Astrology is subjective. One's interpretation of a horoscope will be completely different from another individual. I'm not here to tell you how you should live your life or what you should and shouldn't believe, but the alignment of the stars can be a powerful sign.

Bad days happen to us whether you believe in astrology or not- it's inevitable. Sometimes, it's just easier to blame the celestial universe when things are going wrong in our life. Has someone ever told you it's because "Mercury is in retrograde?" Well, during Mercury retrograde -which happens at least three times a year- there is a phenomenon that occurs where an illusion of planet Mercury appears to be traveling backward due to the surrounding orbits from other planets. The planet Mercury symbolizes a variety of things: communication, emotion, and self-reflection. The whole concept of the planet Mercury "traveling backward" insinuates that these areas may be affected, sometimes negatively. The worst part?

Mercury retrograde is happening right now.

With summer break (and for some, summer semester) coming to an end, Mercury retrograde will either make you a better person or break you down with all the things that can go wrong during this time. Not to be dramatic, but the bad days -that turn into weeks- are seemingly never-ending. July's Mercury retrograde started on the 7th and will not end until the 31st. I, and I am sure many others, have been feeling the wrath of Mercury retrograde.

There are certain things you're not supposed to do during the Mercury retrograde; you shouldn't rely on technology (one of my e-mails was sent to the wrong person), make big decisions (booked an Airbnb that ended up being canceled), or start anything new (my attempt at a new skin routine resulted in excessively breaking out). I'm a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. Sometimes, those reasons are beyond my control, so I blame the celestial universe for that.

To be quite honest, the only thing you can do during a Mercury retrograde is to try to embrace it. Taking a break from social media, maintaining clear communication, reflecting on important aspects of your life, or whatever it may be, will always be beneficial for you. You wouldn't have read this far if you did not believe in some form of astrological force, and Mercury retrograde is not a force that you should ignore or underestimate.