Mars Retrograde comes around every 26 months, and brings with it an intensity that can leave you feeling drained and infuriated at the same time. But, how does Mars Retrograde affect your love life? First, let's separate love and sex, because Mars Retrograde can have you feeling sudden urges that have little to do with love.
"Mars is also closely associated with sexuality — not the love and romance aspect of sex, but the more instinctual, desire-driven side of it," Astrologer Armand Diaz writes on his blog.
While Mars does not become retrograde until June 26, 2018, if you subscribe to ancient astrological predictions, you might want to put this date on your calendar so you can quickly make sense of your primal urges come Mars Retrograde 2018. Because Mars goes retrograde the least often of all of the planets in our solar system, it tends to make up for that by stirring up your hormones.
"Well, it is usually is considered to be a poor time to begin a new sexual relationship, but there is no reason to abstain altogether for 10 weeks," Diaz writes on his blog. "The underlying meaning of Mars Retrograde is that energy is lacking — and that’s why new sexual relationships are seen as being doubtful: the desire may not last."
So, if you're single come the next Mars Retrograde, you could find yourself in a sparkle and fade sexcapade that starts with an eruption of desire and ends with a "meh."
On the other hand, Evolving Door Astrology notes that it's also a time to work through your buried feelings, emotions, and desires. So, if you're suppressing something, Mars Retrograde might just blow the lid off of your tightly closed box, which is why it's important to ground yourself in your body before this particular planetary event.
"If a fired-up Mars is let out 'without a leash,' or without a way to maintain some degree of control over it, the results can sometimes be damaging and destructive," Evolving Door Astrology details on its website. "If we release pent up feelings too suddenly or too abruptly, without a way to support them within the whole of who we are, this can create more problems than it solves. This is what grounding is all about, and it is essential when handling the electric fire of Mars. The forceful power of Mars needs to be balanced with awareness and integrity in order to function in a healing and constructive way."
Shaman Sarah Petruno defines being grounded as having your soul anchored to both your physical body and the physical earth, and she offers a step-by-step grounding practice on her website that includes things like meditation and visualization exercises. If you feel like you're really keeping a lid on something, you might want to start grounding yourself now.
Because Mars is a fire planet (it rules Aries, a fire sign), it can be harmful and destructive when out of control or used without discretion, just like real fire.
"It is best to handle Mars energy carefully, respectfully and mindfully, with lots of safety mechanisms in place," Evolving Door Astrology advises on its website. "But also, just like fire, when Mars is used wisely it can fuel great achievements and transform whatever it touches."
If you can't tell if you're excited or nervous about Mars Retrograde, I'm right there with you.
