February is always a loaded month, with pressure coming from everywhere to find love and be partnered up. The pressure can be a bit much, and unfortunately Mercury did not get the romantic memo. It will go retrograde on February 16, but we’ll be in the retroshade as early as February 4. This means that February will call for a more introspective and reflective approach to relationships. This retrograde is a meaningful time to honor your needs in the present by learning from the mistakes of your past. Love is a practice worth committing to, my astro beauties.
Find out what the month of February has in mind for your sign—and how to find the light during the retroshade.
Confrontation is uncomfortable, but it’s also essential from time to time. The full moon on February 8is in your relationship house, and that’s big news for you. You may need to have a heart-to-heart with the Aquarius in the mirror, to finally let go of someone from your past, or it may be time to tenderly talk about something with a loved one. In any case, the truth is there looking you in the face whether you want to deal with it or not—so you might as well get in there and get honest, my love.
Learning how to let go is a practice. The truth is, releasing what no longer matches you doesn’t mean that your feelings magically disappear. Sometimes your heart goes one way, but self-preservation takes you another. February is a powerful time for you to honor your feelings about people that you care about, without converting them into actions. In other words, love yourself enough to tolerate the heartache of losing people that exist in your life at the expense of your wellbeing, Pisces.
Your relationships are changing, and while you can’t stop it, you can do your part to make sure that they’re at least moving in the right direction. Actively reach out to your loved ones to affirm how you feel about them this month, Aries. Whether you’ve been feeling shy or if there are problems you’ve been worried about confronting, this is a good time to be direct and say what needs to be said, but also to listen with an open heart, my fiery friend.
If you want things to stay the same, you’re likely to be disappointed this month. Your resistance to change can get in the way of your own best interests, Taurus. The ability to be interested in your problems, to adapt, or even to prioritize will go far in helping you to cope with matters that are ultimately out of your control. Have faith in Spring, even when you’re stuck in what feels like a long winter, my love.
You can fret over it, or you can make some decisions and get to work. This month your ruling planet goes retrograde, and while this certainly comes with its share of annoyances, the timing is perfect for you. You’ve gone through so much in recent months that you need to integrate and learn from. Take the space you need in order to take what you’ve learned and apply it concretely to your life. Giddy-up, Twin Star.
When you don’t get what you want—be it things, conditions, or love—it’s easy to fall back on old habits and beliefs that you worked hard to outgrow. Conditions may trigger some coping mechanisms that don’t actually help you move forward, this month. Be weary of ‘cutting off your nose to spite your face’ or other forms of self-sabotage that come from feelings of overwhelm and scarcity. Trust in your evolution while you put one foot in front of the other, Moonchild.
Between this month’s full moon in your sign on the 8thand the Mercury retrograde, all things are aligning to confront you with things you need to reconsider, Leo. If ever there was a time to learn from your past, this is it. Don’t get so wrapped up in the details of your situation that you miss out on the patterns revealing themselves in your life—and what role you play in perpetuating them. It’s time to face the truth, my love.
Think of how often you assume the worst, or jump to conclusions about what others are thinking or feeling. Now understand that most everyone else does it too, and they may even be doing it about you! Don’t leave to assumptions what you could more gracefully recover from good old-fashioned face-to-face talking, this month. The New Moon on the 23rdin your relationship house is an opening, but it’s up to you to walk through the door, Virgo.
It’s time for boundaries, Libra. Honor what you know about yourself and about your needs. In this way you don’t only invest in yourself, but you also make your relationships more authentic and sustainable. By the month’s end you’ll have to answer for your actions, so let this little bit of truth guide you: You don’t need to avoid pain. You only need to avoid prioritizing the very things that hurt you.
You don’t have to meet people where they’re at, when where they’re at isn’t healthy for you. While it’s likely that you will encounter people who are coping with anger or resentments this month, you need to remember that you have choice. You have options around how you engage with others’ emotions, but a big part of successfully doing that requires listening. Listen to your own gut instincts and to what others are telling you, and determine your best course from there.
The role of fear—fear of change, fear of getting stuck, fear of making the wrong decision, or fear of losing control—is not to be underestimated, Sagittarius. Be honest with yourself about the ways in which your worries have motivated you to run away from things, instead of towards them. This month it’s time to bring greater intentionality to your life, but it will require a willingness to look at the whole picture of what is motivating you.
It’s time for you to stop struggling against your choices and get on with it, Capricorn. Other people’s opinions are valuable, but not at all times and in all ways. Stop concerning yourself with what others are saying, or how different people are doing it. You’ve made your mind up and now it’s time to take care of yourself around it. Execute on your decisions, one sustainable step at a time, and gently redirect yourself when you catch yourself looking sideways.
