It's normal to fall into a bit of a slump around this time of the semester. It's normal to feel a little unmotivated, a little lost, stressed, panicked. For that normal slump, you take a break, take a deep breath and plunge ahead until you finish. Sure it's still hard but you know you're strong enough to keep going. Or at least you have people in your life who can remind you you're strong enough to keep going.

But what if your "normal" slump isn't normal? What if you simply don't care anymore? What if, no matter how many breaks you take you can't seem to plunge ahead? What if you just can't shake that feeling that, despite what everyone keeps telling you, maybe everything won't be okay? When things feel this bad, it might be worthwhile to consider taking a break from it all.

We all have this plan in our heads about how our life will go. We'll go to college, finish in four years, we'll get a great job, maybe have a family. But stuff happens that can completely throw us off track. And when you feel that far gone, sometimes it's worth taking a second to get your barring's straight.

Don't get me wrong, life isn't fun all the time. It is supposed to be a little hard and a little stressful. It's good to challenge yourself and push yourself and it's necessary to do so if you really want to get the most out if life. But you shouldn't be struggling. You shouldn't lose interest in everything you used to enjoy and you shouldn't feel like your world is crumbling around you. Pain like that is your wakeup call that something is wrong and something needs to change.

If you're in college, maybe that means changing your major or taking time off or studying abroad or getting some mental health help. If you're out of school or haven't been to school, maybe that means going to school or changing jobs or moving or, again, getting some mental health help. Whatever that means for you, do it. I can't guarantee people will agree with you but I can guarantee that doing what's best for you will help you in the long run. You can still be receptive to advice to make sure you're making a good decision but in the end, you know what's best for you. As Kacey Musgraves put it, "Follow your arrow wherever it points."