on 28 & my mars-ruled profection year
parting ways with literally everything
Over the past year, Mars and I have become thick as thieves.
...not by choice. It’s due to the fact that I’ve been in a Mars-ruled profection year since my birthday last year. Annual profections are an ancient astrological timing technique that allow you to better understand which part of your chart will be activated annually, resetting every year on your birthday. Your 28th year will always be a fifth house year, but the planet that’s activated for you will vary based on the sign that occupies this part of your chart. Since I’m a Cancer rising, Scorpio is the sign in my fifth house, therefore Mars was the planet that would heavily influence my life from 28 to 29.
But the thing is, Mars has always heavily influenced my life. I have the sun, Mercury, and Mars all in Aries, the other sign Mars governs over. Consequently, I am no stranger to doing or saying the Mars thing — in fact, I can’t help it. I have always closely resembled this planet, which unfortunately for me is one of the most difficult in the sky. Because of this, 28 was inevitably going to come with its own set of Mars-y challenges, something I begrudgingly accepted as my birthday approached. But I thought hey, maybe this was the year I’d finally get ripped (Mars things) or improve my guitar-playing skills (fifth house things). At the very least, I was certain I’d be nothing short of a productive girl-boss.
Ha!
It’s safe to say that Mars (and my Saturn return) had other plans.
FUN FACT: when you’re using annual profections as a timing technique, it is imperative that you consider the natal condition of the planet being activated for the year.
While I was born with Mars in the sign of its rulership (Aries), he’s still the most difficult planet in my chart. Not only is he combust the sun in the tenth house, but I was born during the day, exacerbating his malefic qualities — so it’s safe to say my natal Mars is pissed.
But it’s important to note that Mars isn’t just the planet responsible for your angry outbursts or your road rage. I wish it just ended there. Mars is, as grim as it sounds, injury, ailments, quick accidents or incidents. Mars does away with things at full speed, whether you’re ready to part ways with them or not. And while Mars isn’t solely negative, his condition in your natal chart ultimately determines whether or not he’s more constructive or more destructive — and my natal Mars was nothing short of a ticking time bomb.
In January 2024 — two months ahead of my 28th birthday — I crashed an ATV into a tree and was ejected from the vehicle. Immediately upon landing on my back, I hopped up, in typical Mars-y fashion, partly due to embarrassment, mostly due to instinct. It was a hard fall and I was bleeding, but I was already ready to move on — the debilitating, chronic pain that would follow completely unbeknownst to me.
Another fun fact: you will notice the themes of your upcoming profection year start to surface a couple months ahead of your *actual* birthday.
It’s interesting because when the ATV accident happened, I was still in a fourth-house, Venus year, but the day of, the moon, the celestial indicator of the human body, was in fall in Scorpio, and Mars was in exalted in Capricorn. I remember looking at the chart of the moment I crashed and feeling confused. These planetary indicators would have made a lot more sense if I was in my Mars-ruled Scorpio year, but I wasn’t yet. Now, it makes sense. The repercussions of the accident wouldn’t become a concern until after my birthday.
In 2024, I parted ways with so much. The luxury of having a body that was free of daily, debilitating pain. A full-time writing job. Friends. Lovers. Up until this profection year, I always blamed Saturn for taking things away and underestimated that Mars separates us from things too. Mars is just a lot faster and a far more violent about it. At least Saturn lessons, be them lonely and isolating, tend to get better with time. Age. You commit to the thing (healing, discipline, hard work) for long enough and Saturn eventually rewards you. But what about Mars lessons?
What kind of fucking lesson can physical pain teach you?
Chronic pain makes you angry. Or at least, it makes me angry.
The best way to describe nerve pain to someone who hasn’t experienced it is by, ironically, using Mars imagery. The pain often comes in quick jolts, like you’ve suddenly been shocked or electrocuted, or in hot tingles that run down your leg. Other times, it’s an ache deep in my left glute as if I've been sitting for hours. There’s a lot of things I can no longer tolerate due to the ATV accident, like sitting or laying down for too long, and that pisses me off. You don’t realize how heavily you rely on sitting or lying down to relax until it becomes the very thing that triggers your pain. I spent a lot of this Mars year angry at my own body. I tried every Google-able method under the sun and have had a million conversations with ChatGPT about how to find relief. Weed and CBD have been the most effective at keeping the pain at bay, but I’ve mainly just had to surrender to it and exercise a shit-ton of patience — the two things I’m fucking terrible at.
Who knew that a Mars-profection year would teach me how to surrender?
I guess it makes sense. It order to capture the truest essence of Mars, you have to capture him wholly. Mars isn’t just how you fight, but how you resign. Mars is just as much knowing when to lay your sword down as he is knowing when to pick it up. You can’t “fight” chronic pain, trust me. You will lose.
Now I’d be remiss if I didn't acknowledge all of the fun, fifth-house things that happened in the last year. It was a polarizing experience, because 2024 was kind of the worst year of my life, but I still had so. much. fun. I got laid off and still somehow managed to be re-hired as a freelance writer for the same company to cover an astrocartography story (Saturn return in the ninth house things). I traveled. I went on more first dates in the past year than I ever have in my life. There were strip clubs, live music, and lots of dancing. The fifth house themes, despite being dished out by my most challenging planet, still found their way to me, and there were plenty of joyful moments in the midst of all the hardship.
With my Sagittarius sixth-house profection year a few days away from starting, I’m already noticing some of the themes of this planet creep in. As a result of my Mars-year injury, I’ve recently been trying out glute exercises (Jupiter, Sag things) and miraculously, they’ve actually been helping with the pain. I think that in a way, annual profections may mirror the delicate and ever-changing cycles of life. First, the Mars thing happens. You’re ripped from something, or something is ripped from you. You either fight or surrender. Then, the Jupiter thing happens, and you (hopefully) recover. Evolve. Transcend.
It’s been almost a decade since I’ve experienced a Jupiter-ruled profection year, so I’m really looking forward to seeing how it plays out! I will of course be documenting my experiences here as I navigate the final year of my 20s, as well as the last year of my Saturn return, to hopefully educate and uplift anyone else going through the terrors of their late 20s. Thank you so much for reading. Be well, and take care of yourself <3
omg, what a mars way to start your 28th year 😱🤕 I hope you continue to find what works for you & the chronic pain 🫶🏼🥺🫶🏼 I love how you still made the most of your year & it didn't hold you back too much from enjoying a 5th house year :) thank you for sharing! 💖✨️
First of all, I’m so sorry to hear you've been going through such a physically painful time. As someone who also lives with chronic pain and has a partner who does as well, it is frustrating and anger-inducing at times. Thank you for sharing your experience! As it relates to the themes of the 6th house profection year, what other themes are you anticipating?