This Pluto Conjunct Neptune transit is utter torture!

I'm currently going through this transit right now, and overall, it's been very difficult from what I've found. At times, my ease of comfort seems very much inhibited.

I feel that the underlying theme of it has been more like a questioning of spiritual beliefs, soul-seeking, and the search for absolute truth.

The transit period started in February 2007. It went into 3 degree orb for first time. Then it went 0d 5m away from exact in beginning of April 2008 and made its first exact pass on December 31, 2008. It made its second exact pass on July 23, 2009, right after the solar eclipse. It makes its last exact pass in a week and goes out of orb completely at the end of January 2010. However, it goes within a 3 degree orb for the last time in September 2010 until the transit is completely over in November 2010.

My natal chart with current transits is attached below.

Here are what I found the key manifestations of each conjunction to be:

First conjunction:
-In April 2007, I first started looking into astrology during the time that month when Mercury squared my Neptune.
-Then, in May 2007, there were some days where I spent up to 14 hours researching astrology. During this time, Mars was square my Neptune. At this time, I didn't get too much into the astrology (nothing beyond the natal stuff). Whatever I had got into, I seemingly felt mentally tormented by it.

Second conjunction:
-In the week of Christmas of 2007, I began questioning the Christian beliefs that I've held up to that point in my life. I started to become convinced that religions were built off of delusions. So, I started watching calpurnpiso's atheist videos on youtube. During this time, Sun, Jupiter, and Mercury were also conjunct Neptune. Mars was in opposition to it as well. This was also a Mars Rx period, so Mars had made the second of its three oppositions here.
-On one night of early April of 2008, while Pluto was stationed going Rx, I encountered videos of confrontational street evangelists on youtube. I felt so distressed and agitated by what they said that I went out driving at 4:00am. During this time, Mercury was square my Neptune as well, and Saturn was in a trine to it.

First exact pass:
-Two days before the conjunction went exact, I was watching a space meditation video on youtube. I was reading the comments on it, and I saw a person 'pushing Jesus', saying that "all New Agers are going to perish" towards the video author. I got set off by it and started cursing at them, using the "f" word (which I don't normally do). However, the comments didn't go through as the author had it set where the comments had to be approved by him before they would be posted. At the time, Mars was also conjunct my Neptune.
-Basically, the week or so leading up to this first pass was quite difficult and distressing. I was very unsatisfied with how things were in my life. I had this program called I-Dozer which uses sound waves to simulate effects of drugs, and I was using this alot to try to have astral projections in order to get advice from others in the astral realms as to where to go in my life (e.g. career path).
-By the start of 2009, after the first pass had occurred, I started to feel a bit better. As the conjunction got to separating, thus weakening, I got rid of I-Dozer. I then started to focus on things that I had been interested in in the past (e.g. computers, audio/sound, etc.). By February, I started being less fixated in the mystical/paranormal stuff. Also, right after the exact pass, I stopped going to church altogether and haven't gone since then. I put belief systems on the back-burner.

Second exact pass:
-After Pluto went Rx in April 2009, thus re-applying back towards exact conjunction to Neptune, I got back into astrology, but this time, much more in-depth. I got where I know quite a bit about it. Upon getting really into it, Mars was also square my Neptune. Mars often acts as a trigger in making [outer planet] transits really manifest.
-Several days leading to the exact conjunction on July 2009, I started 'accidentally' running into the confrontational type of Christian people. What I mean is, when looking up something having nothing to do with religion, it would turn up a match to a 'fundamentalist' Christian page that had something on it (usually with something condemning about it). Commonly, this would occur when looking up astrological concepts. Also, I started having problems with the confrontational evangelists again. I got enraged by all of this, so I started extensively researching the astrology behind religious fanatics.
-By the time the conjunction began separating, I felt this since of freedom, and it seemed as if I had forgotten all that stuff I heard and read.

Third exact pass:
-This occurs in a week. However, after Pluto went direct again in September and began applying back to an exact conjunct with Neptune again, I began having difficulties again. I started having issues with depression again. The Mercury Rx (I always feel worse during these times) in September nor Saturn Quincunx natal Mercury transit through this month have helped matters any.
-We've been having a lot of car problems. On October 5, the engine in my mother's car blew. She then borrowed my grandpa's car to drive. 10 days later, the fuel pump died. I have also been without a car since beginning of this year. My sister's car messed up late last year, so she has had to borrow mine. However, when I last drove it to get the oil changed (which hadn't been done in 2 years), I discovered that it's in worse condition now than it was early in the year before she got it.
-From October 15 to October 20, Mars squared my Mercury/Pluto opposition and made a quincunx to my Neptune.
-On October 17, my grandmother died. The funeral was on the 20th.

