Valentine’s Day is a made up Hallmark holiday meant to sell cards and over-priced stuffed animals. It’s a million dollar market that people keep buying into. The idea behind it is sort of sweet: one whole day dedicated to cherishing the one you love. However, due to the fallacy that love solves everything, those who are single on February 14th are often left feeling unloved and unwanted. This is not true!
We believe that people need to love us, but we should be loving ourselves the way we want others to. It’s important to remember, as Christina Yang from Grey’s Anatomy says, “You are the sun”. You are your own light. The world doesn’t revolve around anyone but yourself.
We need to make practicing self-love more mainstream. Too often, we let what other’s want eclipse what we need when we shouldn’t. Self-love is putting yourself first because at the end of the day, the person that will be with you forever is yourself.
This Valentine’s Day, make sure you are taking care of yourself for yourself. This goes for physically as well as mentally. Do something for yourself: go for a walk, watch your favorite movie, pick up a book, draw, etc. Don’t let the endless Instagram feed of couples in love get you down. In fact, it’s 100% okay to avoid all social media in an effort to avoid the “bae”s and “i love you”s. You can do this without being salty or petty. It can be refreshing to go a day without social media. You can spend the hours you’d usually spend on your phone doing something you’d prosper from.
From a very young age, we are taught that to be happy, you need to be in love. This is a lie told so we buy into the capitalist scheme that being with someone on Valentine’s Day is the ultimate goal. V Day? More like Me Day! Kick it with your favorite person— yourself.
Just because you’re currently single doesn’t mean you are undesirable or unlovable. It just means you’re strong enough to be on your own without anyone else to worry about. No amount of flowers, chocolate, or other material items determines your self-worth. Even if you don’t have a S/O, you are still loved. Valentine’s Day is good only for recognizing the healthy relationships you have in your life: the one with yourself, your best friend, parents, siblings, pets, etc. Go out of your way to express your gratitude and love towards them.