“Sometimes I just wish someone would tell me what to do”… another client, same sentiment!
"How do I feel better?"
"What should I do when I'm sad?"
"My friends give me different advice - how do I figure out what to follow?"
I've totally been there...and I turned to my astrology chart for advice.
So let's get to your astrology chart telling you how to take care of yourself.
It's not an overstatement to say this technique revolutionized my life! I used to denigrate my natural self-care activities as silly and frivolous until my astrology helped me realize just how important they were. So I'll pass this along, and I hope it helps you, too.
Two techniques require a birth time, and three don't. So if you don't know the birth time for the chart you're working on, don't worry! We got you.
Technique #1: What House Starts With the Sign of Cancer?
If you know your birth time, figure out what house has Cancer on the cusp (that's the beginning of the house). Cancer is the little glyph with the two horizontal curves and circles -- see the blue arrow in the chart below…
If you're using a quadrant house system like Placidus, you might have the sign of Cancer at the end of one house and the beginning of the next one. Go with the house that has Cancer at the very beginning, where the house cusp is in Cancer. (That's probably the second of the two houses that has Cancer in it.) In the chart below, Cancer starts in the 11th house, but it's at the end of that house. We would focus on the 12th house -- outlined in yellow -- since Cancer is at the beginnning of that house.
The activities represented by this house are key to your self-care. If you're not sure what each house represents, click here to get my free PDF cheat sheet with basic significations for every house in your astrology chart. Or do an internet search…
Example:
I have the sign of Cancer at the beginning of my 5th house. To take care of myself, I need to focus on 5th house activities like creativity, working with kids, and -- when I'm in England -- popping down to the pub for a cup of tea. Among other things, the 5th house represents pubs and restaurants. You'll find on extra house meanings like these on my Expanded House Significations PDF in my Etsy shop.
In short, the more I can be playful and fun and express my own artistic impulses (all 5th house activities), the more I heal, recharge, and nurture myself. Honestly, I always just thought my hobbies were kind of silly. It wasn't until I understood my astrology chart that I realized they were closely tied to my well-being.
If you had Cancer on the cusp of your 9th house, you would nurture yourself by learning something new; exploring foreign food, films, or people; or indulging in a nice philosophical or spiritual conversation -- all 9th house activities.
ASTROLOGY IMPLICATION: How you treat yourself is often how you treat others...
The interesting kicker is that these Cancer house activities influence how you instinctively nurture others – not just yourself.
For years I wondered why my husband always started his advice with, “Well what I would do is…”
I had told him repeatedly that this did not work for me, but it was so hard for him to do anything different!
Once I realized he had Cancer in the 1st house, I realized that he takes care of himself by expressing his own identity. So his instinct is to do the same for me. He wants to tell me about himself in the hopes that I will gain something from what works for him. But I don't have Cancer in the 1st...
I also realized why he tends to reject my help. He wants to nurture himself by doing things his own way - a classic 1st house quality.
It's fortunate my husband has a good sense of humor because with my 5th house Cancer, I typically try to nurture people by making them laugh, lightening the mood, or suggesting a creative solution. But I learned in the working world that's not always appropriate in every situation.
So if you're struggling with trying to nurture a partner, friend, or family member in ways that don't seem to help, consider whether you're acting on your own Cancer house instead of theirs. Try to identify their zone of nurturing, and see if you can focus on that instead of automatically doing what feels natural for you. Obviously, if you can figure out their birth chart, that could be a big help!
So the first technique to nurture yourself, soothe what's challenging, and rebuild your healthy energy by focusing on the activities of the house that begins with Cancer is in your chart.
Technique #2: Act On Your Cancer Placements
Even without a birth time, you can evaluate any placements that appear in Cancer. They all enhance your nurturing and self-care.
Of course, this includes planets. Mars and Saturn are in detriment in Cancer, so if nurturing is challenging for you, that might be partly why.