The last week, overall, hasn't been good at all, and I'm not looking forward to the Saturn Square Neptune coming up either. So, after the last exact pass of Pluto Conjunct Neptune, I don't think I'm out of the woods yet. Not only that, in the beginning of November, Mercury, Sun, and Mars will be forming a T-Square to my Sun. The square of Mars to my Sun will last a little longer since Mars will be moving a little bit slower.

What were your personal experiences with this Pluto/Neptune transit?

Hey, you have been through a lot and your descriptions o f events and evolutions points directly to the influence of Neptune which is dissolving, confusion, removal of barriers and dreams as well as spiritual aspects.
I would pay attention to aspects to your Venus in the 8th which rules your 9th house of state of mind and beliefs. It has been a bit under the gun with Uranus and it forms an inconjunct to mars indicating adjustments needed.
When mars is triggered so shall Venus. Something to note.
Neptune has been trining my sun in Gemini in 3rd and opposing my moon in Virgo 6th and squaring Jupiter in the 8th. These ruler my 3rd, 4th 5th and 9th houses respectivily.
Alot of which I can not blame entirely on Neptune has Saturn and Uranus have done there damage. Pluto has just begun its damage as it is now in trine to natal Pluto in the 6th and will conjoin MC, natal saturn, AC and inconjunct natal mars and venus in the 5th and oppose mercury in the 4th.
I can tell you Neptune created an overly optimistic and rose colored perspective of a relationship (5th) that was 'dissolving' before my eyes but I was in denial. The person kept me 'confused' as to where he was going with it even though I confronted him (sun) nmany times. As Neptune retrograded back to its position at 23 closer to exact with sun, moon and jupiter it was as if 'a veil lifted' and all the illusion was shattered as he said 'I do not know if I will ever be able to come back'. Saturn (reality) had just passed its conjunction with the moon.
My mother (moon) had to move out of our family home (4th house) due to 'dissolving' health issues and balance problems from a stroke.
I developed and had surgery on skin cancer (neptune inconjunct moon in 6th) and hernia though I may contribute that again to Saturns passage through 6th then Neptunes inconjunct as saturn rules skin however the two combined I think were not so good.
My car, tv, computer, hot water heater, mothers car...it all went to hell but my mothers donated her tv, computer, car to me since she moved with my sister and though her car needed repairs I am driving hers so Transiting Uranus in trine to natal jupiter gave me a bit of luck or benefit. Dont think it is will replace the partner though I don't think mom had one of those in the closet
Now Pluto...that is an interesting question.
As you know Mars is forming an inconjunction to Pluto at 1 degree right now.
This will go back and forth for some time as Mars will retrograde at 19 degrees Leo in dec. and finally go direct at 0 degrees Leo in April.
This I consider a very powerful transit and not to be ignored.
First Pluto is, as noted forming powerful aspects to my MC, Saturn and inconjunct to mars and venus in the fifth though they are at 7 degrees in Leo so I have a bit...or do I. I have three mars returns this year! And it will form an opposition to mercury in the4th!!
The last 24 four hours have been painfully odd. I pulled a chart for the moment of the apex of events and Pluto was sitting on the AC with Mars inconjunct in the 7th of course latter degrees but there it is ...
Yesterday may have been a portend of things to come..I don't know.
I squabbled with my daughter and son as we have accumulated 4 tardies thus my son has to get to school half an hour earlier. My daughter in her teenageness spends too much time doing the makeup. I ran into my ex...though I thought I had it down I have been struggling with the grieving process and passed him as I was in the 'anger' phase I made a smart remark of course and then subsequently spent 3 hours sniveling in my office. My boss and I almost argued about a case. I just could not handle criticism right then. My mother called me and my father is not doing well. We are concerned as he lives in an isolated spot in Maine and drinks from 4 on. His brother visited and contacted my mom day before yesterday to tell her the news. He is showing some signs of senility or could be dementia due to the alcohol. About a month ago I noticed a sudden change as he calls me every sunday. It was quite strange and I was very concerned. Of course he is very stubborn and will not listen to anyone. Thus Plutos forward aspect with inconjunction by mars is very telling.
My mind has been splintered and shattered and I am trying to collect my wits, my mind. I am trying to race through grief. I found a few hours of 'acceptance' and loved that emotional place of forgiveness and letting go but can not seem to get there again. I hope and pray that I can find my way again but I suspect the road is going to be a bit rocky.

