If you’ve been feeling a bit emosh lately and all you want to do is hide away from the world, you can go ahead and blame the stars – because these are some of the not-so-subtle signs that Cancer season has come a-knockin’.

And no, you're not immune if you happen tonotbe Cancerian – all the signs are affected by every astrological season, to some extent, so it's good to get in-the-know about all of them.

And how better to do that than ask the gal who gets up close and personal with the stars for a living? We spoke to astrologer and author Hollie Azzopardi about what Cancer season means and how you can navigate its bumps and curves with ease.

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What is Cancer season?

Astrological seasons indicate which sign the sun falls in for a certain period of time. So, when we are in Cancer season, that refers to the month-long period when the sun’s placement is in Cancer.

“We can use the astrological signs to indicate the emotional and energetic undercurrents of the sign for each season,” explains Hollie – and yes, everyone is affected by the astro season, even if it’s not your star sign.

However, if you’re a Cancerian, or you have any Cancer placements in your chart, you will feel the energetic implications of Cancer season more than those who don’t.

“If you have cancer falling in your personal planets – that is, your sun, your moon, your Mercury, your Venus, or your Mars – you may feel this more strongly. But even if youdon'thave a personal planet in the sign, it's still in your chart and you're still going to feel its energy in some way.”

If you want more insight into the lessons of a sign and what will likely come through in its season, the best way to do that is to get a natal chart reading, suggests Hollie.

When does Cancer season start?

Cancer season starts on June 22, and ends on July 22, making way for Leo season to kick off on July 23. Oh, and no – Cancer season dates don’t change from year to year. In case you were wondering!

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Cancer season is represented by the crab and is often referred to as the mother archetype. Its ruling planet is the moon, so Cancerian energy is very much about having that hard exterior – but when you take that shell away, it’s soft and mushy inside, says Hollie.

“Cancer is a water sign and, like any other water sign, this energy is about honouring our emotions and our emotional sensitivities. In its highest expression, Cancerian energy is about nurturance – specifically self-nurturance. Cancer holds such a beautiful, caring energy, which makes sense when you think about that mother archetype – it’s about caring."

But when this energy is taken to excess, Hollie explains, it can manifest as burnout and resentment, and if we’re not nurturing ourselves, it can lend itself to victimhood.

“One of the biggest pieces to learn from Cancerian energy is how to self-nurture, so we’re then better placed to give back to others," she says.

“Cancer season is also a time when emotions will likely come to the forefront. And when I speak about emotions, I’m talking about really feeling them through your body. Cancerians can get a bad rap as being the ‘crybabies’ of the zodiac, but it's just because they feel so deeply, and not just their own feelings. They take on everyone else's stuff as well, and Cancer season is when empaths and highly sensitive people are going to be really finely attuned."

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It also explains why you might be feeling extra emotional during this time, and susceptible to others' energies.

“Cancer is also one of the most intuitive signs in the zodiac, which makes Cancer season a really good time to develop an intuitive practice and to establish a connection with your inner emotional state," suggests Hollie. "It’s a time to look deeper at how you care for yourself, and also to become aware of when you're taking on other people's stuff rather than creating boundaries."

This is also a time when we are more inclined to turn inward, stay at home and create a sanctuary (so kind of perfect that it coincides with the winter months here in the Southern Hemisphere).

"It's a time when we are able to put more self-nurturing practices into place and fill our cups back up before we go back out into the world when Leo season rolls around. But keep in mind that this can tip out of balance if we spend too much time at home, and if we're retreating from people in our lives from fear of being burned out or through a sense of victimhood."

In this energy, Cancer can also lend itself to an irrational fear of what other people might be saying about us, says Hollie. Social anxieties can come to the forefront, so it may feel safer to pull away and hide from others. If you notice this in yourself, try to take notice of where you’re retreating into your shell and hiding from the world, as opposed to taking time out to nourish yourself.

"It’s all about treading the fine line between where you are retreating for the joy and the self-nurturance versus avoiding connecting with other people.”

3 key things to do this Cancer season.

Want to know how to use Cancer season energy to your advantage? We got you!

1. Develop a self-nurturance practice.

“That could be upping the self-care, working on your inner child stuff and really taking time to connect inwards,” says Hollie.

“The lesson and the deepest wisdom of Cancer would be around self-parenting, so consider: what are the ways that you feel that you desired to be parented as a child? That really is the lesson of the season – looking at how you self-parent, rather than getting caught in the victimhood of childhood experiences. It’s about recognising that you can be the nurturer that you wanted and needed growing up, and acting in the ways that really show that love to yourself.

“For some, this could mean seeking out a therapist to move through inner child healing work, but it may also just be being really gentle with self around the experiences you had as a child."

It’s also a good time to connect with your mother or mother figure if you have the ability to do that, says Hollie, because this season is the energy of the mother, "so mother healing is heightened at this time”.

2. Make your home a sanctuary.

“Create a space you feel safe in at home – something that feels really inviting and nurturing. Cancer season is a time where the home cooks are going to come out to play, so spend more time in the kitchen cooking if that feels good to you. Rug up, rest and retreat for the sake of recharging.”

3. Connect with your intuition.

"This is the season for us to develop intuitive practices and connect inward. It's a beautiful time to pick up that meditation practice that you forgot about – or maybe you want to feel into a more spiritually inclined practice, like pulling cards and writing in your journal about the wisdom that's coming through for you," suggests Hollie.

"It's a really good time to become more in tune with your energy and spirituality."