Recently, astrology has been on the rise in teenage culture as a way of finding one’s own identity through spirituality and becoming more in touch with one’s self. Astrology consists of many different components, such as zodiac signs, as well as complementing those star interpretations with aspects from other practices, such as crystal healing, meditation, and the alignment of chakras to help live a more fulfilling life.

“I’m a Leo Sun,” senior Jamilete Hernandez said. “I think a big stereotype for Leos is that we’re self-obsessed, selfish [and] materialistic. I think those are the big main ones. I think the only stereotype that is true is probably confidence, for me, at least.”

The Big Three consists of a sun sign, moon sign, and rising sign. Sun signs control how one sees themself, moon signs control one’s emotions, and rising signs are how other people perceive that individual. Stereotypes can be made about each zodiac sign as well based on certain traits they are said to possess. 

“People say that Scorpios are short-tempered,” senior Gage Krouch said. “I’d say that’s true. I get mad easily. Usually when I’m arguing with my friends, we could be arguing over something completely stupid, but I’ll still get heated in [the argument] because I like arguing. And if I’m right, I’m not going to back down from an argument, no matter how stupid it is.”

The Big Six consists of those three signs plus a Mercury sign, Venus sign, and Mars sign. Mercury signs control one’s communication, which can be affected due to the planet being in retrograde once every few months.

“I hate Mercury retrograde so much,” Hernandez said. “I feel like I’m personally affected by it because my Mercury is in Virgo; … Mercury rules Virgo and Gemini, and [Mercury being in retrograde] tends to hit people like me harder with [the placements I have]. Everytime Mercury is in retrograde, something always goes terribly bad and there are just many bad [and life changing] things that have happened.”

Mercury being in retrograde can affect all forms of communication; how one interprets conversations with other people, how they speak to others, and even technology can be affected by the retrograde, such as Internet connection being slower than usual. Relationships are fragile during this time. However, not all people feel affected by the retrograde.

“I don’t think [Mercury being in retrograde] affects my life,” Krouch said. “However, my girlfriend always says that she gets more emotional during [retrograde].”

Not only can Mercury retrograde affect how daily life works in the astrological world, but even what placements an individual has within their Big Six is said to affect daily life as well. 

“[My birth chart] influences me in some ways, but I don’t let it take over my life,” Hernandez said. “I don’t defend my actions or [say things like], ‘Oh, I’m a bad driver because I’m a Gemini rising. I [let it influence me] to a certain extent.”

Some may feel that their birth chart or horoscope don’t affect their day in the slightest.

“I don’t read my horoscope [very often],” Hernandez said. “Maybe like twice a year if I get bored, but I try not to put it into my head, ‘This is how your day’s going to go.’ I kind of just take the day as it goes. I feel like if I read a horoscope, I’m going to overthink [my day] so I don’t really [read it that often] … I feel like it’s very vague, so I can’t really apply it to many things.”

Other practices can be incorporated into astrology, such as the use of crystals to help better different aspects of one’s life. For example, malachite can help with abundance, violet fluorite with anxiety, and rose quartz with relationships and self-love.

“[I like] rose quartz,” Hernandez said. “I have a rose quartz and it’s my favorite one. I like the color [and] the sharp edges. I don’t really know much about crystals, but I like to buy them and keep them because I think they’re [cool].”