For you with Pluto transforming neptune and mars triggering an inconjunction..there will be this time of powerful adjustments, powerful energy. And since Neptune is a generational planet others will most likely be feeling the same.
For you too see how Neptune and pluto form a yod to your chiron..wounded healer. This will be a powerful time for you in terms of dealing with some wound and in the 9th no less. Your beliefs and state of mind will be profoundly changed by the time pluto moves away from Neptune. Maybe you will start your own organization.
See how venus (9th + harmony) with mercury ( 10th + mind) with Sun (12th + life force) reside in the 8th of rebirth, recovery, rehabilitation, psychoanalysis, investigation. Maybe you will go into the mental health field or recovery field. This transit will tell a story for you I am sure.

We have the same Virgo Ascendant so I feel the effect of the transits in the same houses. I can confirm about the feeling of restriction, but I don't think it's because of Pluto conjuncting your natal Neptune.

The slow-moving planets usually affect your personal planets (i.e., Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus and Mars) and the house they are transiting.

I appreciate the input.

Another major transit I've been going through is Neptune Square Mars. This started on March 2008 and ends on November 2010, so this is a long transit also.

This transit here is classically known to be very negative.
http://www.thoughts.com/HighPriestess/blog/neptune-square-mars-project-112562/

Based on how I've been feeling, I can certainly relate to some interpretations of that transit.

Robert Hand calls this the Framed aspect. Here's his interpretation:
There are a number of dangers with this influence. It affects your sense of who you are and challenges the validity of the life course you have set for yourself, as well as your image of yourself as an effective person. The chief danger of this influence is that it sets you up for situations in which you will emerge as a loser, especially in your work and at home. Or someone else may set you up in such a way that you are forced to act without knowing what is really going on, and therefore you act ineffectively. Since you are not likely to get much reinforcement from others at this time, you will be forced to rely on your own inner resources and self- confidence. Do not expect others to provide you with backbone; you need to provide your own. Be careful not to get involved with any dubious schemes, and make sure that any project you do get into is real. Certainly avoid anything you know to be corrupt or dishonest, for you will probably lose out and lose face as well. Defeats may make you feel discouraged. But don't take them too seriously. Like all influences, this one will pass. and there is a lesson to be learned here. The more you identify with what you do rather than what you are, the more difficulties this influence will cause. You are not what you do. This influence may force you to confront that issue, and if it does, you will learn to handle your life much more successfully because you will not always have to protect yourself. Another danger during this time is that you may become wrapped up in fighting for some terribly idealistic cause that has little chance of succeeding or of giving you any real satisfaction. All that you can count on is that you will be required to surrender your individuality for a "higher purpose," which usually turns out to be someone else's ego.

From cafeastrology.com:
*Work and important projects undergo difficult changes now. You are likely to feel very frustrated and disheartened at times, but don't completely lose faith and throw everything out the window! This is certainly a time of questioning your values, goals, and directions in life, but try to come to rational decisions rather than act simply out of frustration.

However, I've noticed the negative side of the transit most during the retrograde passes.

Neptune Square Mars went exact the first time on March 12, 2009. February and March of this year were relatively pleasant. I was more creative during this time. However, Pluto Conjunct Neptune was separating and was more than 1 1/2 degree away from Neptune the whole time. So, Neptune Square Mars and Saturn Conjunct Ascendant had taken over as the strongest influences at that time.

With the retrograde pass of Neptune Square Mars in August, I felt a bit more of the negative side of the transit than I did on the direct pass.

I checked my progressions, which are posted below, and I noticed that my progressed Venus is currently on Algol, which is often known to be a malefic, ill-fated star.

Fortunately, though, it's separating. It's currently at 27d Tau 11m.

Natally, Venus is my 9th House ruler, and in the 8th. My progressed Venus is currently in my natal 9th and progressed 8th. It rules my progressed ASC (Libra).

From February 2007 to October 2008, my progressed Venus opposed my natal Mars. Neptune has also been squaring my progressed Venus for a while.

Lastly, my progressed Moon is currently in Pisces. A member in another thread of mine mentioned that this was likely playing a part in the issues that I've been experiencing lately. It entered into this sign at the end of January of 2008. Upon entering it, it made a square to my progressed Sun (in natal 9th House), square to my Chiron.

