Lost your keys lately? Maybe you had a huge fight with a loved one? Are your finances and work life in disarray? Feeling generally… off?

Say hello to our dear friend, Mercury Retrograde.

Mercury Retrograde in a nutshell:

• This Mercury Retrograde period will last from July 26 – August 18

That doesn’t sound like a super long time, but the world always seems to be moving in slow motion during these weird weeks.

• Because….science? Mercury appears to move backward as it speeds past Earth to orbit the sun.

Mercury is the planet located closest to the sun, so it orbits the glowing space orb a lot faster than we do. Makes sense, right? It doesn’t actually move backward, but we perceive it as such because…science.

• What does this have to do with us?

Good question. You know how if you’re standing on a sidewalk just after it’s rained, and a car decides to speed by like a total ass, they end up splashing you with a putrid puddle of filth water and ruin your whole day? Yeah, that’s Mercury.

The Retrograde causes miscommunications, technology to fail, belongings to basically run and hide, and all kinds of mischief from plain annoying to monumentally life-ruining.

We can’t change the cosmos, unfortunately, but we can do some things to get through this period with our sanity still intact and keep our life from turning to ruins.

Here’s how:

• Breathe.

In times of stress, our body tenses up and we shorten our breath, sometimes even holding it. Think about that expression when you’re nervously waiting for something to happen: “I’m holding my breath.” Now, think about the way a person breathes when they’re asleep: slowly and fully.

Don’t let your stress level change your breathing; let your breathing change your stress level.

If you can find the time, take a few minutes each morning, or during a particularly stressful time during the day to meditate, whatever that may look like for you. When people think of meditating they think Ghandi sitting silently among the tress with his fingers pressed together and his legs in a knot. If that works for you, more power to, ya! If not, that’s okay too. Try lying still for a few minutes and listening to a song, breathing slowly to the rhythm. Maybe take a bubble bath at night with a few candles and some essential oils. Cook your favorite dish or get out in nature. Whatever calms you and helps you clear your mind enough to focus on your breathing, do it.

Personally, I like to snuggle animals. Whatever works, ya know?

• Take a beat.

It’s easy when we’re stressed, overwhelmed or upset to say the first thing that comes to mind, but it’s often not a great idea. It can be detrimental to our personal and professional relationships, and we usually only end up hurting ourselves in the end. I can’t begin to count how many times I’ve stupidly blurted something out in anger or frustration and immediately wished I could take the words back and swallow them, but once they’re out there, they’re out there.

So, instead of saying or doing whatever you think of first, take a beat and think about exactly what it is that you want to communicate or do.

If you’re feeling angry, think about what you’re angry about. You might find you’re not actually angry at all, but actually feeling more hurt or confused. Knowing what the problems are stemming from and how they’re making you feel helps tremendously with communicating clearly and resolving an issue without further hurting yourself or others.

• Laugh it off.

Things will inevitable go haywire in life, and especially during Mercury Retrograde. Keep this in mind when you’re stuck in insane traffic on your way to a meeting or a false fire alarm goes off and you have to trudge down 20 flights of stairs, stand in the rain for 10 minutes in your slippers, then hike back up because the elevators just happen to be broken.

The whole fire alarm, rain, stairs thing just happened to me today.

My first reaction was to feel really annoyed. Then, I looked at the guy next to me who was standing there casually eating his food that he’d brought down with him. I thought about that question: “If there were a fire in your house, and you could only save one thing, what would it be?” This guy saved his food, and if that’s not the most wonderful thing you’ve ever heard, I think you’re lying. That guy is a hero. Be like that guy.

I looked from him to my bunny slippers to the rain and started to laugh. He noticed and started laughing, too. Laughter is healing and contagious, which are two words that don’t usually go together, but in this case totally work.

• Stay organized. 

During Mercury Retrograde, things tend to get lost, break and generally just suck.  A certain amount of this is hard to prevent, but staying organized will definitely help.

Make copies of important papers. If you’re traveling, make sure you have your tickets, passport, License, etc. on you at all times. Follow up on unanswered emails or faxes. Make sure to write down every appointment and check your calendar daily.

That’s all stuff we should be doing all the time, of course, but it’s an especially important habit to maintain during this crazy period to save yourself a headache or two.

Also, this is an awesome time to organize your space. Having a clean environment really does help declutter your mind.

• Embrace change.

Things are often in a state of flux during Mercury Retrograde, and it can feel really, for a lack of a better term, icky. Change is weird and uncomfortable and sometimes tempting to resist, but try to consciously welcome change into your life during the retrograde. Allow things to ebb and flow in their own time, rolling with it like you’re floating over waves in the ocean.

People typically caution not to make any big decisions (like starting a new job or buying a house) while Mercury is in retrograde, but that’s not always practical. Unfortunately, we can’t just stop our lives for three and a half weeks. We can, however, be extra thorough in our research and diligent in our communication and organization.

If things are a bit crazy the first few weeks on the job, show your new employer your ability to roll the the punches and perform well when the circumstances aren’t ideal.

Mercury Retrograde isn’t typically the most fun time, but if you do it right, you can make it out relatively unscathed.

Sending you all my love today and always, my little chickadees.