 14:31
Yeah. Really? How many times? How many- I’ve learned over the last eight years.

Deb Sheppard 14:39
If you’re not a Taurus, or if you’re Taurus, we’re gonna you know, make sure that’s on- understand that during Mercury Retrograde that’s gonna be on steroids, so people around you, if they don’t have the patience with you, maybe explain this to them, and also how do you show up differently?

Dana 14:52
So say, Don’t you know Mercury’s in retrograde?

Deb Sheppard 14:56
And it’s Taurus. So to help yourself and help others is to break things down so that you can accomplish them in a simplistic way. One of the things we talked about on a recent, like Facebook Live was getting rid of things, its springtime and how to freshen up your place. And when we go into a room where we think about how to get rid of things, we can get overwhelmed, and we don’t do it.

Dana 15:18
Right.

Deb Sheppard 15:19
So one of the things I talked about is, you know, having a box or a couple of baskets, where when you go into a closet or a drawer, and there’s things in there, you don’t use anymore, or don’t need anymore, whatever that is, is to take that one item and put it in that box. So by you know, in a couple of weeks, that you’re ready-

Dana 15:35
You’ve collected.

Deb Sheppard 15:35
You’ve collected some things. It’s breaking it down. So we’re not so overwhelmed. And I think most people, they’re pretty busy. I mean, people, you know, we extend ourselves, we try to get so much done.

Dana 15:36
Overextend?

Deb Sheppard 15:47
Overextend is what I meant. Overextend ourselves. When Mercury’s in retrograde, we don’t have the sense of patience and the grace that we need to accomplish things. If we’re trying to accomplish something and things aren’t going well. And electronics or people are going through the same thing. We’re going to be frustrated with the people that we’re working with. So whether it’s a co worker, or a partner, or children situations, you may be feeling like you’re on a tricycle pedaling backwards. And you know,

Dana 16:16
Kinda like Mercury does.

Deb Sheppard 16:17
Yeah. So the awareness is a key to know that this is just a temporary time, it is three weeks, mark it on your calendar, put little sticky notes to remind yourself, you know.

Dana 16:31
We have four tools that we want to share, too, right?

Deb Sheppard 16:34
Yeah, I was sharing some of them. But if you have more, go right ahead.

Dana 16:36
Well, there, there are four specific tools that I made notes on.

Deb Sheppard 16:41
Go right ahead, share them.

Dana 16:42
One of them, you may have mentioned this or not, but one of them is journaling and reflect.

Deb Sheppard 16:47
No I did not put that down.

Dana 16:48
So before you, before you take action on things, to help yourself, make note of what’s going on and, and allow that frustration to leave before exploding or before going to anger, is maybe journal and take a moment to reflect on things before you do them.

Deb Sheppard 17:07
We just have to come up with a situation with one of our 1.0 students and she was like, oh this stuff’s come up, I go- and she journals. I said, just journal it out. And she goes, Oh my goodness, this is so helpful, because you feel like it’s just, you know, rolling off of you. You’re not carrying all that energy. That’s so frustrating. And so many times we want to control or change the situation. We can’t, but the journaling gives us an opportunity to almost have that inward discussion.

Dana 17:32
Yeah. And you talk about this next one on, in Feng Shui, the element of fire. And you actually bring this in as a ritual to a lot of, a lot of, classes and stuff that you do. Using fire as a way to help you release things. So writing your intention on a piece of paper,

Deb Sheppard 17:51
Burn that stuff!

Dana 17:52
Either while lighting a candle, and focusing on your intention while igniting it, or writing what you need to release and actually setting it to fire so that you’re releasing that to the universe. So two separate ways of using that.

Deb Sheppard 18:09
We even have that wish paper that we’ve done.

Dana 18:11
The flying wish paper.

Deb Sheppard 18:12
The flying wish paper where it’s really cool and you write what you want to release and you burn it and it doesn’t catch things on fire, but it flies up,

Dana 18:22
yeah it releases it

Deb Sheppard 18:23
So it really feels like a ceremonial-

Dana 18:26
ceremonial. yeah,

Deb Sheppard 18:27
thing to say, I don’t hold on to this. This is, I want to release my frustration, I want to surrender to something and, and that is, it’s a really fun thing.

Dana 18:36
It is yeah.

Deb Sheppard 18:37
And it doesn’t take long.

Dana 18:38
And that paper is in your Conscious Intentions kits. We’ll have that offered soon. Where you can get get it. But of course meditation, just focusing on having… Binaural Beats is one of them. Cause when we talk about doing sound therapy, so we do sound therapy in some of your classes, and the binaural beats helps your brain when you listen to them. You can google it, its on youtube, you can just pick a form of binaural beats and use sound therapy to help you work through some of your frustration or some of the Mercury in retrograde to help you thrive during this time versus get pulled back.

Deb Sheppard 19:21
Yeah. And I think what is interesting, it’s all about energy and vibration. And when our minds go into processing frustration, and why can’t this happen and we don’t find a solution, that meditation or music or sound actually realigns our vibration, and when we get realigned, when we take that time to be quiet, all of a sudden, it’s like, yeah, you know, that great feeling of release.

Dana 19:44
And you know how I love the binaural beats.

Deb Sheppard 19:45
oh you’re great at it, you know, there you’re now certified and trained to do all this stuff, which is fabulous that we offer this now.

