Your January Energy Report Is Here & The New Year Might Start Off Sluggish

Mercury went retrograde December 29, and it brings that energy with it into the new year until January 18. The same goes for Mars, which went retrograde in October and stays there until January 12. Now, I'm not an astrologer, but I mention that because when I tune into the energy of January, I'm feeling the retrograde vibes!

What do I mean by that? I mean that the first couple of weeks feel like a mix of sluggish and confusing, often associated with planetary retrogrades. A little like when you wake up from a nap before you're ready and you can't quite get into the present moment—it feels cloudy with a chance of misunderstanding. 

I know this is the time of New Year's resolutions, but if you aren't feeling clear or excited about them yet, it's OK to wait. 

For instance, I've been planning on putting together a group program about trusting your intuition for my community, and part of me is so excited about the ideas I have! But my body wants to rest, and I strongly feel the energy of slowing down.

Is it frustrating? Yes. But I know it would be even more frustrating to push ahead and be met with obstacles. (Also, what kind of intuition teacher would I be if I ignored this insight?)

That's the thing about your intuition; when you listen to it, it saves you trouble in the long term. So, I recommend using this time to really feel into what you want to create over the next few months, and when you get that intuition hit to act on it, things will flow much easier than if you had pushed ahead earlier.

And on the topic of resolutions overall: I suggest quarterly versus yearly goals. Our inner child can get overwhelmed by the idea of a yearlong goal. Have you ever told a child to think about something being a year in the distance? Their eyes probably glaze over, or they feel like it will never happen. The same is true with your inner child. It's not a concept they want to (or can) grasp.

As we enter the third week of January, the energy feels spiky until around Saturday, January 21. This could be a time when you feel quicker to anger or more sensitive in general. But you always have your power, no matter what is going on energetically. Can one time period be more challenging? For sure. But it's also an opportunity to learn new skills or practice old ones, in order to deal with it.

One way to stay in your power this month is to take some deep breaths and remind yourself to pause before you act. It could be that you're interpreting circumstances differently than they were intended, or you are merged with your inner child.

When taking mindful breaths, you align with your inner adult. Then, validate your inner child's feelings while letting them know that you, the adult, are there to keep them safe. 

Try the 4-7-8 breathing exercise, developed by Andrew Weil, M.D., when you get anxious or feel an urgency to push ahead even though your intuition is telling you to pause.