A question that I get asked often has to do with mental illnesses/mental differences, and if I’m able to see things like that in the natal chart. The answer to this particular question is yes and no. The natal chart is like a blueprint of possibilities for the person (and the soul) in this lifetime. Just because something “difficult” shows up in one’s natal chart regarding mental illness (or anything, really) doesn’t necessarily mean that the person will ever manifest that particular difficult energy into reality. Though, if the propensity *is* there for mental illness to occur, whether or not it actually occurs depends on a number of factors (such as biology, environment, and nurturing), as well as heavier transits hitting the aspect in question, thus activating it. Since I am specifically talking about mental illnesses & mental differences, certain aspects made between The Moon and Mercury (specifically the square, opposition and conjunction) seem to cause people some issues in the areas of mental health. The specific types of mental health issues that these hard aspects between Mercury and Uranus tend to produce are anxiety (either full blown or just some general nervousness), and moodiness (all the way to the extreme end of the spectrum with intense mood swings). This is a trend that I have noticed time and time again, and I suppose the part of me that finds mental health and psychology fascinating wanted to discuss it 

**Just for a bit of reference……Mercury is essentially the mind of the natal chart, where we think and learn in a concrete way, and where we communicate. It is traditionally quick and logical. The Moon represents our feelings and our emotions.**
***Also, as a disclaimer, I am in no way, shape, or form saying that people automatically have mental issues and differences by default when they have these harder aspects in their natal charts. I’m only saying that the possibility could exist of something like generalized anxiety disorder occurring in their life if one of these aspects is in the natal chart of the person. Just want to make that part really, really clear.***

Moon/Mercury Conjunction: Out of all the harder aspects in this post, this is usually the easiest for the native to carry. With the Moon and Mercury in conjunction, this causes a natural merging of the mind and the emotions. The typically rational mind may have a more emotional bent to it here, and this can cause some confusion for the person. They may become overly attached to things (especially things having to do with the house where this conjunction falls). There is also usually an above average emotional intelligence that these people possess which helps them to communicate with other people (and to communicate internally with themselves). Mercury tends to be more anxious and nervous by default, and the Moon here feels this, making the person possiby more emotionally and mentally anxious. You may also be more emotionally sensitive as well, for your emotions here are very changable; the Moon is changable anyway, and so is Mercury. This can add to this anxiety you may feel, as well as any anxiety that you feel from being an emotionally sensitive person. Anxiety can also creep into the native’s mind and life when the merging of the two planets causes conflict. There are times to use your emotions and times to use your rational mind (and then times to merge the two), and the key here is figuring out how to pull one or the other out and use them independently. The tighter the conjunction here, the harder this will be to do.

Moon/Mercury Opposition: With the Moon and Mercury in opposition, this can cause there to be natural tug of war between your emotions and your rational mind. Issues can creep up dealing with how you process and think about your own emotions. There can be an over emotional quality to this aspect, and also an over rationalization (though not usually in tandem, until the native gets a handle on these energies). There will be times that you will be pulled more towards Mercury, and times that you will be pulled more towards the Moon, and it will be be an situational appropriate match. This can also end up happening in the opposite way that it should, such as you should really be operating through Mercury and your rational mind in a certain situation, but the Moon takes over instead, so you operate out of emotion instead. There can also be some general moodiness (to intense mood swings) and changability in thought because both planets want to have their own way here and aren’t operating in harmony. There could also be some issues with how to communicate with people, and when to do this, and what to communicate. This disharmony naturally can cause quite a lot of anxiety in the person and moodiness (even more than with the conjunction). They key to this aspect and tempering the anxiety that comes along with it is finding the balance between The Moon and Mercury, and knowing when to use one or the other (or when to use both at once).

Moon/Mercury Square: Out of all the harder aspects in this post, this one is by far the most difficult to deal with. The square is constant tension, so with this aspect there is probably a constant tension between the person’s rational mind and their emotions. This can cause the native to be incredibly anxious concerning their own emotions and emotional state and how they process these. Decision making can be incredibly difficult for the person, especially if either the head or the heart needs to be used exclusively for the decision to occur. The person knows that this tension between the two exists (even if it isn’t on a conscious level), and naturally has some difficulty in this area. Communication may not always be as effective, either. This can be communication that the person has internally with themselves, or it can be communication that the person has with other people. They may have difficultly really expressing how they feel and why to other people, and have difficulty understanding their feeling themselves. This tends to rear its head most often in intimate one-on-one relationships/familial relationships, where people are more likely to need to share and communicate their emotions and feelings freely. The mood swings here can be on a much grander scale, as can the anxiety that they may feel. If any of this is prevalent in the life of the person, it is very important that they consciously are aware of when to operate out of one planet or the other. By operating in spite of the tension, they are able to ease a lot of the anxiety and moodiness that may naturally accompany it.

Links to other posts in this series for your reading pleasure 🙂
Squares to the Sun
Mercury/Uranus Hard Aspects
Mercury/Saturn Hard Aspects