Don't forget to consider angles like the AC, MC, IC, or DC; lots like your Lot Of Spirit, Lot Of Fortune, or Lot Of Eros; and major asteroids, Black Moon Lilith, or the North or South Nodes.
Those all inform your self-care activities if you have them in Cancer.
For a long time, I was totally puzzled by a personal quirk in one of my favorite hobbies. I love haunting thrift stores and charity shops for inexpensive vintage items and then reselling them at a profit.
But here's the weird thing: If I get a really good deal on a vintage item, I have this urge to pass that good price on to the next buyer, even if I could make more money by holding out for a higher price.
It's like I want to give my good fortune to the next person even though I could totally charge them more. To be honest, I even felt a little bit guilty, like I was a bad business person because I wasn't squeezing every penny out of these items.
As usual, my astrology chart explained this!
I don't have any planets or angles in Cancer, but I do have my Lot Of Fortune. This indicates a place where I have some extra luck.
So maximizing my luck in my hobby (Cancer in the 5th house) is a self-care activity for me.
But it's also part of how I take care of others. I nurture myself by finding a great bargain, and then I want to turn around and nurture other people by giving them a bargain, too.
So even if you don't have any planets in Cancer, check for Lots or other points because they all say something how you take care of yourself and how you feel drawn to take care of others, too.
Technique #3: Look To Your Moon Sign
No birth time needed for this.
To understand how an individual experiences a sign's energies, we always check the house and sign of the ruling planet.
The Moon rules Cancer.
To be most effective, your Cancer self-care activities should also be informed by the energies of Cancer’s ruler, the Moon. If you're not sure about the energies of your Moon sign, again the free one page PDF has information for you!
My Capricorn Moon means I typically feel nurtured by Capricorn-style activities: practical and cost-effective with a long-term benefit. A meditative nature walk to get exercise and access my intuition or a new plan for my website.
My husband, on the other hand, has a Taurus Moon. He loves nurturing activities that are comfortable and pleasurable: going out to eat or changing into his comfy clothes and plopping on the couch for some relaxation time.
Maximize your self-care by merging Cancer nurturing with the flavor of your Moon sign.
Technique #4: If you have a birth time, Incorporate Your Moon House
Your Cancer house reveals your nurturing activities, but your Moon house adds an extra layer to how those energies manifest.
As soon as my husband flops on the couch to relax, he immediately picks up his phone and starts messaging his fellow Dungeons & Dragons players all over the world. Why? His Moon is in his 11th house, the house of groups, friends and social rewards.
If his moon were in his 12th – the house of isolation and the inner world – he would probably want to veg out by himself. But no, he's Mr. Connectivity because of his 11th house moon.
My moon is also in my 11th, so I always drag myself out to a fiber arts meeting, a live music performance, or a street fair, especially if I'm really feeling like I don't want to go. I know that if I can just get out in public, I'll be nurtured by that experience because of my moon house.
So if you have a birth time, check out your moon house to identify an extra layer of your self-care.
Technique #5: Identify Your Moon-Cancer Angle
No birth time needed for this one.
Everything I've mentioned thus far is pretty bread-and-butter astrology. You can evaluate any sign in your chart using this simple analysis – house / placements / ruling planet house and sign) If you want to figure out how to express your individuality, do this with the sign of Aries and its ruling planet, Mars…
But people don't talk about this next ancient technique nearly as much! However, I've learned that it is super helpful.
Look at the sign that your moon is in, and figure out how many signs away that is from the sign of Cancer.
Here's a quick and easy run down to make this a snap for you!
If your Moon is in Leo or Gemini, it's one sign away. That's a 30° angle, a semi-sextile.
(I know it may not make sense to describe an angle between a body like the Moon and an entire sign, but trust me, thinking of it this way will help!)
If your moon is in Taurus or Virgo, it's two signs away, so that's a 60° angle, a sextile.
Moon in Aries or Libra, three signs away, a 90° angle, a square.
Moon in Pisces or Scorpio, 120° angle, a trine.
