I see a therapist.

Afterward, I'm exhausted, even though all I did was sit on a couch and talk.

But the tiredness is a reaction to having been opened up, having my vulnerable spots revealed.

We find places of pain and we poke at it.

That sounds unpleasant - and I’m not saying it isn’t.

But isn’t that necessary?

Pain is our body's way of alerting us to something dangerous, physically or emotionally.

When we burn our hand, we don’t think twice about putting it in cool water, wrapping it, and tending to it.

But our reaction to emotional pain is often very different.

Shove it down, hide it, try to forget about it, move on, repeat.

But what I’ve come to realize is how important it is to befriend our pain.

Sit with it.

Speak with it.

It is hungry for our attention.

Ignoring our pain has much the same result as ignoring a puppy.

At first, it will nudge at you a little with its nose.

It will whine at you.

Then it will become less subtle and tear up the couch.

But unlike adorable puppies at our feet, pain works from the inside out.

The nose nudges and whines - negative self-talk and limiting beliefs about ourselves.

Rather than tearing up the couch, - continuously landing in relationships with people that degrade us.

Or martyring ourselves to jobs we hate because we “know” we aren’t capable of more.

Our pain is in there, behind the scenes helping to shape our thoughts and reactions.

But once we give it the attention it craves, we may realize it has a story for us.

A little girl bullied relentlessly, a boy who always felt a little scared when dad was home.

Every story is unique, but the outcome is the same.

Unresolved pain can’t be ignored - eventually, it won’t allow it.

In astrology, this concept has a name: Pluto.

This planet has been called Pluto the Destroyer.

But, also the Transformer and Redeemer.

So what could Pluto teach me about dealing with emotional baggage?

​In this newsletter, I’m going to explain:

Pluto was the Roman god of the underworld and death.

In astrology, it represents much of the same.

What hides below the surface - subconscious baggage.

This isn’t the only representation of Pluto, but a big one.

Pluto’s realm is the memories we have shoved down and never want to think about again.

It lives in there, poking at that pain.

The name “Pluto the Destroyer” is fitting in that way.

This planet doesn’t let us ignore the things that we desperately want to forget about.

​It picks at the wound.

And astrologers don’t all agree on the origin of this Plutonian pain.

Some feel it describes a wound from this lifetime.

Others see it as emotional baggage from lifetimes past - things so painful that they stick with our souls.

I don’t know the answer, but I don’t think it matters because the outcome can be the same.

No matter its origin, this subconscious pain influences our thoughts and behaviors.

We react to it, even if we don't know it's there.

And Pluto “encourages” us to deal with these wounds in subtle and unsubtle ways.

It wants to drag it into the light.

One way or another.

It reminds me of our recent newsletter about synchronicity.

You may be confronted with the same issues, throwing them in your path, giving you the “opportunity” to unearth hidden pain.

​Pluto forces these “opportunities.”

Think of Pluto like a wildfire.

The blaze brings death and destruction.

But fast forward.

It also brings rebirth.

The forest is renewed and stronger than before.

Sunlight reaches the bottom of the forest floor that had been covered over and hidden.

Trees grow back healthier and the ecosystem flourishes with the thick layer of debris now cleared away.

Plutonian death is about redemption.

To transform and come back galvanized, something inside has to die.

A belief about ourselves, a bad relationship, a paralyzing fear - for growth to occur, something has to go.

And that is the other side to Pluto.

This is often referred to as “the wise wound.”

​When we do the work to heal it, we unearth incredible wisdom and strength.

Dealing with Plutonian “stuff” is rarely easy.

First off, many people have anxiety about Pluto.

All of the talk of death and destruction can be intimidating and scary!

And then we have the issues themselves.

By nature, these things are painful.

​The types of experiences Pluto can represent can be hard to face for many reasons:

But what I have realized is that dealing with difficult feelings is never easy - but always worth it.

I am going to describe one way that you could approach Pluto in your chart (there are many).

Pluto takes 246 years to circle the zodiac, meaning it spends an average of 20 years in the same sign.

Everyone born in those 20 years shares the same Pluto sign.

So let’s think about Pluto’s house which will be a bit more individual.

