Just to clarify, the title is a little misleading. Of course I care about Valentine’s Day- I’m writing about it. But I really do believe that half of the hype of Valentines is created by the commercialization of love and society’s odd obsession with relationships. I just never understood it. And it probably doesn’t help that I’ve never been in a relationship during the Valentine’s Day season. I don’t mean to wallow in self pity, but I understand that single people often do get sad around this season. We’ve created a day that celebrates love; more specifically, romantic love. And it’s in everything we consume too. It’s in our movies, music, and the advertisements we get right before watching a good Youtube video. It’s extremely hard to escape it. It’s so easy to fall into that pit of existential dread because sometimes you can just feel so lonely. And most of the time we’re not even lonely. We have friends, our family, and maybe even a pet. It’s just this fixation that society has on romantic relationships that makes us yearn for what we don’t have. So, here’s some advice on how to navigate Valentine’s Day from one single person to another.
Be Kind To Yourself
Valentine’s Day is still a celebration of love. And that means all forms of love. Don’t be too harsh on yourself if you’re not celebrating it with a significant other. Find love in other parts of your life; your friends, family, that comfort movie you haven’t watched in awhile. Give yourself the same amount of love you’re so eager to give to a person you have yet to meet.
Avoid Those Cheesy Love Songs
I understand that it’s pretty unavoidable if you were to turn on a random station on the radio. I recommend to make a playlist that strictly doesn’t include any love songs. Don’t try to sneak in a sad Phoebe Bridgers track or two. Make sure you keep yourself motivated and happy. Have something to power walk to as you try to make your way to class. Try whatever you can to avoid those love triggers!
Plan Something With Your Friends/Family
Go have a dinner with your cherished relationships. I understand that some people may have relationships of their own, but try recruiting all your single friends who probably don’t have plans of their own. And if you don’t have any single friends at the moment, try and hang out with your family. And if you don’t have either, having a self-care night is more than okay. Everyone deserves to feel loved, even you.
Just remember it’s only one day out of 365 other days. You got this!