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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Iowa chapter.

Valentine’s Day is the dreaded sappy, romantic “holiday” that most people wish they could skip (if only that were possible). If you don’t have a cute boy or girl in your life during this time, you’re probably throwing up at all the romantic movies, heart candy and ginormous teddy bears you see in every store you walk into. There’s no need to mope around today. And even though you might be disappointed you don’t have a man in your life, I guarantee those “goal” couples you see on Instagram are spending an ungodly amount of money on their boyfriend that they secretly have lots of issues with. Although today is supposed to be for those lovey dovey couples, it doesn’t have to be. Today can be YOUR day, whether you have someone by your side or not. Here are five different ways to be your own Valentine this Valentine’s Day!

1.   Write yourself a love note.

Yes, I did just tell you to pick up a pretty colored pen and tell yourself how great you are. There’s nothing wrong with reminding yourself once in awhile why there’s nobody else you’d rather be than YOU! Here’s a little tip: if you send it to yourself in the mail a few days early, you can tell everyone you have a secret admirer!

2.   Treat YO SELF!

Whether that’s buying yourself a new outfit or just taking the day to relax, you can use this day to do something for yourself because you are AWESOME. Oh, and here’s a plus! If you go to the stores the next day, everything Valentine’s will be on SALE! And we all know there’s nothing girls love more than a good sale, especially on chocolate. Am I right ladies?

3.   Rent a badass girls movie.

Even if you are single, you don’t have to be alone on Valentine’s Day. Call your best friends and invite them over to watch girl’s movies all day. It can be empowering being surrounded by your best friends and watching a kick ass movie at the same time! You can even pretend you’re Taylor Swift’s girl squad.

4.   Get dressed up!

You know all the couples will be going out to dinner… and all the girls will be getting dressed up for their guy. But you can, too, but for yourself, of course! Shave those legs that you haven’t touched in a few weeks, curl those beautiful locks of yours, and put on your favorite dress! You will look oh so fine and maybe if you go out, you’ll just so happen to run into the love of your life! Wow, looks like you’re in luck and won’t be needing my advice next year!

5.   Lastly, don’t fret.

You are so young and have your whole life ahead of you. You don’t need a man right now, and I promise you’ll be just fine. If you’re that worried, just make a list of celebrity men who just happen to be single right now. I’m sure they’re dying for a girl like you, and maybe one day you’ll casually run into Harry Styles, and he’ll fall madly in love with you. But really, how cool would that be?

All jokes aside, Valentine’s Day is not only for couples. Let’s take this day to embrace and love who we are, and let’s take on this world together.

Natalie Lawyer is a sophomore at the University of Iowa studying Journalism. She is also a member of the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. Her dreams are to eventually leap into the fashion world and write for a fashion magazine. In her free time she loves to make YouTube videos about fashion and lifestyle. You can check her out on YouTube at youtube.com/natalielawyer. Stay in the know and catch me on Twitter and Instagram (@natalielawyer)!
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