And first, I focus on "the wise wound."

​1. What house does Pluto inhabit in your natal chart?

2. What are the areas of life described by this house? (Here is something to reference if you are unfamiliar with the houses.)

3. Brainstorm how this house can be experienced in hurtful ways. What are ways this house can “go wrong” and bring pain into someone’s life?

4. Next, envision how someone who has been hurt in those ways would naturally react. What might they fear? What might they crave? How could they see themselves?

5. Check in with yourself. Does any of that ring true for you? Even if you can’t think of an event or situation that caused it, do any of the reactions feel familiar to you?

*Please know that this is an overview of Pluto in your chart and that many other factors add details - but this is a start.

​Next, let’s reenvision Pluto.

In this scenario, Pluto is a place of personal power in your chart.

​Where it sits describes where you can find empowerment and renewal.

I recently learned another fascinating technique some astrologers use when working with Pluto.

It’s called Pluto’s polarity point.

The idea is, Pluto is an unrelenting force.

It will continuously pull you in the direction it wants.

And it’s going to keep the pressure on, in that same direction, until it’s satisfied.

That part is out of your hands.

But enter the concept of the Pluto polarity point.

​The polarity point is directly opposed to Pluto, 180° away.

(There is no mark on your natal chart so you will have to find it yourself.)

The idea is, if you have emotional wounds where Pluto sits, the opposite of that wound may be what your soul craves in response.

This point could represent a reaction to that wound that naturally balances it out.

It’s dealing with that pain from another angle - another ally in the battle.

Example: A person’s spirit was beaten down within the home somehow - their power taken from them in the place that is supposed to bring the most solace, forcing them to deny their own needs.

What could the opposite of that be?: Giving themselves permission to focus on their wants, chasing down their dreams outside of their home, for all to see, with courage and assertiveness, head held high.

​Pluto’s polarity point reminds me of the North Node as the “remedy” for the karma - but instead is the remedy for your “wise wound.”

So what is the nature of your Pluto polarity point?

Here is how to find yours:

1. Locate Pluto's sign.

2. Find Pluto’s opposite sign:

     -Aries < > Libra

     -Taurus < > Scorpio

     -Gemini < > Sagittarius

     -Cancer < > Capricorn

     -Leo < > Aquarius

     -Virgo < > Pisces

3. Note Pluto’s degree and find that exact degree in the sign that is opposite of Pluto’s.

​4. Check which house the polarity point lands in. For this individual, Pluto sits in Scorpio at 12° in the 8th House. Their Pluto polarity point is 12° Taurus in the 2nd House.

5. What are healthy and renewing ways to express this point through its house and sign? How could empowerment be found there as the "remedy" for Pluto's wound?

We have gathered information about our natal Pluto and it’s polarity point.

That can give us something to work with if we want to take a deliberate approach to Pluto.

​When thinking about the position of your natal Pluto:

*Please know that trauma is serious business and I am absolutely not suggesting anyone substitute astrology for getting the help of a professional.

*If your pain feels too hard for you to deal with, or if it is interfering with your life, please seek out a therapist to help you work through it.

Another way to work with Pluto is to keep an eye on other planets interacting with it and its polarity point.

​1. Open astro.com, pull up your chart, and click on the “+ Transits” button.

2. Notice if transiting planets (the green planet symbols outside the chart) touch either your natal Pluto or your Pluto polarity point.

3. Depending on which planet is there, it will trigger it differently and for varying lengths of time.

4. The Moon, Mercury, and Venus will be so fast you may not notice, but for the slower-moving planets, you may feel your "Plutonian Moment."

5. Ask yourself what kind of influence the transiting planet may have on your Pluto or its polarity point. You can find more information about what each planet represents here.

​You can see that this person, had Uranus triggering their polarity point a few years back.

And they will soon be feeling the effects of Jupiter moving in.

What I have realized is that our wounds have the potential to empower us or take us down.

And empowerment in healing begins when we decide to take back the power the pain holds over us.

This isn’t a linear process.

It will have lots of starts and stops - even going backward at times.

But “time heals all wounds” is BS.

​Dealing with wounds heals all wounds.

Love You → Love Others