Moon in Aquarius or Sagittarius,150° angle, an inconjunct.
Moon in Capricorn, 180° angle, an opposition.
Why is this important?
The angle between your Moon and Cancer, the sign it rules, reveals a quality or experience of your self-care activities. (And yes, this is true for any planet and the sign that it rules. The angle between Aries and Mars, its ruling planet, works exactly the same way…)
If you're not familiar with the qualities of these angles, that's also on the free PDF cheat sheet.
My husband’s Taurus moon is 60° away from the sign of Cancer, so his Cancer-Moon angle is a sextile. This represents a learning opportunity, a free will choice that may not be obvious initially, but you can use it once you realize how. Steve has had to learn how to take care of himself. He spent many, many years taking way better care of everybody around him. It's only in the last few years of our 26-year marriage that he's learned to prioritize himself.
This is a chronic challenge for people with a Taurus or a Virgo moon, and now you know why! That 60° angle means it takes time to learn to leverage your self-care Cancer energies.
My Capricorn Moon is a notoriously difficult placement in part because it's 180° angle brings an energy of opposition to self-nurturing. I tend to feel like taking care of myself (Cancer) is an obstacle to achieving my long-term goals (Capricorn). I had to realize that I needed to alternate between making plans and focusing on self-care. The opposition in my astrology chart indicates that I can't pursue both at the same time. And wow, did that take me a long time to wrap my brain around!
If you have a moon in Aries or Libra, taking care of yourself may involve confronting challenges, informed by the energies of the 90° square, especially when it comes to expressing your individuality (Aries) or achieving balance in relationships (Libra).
Now Apply It To Your Life
Now that you know five ways to think about how you nurture yourself and others based on your astrology chart, bring it home by evaluating them in your current self-care.
Maybe you end up baking every time you're sad.
Think about this in terms of your Cancer house and placements, your Moon sign and house, and your Moon-Cancer angle.
Do you just love food, which might be a 2nd house activity or a Taurus Moon foodie vibe? If you have Cancer in the 5th like me, or your Moon is in Leo, you might gravitate to baking to express yourself and explore your creativity.
Maybe, you realize that you never bake by yourself. You always find a buddy to keep you company. That might be a 7th-house Cancer, or a Libra Moon since that sign is often associated with relationships.
If you Moon-Cancer angle is a 120° trine, self-care might come very naturally. If you have a 30° semi-sextile, you might not even know why you're doing these activities!
Think about your favorite self-care activities and connect those with your Cancer and Moon energies.
As you compare what you do to what your chart says about nurturing yourself, you should be able to see what's really effective, what makes you feel relaxed, healed, and built up. Then, expand your focus in those key areas to sustain your health and energy.
Now, I've given you five techniques, and depending on your astrology experience and mastery, this could feel like a lot!
Be patient with yourself if it seems like a lot to absorb. Probably, they won't all resonate equally, especially not at first. Just start with what seems most interesting or helpful. Astrology, at least for me, is like an unfolding flower. My brain seems to pick and choose techniques in the order it needs to understand. This can be a long process as different bits reveal themselves over time.
In fact, I initially completely rejected many astrology concepts. Then, one day – or one year – later, I decided that they were extremely important and had to learn everything about them…
If this article draws your attention to just one way to take better care of yourself, I'll count it as a win.
And if it helped you understand why you succeed or why you struggle to take care of the people around you, that would be an extra bonus.
Diving into just one of these techniques could make a huge difference for you. I know it did for me.
If you know the birth time, I suggest prioritizing the Cancer house activities, especially if you feel exhausted, burned out, or a little beaten up by the routine of life.
If you don't know the birth time, prioritize the Moon sign and the Moon-Cancer angle.
I know this article was a bit technical, so I'd welcome any feedback on what was easy to understand, and what seemed challenging. Feel free to leave me a comment below so I can learn what landed with you.
And, of course, ask me questions to help you understand how to apply this in your own chart.
Thank you, and I hope you're having a wonderful day!
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