Recently, my progressed Moon crossed my natal DSC. In December, it's going to form a conjunction to transiting Uranus. Then, in February 2010, it's going to form a trine to natal Mars. Then, in May 2010, it will make a sextile to progressed Venus, opposition to transiting Saturn, and a conjunction to transiting Jupiter. In August 2010, it enters Aries.

this time of powerful adjustments, powerful energy. And since Neptune is a generational planet others will most likely be feeling the same.

Click to expand...

this interests me. everyone i know under 25 years will be affected by transit pluto conjunct natal neptune. powerful times? also there are a bunch of people around 20 and younger who have neptune, saturn and uranus all in capricorn that are about to experience the effects of pluto transititing these point. I wonder what this means for this generation over the next 12 years. So much transformation!

Good question. really as neptune is dissolve, loosening of boundaries, dreams, illusions and Capricorn is ambition, patience, conservatism, organization, career-mindedness, discipline. Wherever Neptune is in the chart these key words will fit and add 'transformation' 'death and rebirth' 'powerful forces, 'the underworld' sexuality. Maybe this is the generation that will change the 'status quo' again or finally pass the same sex marriage ban or some such . and so much more I suspect.

Pluto Conjunct Neptune made its last exact pass this past Thursday.

On October 24, I was offered a job opportunity. It is a job at O'Reilly Auto Parts delivering auto parts. That day, the Sun conjoined my Pluto and sextile'd my Neptune. On October 26, I submitted the online application.

Jupiter is entering into my 6th House (employment) and is still trine my Midheaven (career).

On October 28, we got the car back from my sister to take care of some stuff with it. First, I brought everything out of it to the inside of the house. I found the car was very dirty; both interior and exterior. I spent hours that day cleaning it up. I double-washed the exterior (first time with dawn soap and second time with zip-wax as there was so much dirt and stains on the body). Then I detailed the interior; polished everything, cleaned the windows, and vacuumed it. After I did everything, the car looked decent again, for once.

All of the dirt and stains came off the body more easily than I thought. This car here, btw, is a 1995 Chrysler New Yorker. It's in the luxury class of cars. Back when it was new, it cost around $30000. After I got the car looking good again, we went to the shop to clean out my sister's car so they could take it to the junk yard. So, overall, this day was quite busy.

That day, Mercury was conjunct my Pluto and sextile my Neptune.

Here is something else I found on the Pluto Conjunct Neptune transit.

For everyone born in this Neptune sextile Pluto generation there comes a point in time when transiting Pluto arrives at the point that Neptune occupied in the natal horoscope (for those born in the twentieth century, this occurs at some time during one's twenties); and because of Pluto's retrograde (back-and-forth) motion the effect lasts for almost a year. The specific events triggered by transiting Pluto conjunct Neptune can occur anytime during that period; but the general tendency is for them to occur at the beginning or at the end (rather than in the middle). A lot of what might be expected to happen depends on what else is going on at the same time in other transit and progressions. Generally speaking, however, transiting Pluto conjunct Neptune presents a major challenge: important new responsibilities or commitments. At first you may doubt your ability to handle them; there's a question of whether you're really up to it. Since it's transiting Pluto, it tends to extremes: thus transiting Pluto conjunct Neptune is either extremely joyous and fulfilling (the usual case, since the planets are natally sextile); or else it's an extreme bummer (if concurrent transit and progressions are unfavorable); but it's rarely in-between. Thus Pluto means extreme something: you have to push something to the limits. What is required is acting (and reacting) according to your gut-level intuition (Neptune) to go with how you feel rather than what society has told you (the natal Neptune sextile Pluto influence). This is a year of maturation, of putting aside your rose-tinted illusions (Neptune) and coming to grips with life directly (Pluto).

http://www.articlesbase.com/astrology-articles/neptune-sextile-pluto-117377.html

This would explain why it was as difficult as it was. According to this, it was not the transit itself (Pluto/Neptune are sextile natally) but rather, the other transits and progressions that were occurring simultaneously during the transit period. In my case:
Neptune squaring natal Mars
Progressed Moon in Pisces
Progressed Moon squaring H9 Chiron through February and March 2008
Progressed Venus opposing natal Mars
Saturn transiting through 12th House until October 2008
Saturn squaring Nodal axis until August 2008
Uranus going over the Descendant until January 2009
Progressed Sun conjunct Chiron and quincunx Pluto/Neptune until August 2008
Pluto Quincunx natal Chiron

Quite a bit of Neptune influence overall

I'm now currently going through the Saturn Square Neptune transit as well, and I don't really notice anything in particular from that one so far.

In your experience, what is this one supposed to be like?

I've read about it, and it mentions about wounded self-confidence, difficult time in terms of self-image, pessimism/depression, etc.