What does this mean? I've heard that in karmic astrology retrogrades in your chart mean you have not learned that specific lesson tied to whatever planet is in retrograde. I have NO retrogrades in my chart...and I know there must be some lessons I've come here to learn

we all do.  :)  maybe you just don't need to be hit upside the head.

I don't think retros are about whether or not you have something to learn there.  purely my opinion but I think they're just a different flavored energy in that arena. 

You should breath more easily than the rest of us.

Maybe the North/South Nodes are more representative of the karmic lessons you're alluding to. Retrogrades are extremely common, especially for the outer planets, which are that way for probably half of each and every year. Some are rare in comparison though - I have Venus Rx for example, and once read that only about 7% of the entire population can have that placement because it doesn't occur very often. 

I think those Rx's may indicate a more introspective way of processing things. My sister also has a chart completely free of them and a lot of life's "goodies" seemed to gravitate to her more consistently and without as much strife as what I would have to go through.

I used to get a different impression - that she was born having it a lot easier in this world - but again it just might be a different flavored energy, as satori says. I don't know how the hell she would handle the energy in MY chart ;)

All the planets that could possibly be retrograde in my chart have that status except for Mars and Jupiter.  

i have venus retrograde.  don't exactly understand it... keeping in mind it's very tightly conjunct eris and tightly opposing pluto, with some other aspects too and it's a little difficult to figure out what comes from where.

though i will say the wedding date we set is during a venus retrograde.  i'm not actually surprised by that.  or scared.  it's the first for both of us and we're both in our thirties... eventually it's time to get around to learning a thing or two.

 i will say it's felt like i spent twenty years clearing out karma. not sure quite what to think of that.  but cleaning out dirty laundry i left behind.  a lot of people have felt... familiar to me.  and, really, i couldn't judge that in any certainty.  but i finally feel like i've made myself a stable foundation.  and i didn't have that for a very long time.

i'm not sure how much sense that makes.

i have a sibling with nearly everything retrograde who has done really well in many ways.  far better than me on some levels.

but nothing retrograde sounds like maybe you have a cleaner slate to start with than most?

I had to check my chart and got a pleasant surprise.  For some reason I thought I remembered seeing a lot of retrogrades, but nope.  Just Mercury, Neptune, and Chiron.

Sometimes I feel bad for my Merc, being all a-sploded and gettin' the stink-eye from Saturn.  Now the poor fella's all retrograde-like to boot.  Thank cheese he's got a Neptune trine to fall back on. 
(Nah, my Merc is highly functional in a dysfunctional sort-of way.  It's when I throw other people into the mix that it gets wonky.)

I don't know that I agree with the whole karmic angle on retrogrades, anyway.  I hadn't really thought about it in that light, and of course haven't read up on it, but it seems to me that a retrograde, if anything, would just mean a tangling-up of energy.  Not necessarily blocks (hey, that's Saturn's realm), but more like hurdles.  Curbs.  Something small but easily clearable.