When we’re disconnected to the security of our own power, one of the ways our ego protects itself is through the righteousness of the drama triangle; an unconscious relational dynamic that fits everyone, including ourselves, into the role of the victim (overwhelmed, helpless), perpetrator (blaming, attacking) or saviour/bystander (placating, fixing, witnessing).

I think about the drama triangle often because being aware of how and when it shows up allows me to be mindful of how much energy I invest in it and move towards the more nuanced truth of a situation or dynamic. It also gives me valuable information about what shadow material is wanting my attention and which of my needs are not being met that would resource me to connect with my power.

Recently I was musing on what we have to bypass in order to maintain each role and realised it was very connected to the current astrology. The victim bypasses their agency (Aries) to stay in the safety of inaction, the saviour bypasses their boundaries (Saturn) to stay in the safety of being needed, and the perpetrator bypasses their compassion (Neptune) to be in the safety of distance. My acupuncturist reflected that those are the three pillars (or ABCs - thanks Natalie) of healing.

Saturn and Neptune shifting from Pisces, a sign that can be confused, overwhelmed and undifferentiated, into Aries, which is decisive, impulsive and embodied, reflects how collectively, we are being invited and supported to come out of the fog and into clarity with our own agency, boundaries and compassion. They are also in a sextile with Pluto (power) in Aquarius (the collective, the future), which is a supportive aspect that requires some effort, symbolising how we might be in the drama triangle with this urgent need to create a new future, and how we can divest from it so the future is created from a place of power.

The drama triangle can also show up internally with bodily sensations that are painful or uncomfortable to be present with. We can collapse into feeling overwhelmed by them, blame ourselves, someone else, or our body for them, and try to rescue ourselves from them with addictive behaviours or antalgic (pain-avoidant) postures. As someone who has chronic pain, I am not shaming these behaviours. They are a really intelligent way we survive and they hold a lot of wisdom within them, and they can point to where we can cultivate more agency, boundaries and compassion within ourselves and our environment.

Mercury is retrograde in Pisces and we may find ourselves dissociating in order to cope with old stories of victimisation coming to the surface and testing our agency, boundaries and compassion. On a recent episode of This Jungian Life, the presenters spoke to how dissociation is the unconscious trying to break through to the conscious to bring our attention to something that needs to be integrated. It made me think about how we can develop healthier relationships with the unconscious, spending intentional time with it so it doesn’t need to try to break through as much when we want to be more present in physical reality.

Tonight there will be a south node eclipse in Virgo, the opposite sign to Pisces, inviting a release of overwhelm, shame, control and perfectionism. Eclipses are associated with big changes and realisations, illumination of something that was hidden, and heightened emotional charge, and those are experiences that might encourage dissociation.

In my Mirror Astrology readings I offer acupressure points to work with to support in resourcing and transforming what’s arising on multiple levels and I offer them here for the collective as well.

Pillars of Power: Saturn-Neptune in Aries Part 3

For Every Expansion There’s An Equal Reaction: Aquarius Eclipse