Expansive Tools for Becoming Your Own Emotional Ally with Olivia Oona

Olivia Oona is a social worker and life-coach living in Vermont. She is a creative, with major interest in self-development and growth. She blends coaching with astrology and tarot. Reach out to Olivia at olivia.oona@gmail.com if you’re interested in coaching or tarot and astrology experiences.

Astrology and tarot are archetypal frameworks and tools that we can use to be critical thinkers about our lives.

What is an emotional ally?

Ally (verb): Combine or unite a resource or commodity with (another) for mutual benefit.

If we don’t connect all of the parts of us that make up who we are (mind, body, soul) we end up compartmentalizing parts of who we are. This in turn, can lead to intense feelings of isolation, longing for belonging, feeling misunderstood, and loneliness. It is possible to live a fully integrated experience.

Astrology and Tarot are tools that hold space for emotional understanding and curiosity. They help us connect all the parts of ourselves together. With these tools we can create bridges between our emotional selves, physical selves, and spiritual selves to form an allyship. This allyship forms the bonds we need to feel like we are living a truly integrated experience. That’s the sweet spot we are all striving for! Here’s the deal, to truly be an ally to others you first need to be an ally to yourself.

What’s the difference between Tarot and Astrology?

Astrology can give us a narration or picture of the collective energies and forces at play, and can also be used as a tool to navigate personal experience.

Tarot is an archetypical narration for what you’re experiencing in this time and place, including energies at play that you might not be aware of yet.

Full Moon and New Moon Rituals

A part of my practice includes full moon and new moon rituals. These rituals are guided largely by an astrology subscription site I pay for ($11.11 per month) called Soulstrology that provides astrological self-coaching journal prompts/activities for the new and full moons (among other amazing content). When I am up for it I also like to pull out my tarot cards and follow Biddy Tarot’s full/new moon spread that they publish on their instagram a few days before. They beautifully like to blend powerful questions with astrological themes we will all experience in the upcoming moon phase. This helps me stay grounded throughout the month. As a woman, I thrive on a sense of moving through life in cycles. This is one more cycle that fits nicely into your routine.

That is my process, but below I have provided you with some themes and actions you can think about when living through the full and new moons. As you get more comfortable with your practice you can start customizing your tarot guiding questions to the themes and energies supported by the planet the new or full moon is in. That is essentially what @soulstrology provides me with.

The following Tarot spreads are based off of Biddy Tarot's Moon Rituals! They also provide a Sun Ritual!

New Moon

Tarot Spread:

Card 1: What has been released within myself since the full moon?

Card 2: In this present moment where am I energetically?

Card 3: What is growing within me?

Card 4: How can I continue to nurture this growth within me?

Card 5: How can I bring my current goals and intentions into reality?

Card 6: What additional tools are available to me in supporting the manifestation of my goals?

New Moon Themes: -Reflective -Introspective -Withdrawn -Low Energy -Reseting

New Moon Actions: -Setting New Intentions -Nurturing Ideas -Dreaming -Withdrawing -Reflecting

Full Moon

Tarot Spread:

Card 1: What goals and intentions have manifested for me since the new moon?

Card 2: In this present moment where am I energetically?

Card 3: What is coming into my consciousness that I should think about growing?

Card 4: What energy is creating blocks in my life that I need to work on?

Card 5: How can I release and let go of these energies?

Card 6: What additional tools are available to me in supporting the release of these energies?

Full Moon Themes: -Accomplished -Grateful -Energized -Emotional

-Awake

Full Moon Actions: -Being seen -Hard Working -Celebrating -Accomplishments -Gratitude

Full Moon, New Moon, and Eclipse Dates

April 22- Taurus New Moon April 7- Libra Full Moon

May 22- Gemini New Moon May 7- Scorpio Full Moon

June 20- Cancer Solar Eclipse June 5- Sagittarius Lunar Eclipse

July 20- Cancer New Moon July 4- Capricorn Full Moon

August 18- Leo New Moon August 3- Aquarius Full Moon

September 17- Virgo New Moon September 1- Pisces Full Moon

October 16- Libra New Moon October 1- Aries Full Moon

November 14- Scorpio New Moon November 30- Gemini Lunar Eclipse December 14- Sagittarius Solar Eclipse December 29- Cancer Full Moon

Tarot Practice

If you are interested in tarot my best suggestion to you is to find yourself a deck that calls to you. There are a lot of opinions that say you should be gifted a deck. I say if you want one just buy it. I’ve been gifted decks but the one I currently use most is one I bought for myself. Tarot is all about energy and your deck wants to get to know your energy. Bring your deck around with you. Show it what life is like for you. This will create more accuracy for your readings. Start by only pulling a card when you're called to do so. Ask an open ended question, or not and just sit with that card. Take a moment to really look at it and notice the intuitive feeling you get, your first reactions, and emotions just based off of the imagery. This is a practice in using your intuition. As you keep practicing your intuition will get stronger and there will be magical moments.

Use a journal to write about your personal experience with these tools for a full integration of the experience...

These tools have been a life saver for me! I am the type of person who deeply believes that I have powers within me to sort out any issue or imbalance I have with my life. This doesn’t mean we go through it alone (a lesson I am still learning) but it does mean that we have the skills to find the tools we need to move through every issue life tosses our way. For me this is where astrology and tarot fit into my life. As someone who is highly sensitive to LITERALLY everything I experience in life, these tools help me stay grounded. They allow me to see life as a co-creation rather than something that is happening TO me that I have no control over. It is always a helpful reminder that as humans we have the power of freewill and these tools are not meant to be used as fortune tellers or black and white answers to things happening in your life but as a light that shines onto a new perspective, thought process, or direction.