Dana 19:52
that’s, I would say that’s probably my favorite sound therapy, because it actually works on the neural pathways in your brain.

Deb Sheppard 20:01
Isn’t that cool?

Dana 20:01
That is just, yeah, fantastic.

Deb Sheppard 20:03
So as people are driving you crazy, just go I’m listening to my beats right now. I’m realigning to focus because I’m trying to thrive during Mercury retrograde.

Dana 20:12
And you talked about doing Epsom salt baths, which doing an Epsom salt bath, but level that up a little bit. Use some aromatherapy and some essential oils. Basil. Basil can,

Deb Sheppard 20:24
Not just for cooking! not just cooking.

Dana 20:27
It’s not just for cooking, but it sharpens your concentration, it helps you feel more of a sense of peace. I know even when I touch the leaves of basil when we grow it and you can smell that basil, it’s almost like an instant relaxation for you.

Deb Sheppard 20:42
Absolutely.

Dana 20:42
And so get some basil oil. The other type of oil would be eucalyptus, I love eucalyptus too.

Deb Sheppard 20:49
You know I spray it in the shower.

Dana 20:50
I know every day.

Deb Sheppard 20:51
I’m spraying that eucalyptus.

Dana 20:53
Yeah.

Deb Sheppard 20:53
What I think is important about these ideas and situations is when you have our say, your magic bag or your tool bag, when you have some of these items available as go tos, that you’re going, Okay, I know that my day is going to be like this, I know I’m going to have this this conference call, I know that there’s going to be some signing of documents, I know that I’m going to be traveling things like that. I’m going to be with people that can be very frustrating.

Deb Sheppard 21:22
What are the go-tos? And it might be even in the morning where you’re spraying the eucalyptus in your shower, you’re having some essential oils, you’re putting on some music that gets you to relax. You know, certain times when I have I’m gonna say quietly because we have one in here, Alexa, to play certain music you go, Oh, what kind of mood is she in? Because there is that sound therapy that can get us into a state of mind. That helps us go into our day with more empowerment. Which is what we’re wanting people to do.

Dana 21:52
Yeah, if you’re gonna listen to the binaural beats, make sure you do it in headphones. That’d be my suggestion, have headphones on so you can listen, and it’ll help you refocus, realign, it’ll help your chakras. So do that. And then the last thing is a crystal. And there’s one that I like, in particular, the Black Onyx.

Deb Sheppard 22:11
which we offered, do we still offer the Black Onyx Mala?

Dana 22:14
There’s actually some, some bracelet malas that have that on it. So I think it is… yeah, they’re on your website. I’m trying to remember the name of it, but it has Black Onyx on it. So just look it up, just look it up, it’s there.

Deb Sheppard 22:27
Give us a call, email us.

Dana 22:29
But holding it, having it touch your skin. Having that crystal, the power of the crystal, can help you.

Deb Sheppard 22:36
If you’re in a location, that’s a colder, but my suggestion was even taking your shoes off and putting them [your feet] on the earth, anything like that. And of course, I have people hug trees, right? That’s part of my classes. Because it’s that connection with our planet that can just really take care of us. But these are all very easy things to get. These are very easy things to do.

Dana 23:00
I like mercury magic bag.

Deb Sheppard 23:01
Yeah, Mercury magic bag! There you go! By having that understanding before this gets started. And knowing that you have to pull it out three times a year, I mean, you can use it more frequently than most holidays, cause most holidays are once a year, right? You can use three times a year, for three weeks. It will just give you the sense of calming that you can manage and get through it in a very beautiful way very empowered way you will actually be able to see how you can shift the perception and perspective of your life, that things can turn around and taking more time. And you can help other people along the way to say, I mean when you’re talking about, you know, putting the headphones on. I’m thinking maybe in some places they want it just blaring for everyone else to hear it too. But really, these beats are about having them within the left and right ear.

Dana 23:50
Yeah, it plays a different note in each year.

Deb Sheppard 23:53
Each side

Dana 23:54
And your brain actually blends the notes together to create a new note. And so it’s very specific. And so you really want, you really want, to have headphones on your ears so that your, as you listen to it, you’re working on your neural pathways in your brain.

Deb Sheppard 24:11
So being prepared doesn’t mean it’s going to be scary, being prepared means, it’s like going camping or taking a trip or getting ready for something that you’ve got, you know your Mercury magic bag to help you to go into when needed. I just got to hit, have chocolate on on site too. So that just-

Dana 24:31
Darn

Deb Sheppard 24:32
Yeah, that’s not part of what they share. But I think that’s important to have. But chocolate is also a great grounding.

Dana 24:38
Serotonin!

Deb Sheppard 24:38
Yeah, it’s a great grounding serotonin to help you. You know, just take time, find that humor, pay attention and let us know how you get through Mercury in Retrograde. I would love to get some emails saying I use this and it really did help and we know when we’re going through it, when there’s a challenge we actually smile and go, Well you know, retrograde! That humor helps us to manage it and not feel like we should be controlling things more. So, I’m so glad we share this and gave some great ideas.

Dana 25:08
Yeah.

Deb Sheppard 25:09
The Mercury magic bag. We have it available right near you. Thank you so much for joining us.

Dana 25:15
We don’t We will soon.

Deb Sheppard 25:16
Yeah, absolutely. Thank you again for joining us.