How To Survive Valentine’s Day While Single

Many people believe that Valentine’s Day is the single most horrible day in the history of days. This is because many of these people are not in a relationship. Speaking from experience, being single on Valentine’s Day is not the greatest feeling. In elementary school, you had to give out ‘Valentines,’ which would leave you feeling ugly and unwanted if your crush gave you a Power Rangers themed card that read: ‘Thanks for being such a great friend!” In high school, you had to watch girls run around decked out in their heart themed pajama pants and then watch people receive candy grams (oh yeah, remember those?) in class. And now, years later, you have to watch people get flowers at work. It really never ends.

You most likely are dreading tomorrow if you are single. Instead of celebrating the color pink you want to celebrate the color black. Instead of going to work and listening to people talk about their date plans and what they got their BFs/GFs, you want to sit at home on your couch, eat macaroni and cheese, listen to Celine Dion’s “All By Myself,” and cry… because in that moment, you will feel like you are forever alone.

Well, I have good news for you: You are not forever alone. In fact, you are not alone at all. Do you have friends? Do you have a pet(s)? (yeah, I’m talking to you crazy cat lady) Do you have coworkers? Do you have family? I would hope the answer to most of the above is yes. Just because you are not in relationship right now, at this moment, does not mean that you should be miserable on Valentine’s Day.

Here a few tips on how to survive Valentine’s Day without a significant other:

1. Celebrate love. Even if you don’t have a significant other right now, that does not mean that you cannot celebrate love too. There has to SOMEONE out there that you love – dead or alive. Your family… your friends… your cat… your dog… your fish? Celebrate them. Vday should not just be about romantic love.

2. Hang out with friends. I’m assuming that all of your friends are not in relationships… and I’m also assuming that all of your friends in relationships will not be able to hang out with their S/Os on the actual day. So get together with these friends, have a few drinks, and eat some chocolate hearts (just because you don’t have a ‘lover’ doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a chocolate heart).  Oh, and I totally understand if you don’t want to hang with the relationship friend who will just ‘brag’ (or at least you’ll think it’s bragging) about the flowers her BF sent to her apartment this morning… so leave her out if you so choose.

3. Go to the gym. VDay is an awesome day to work out. Many people will be rushing around after work heading to a fancy restaurant or heading home to cook a ‘romantic’ dinner. So during this time, enjoy the lack of people hogging the treadmills… and embrace the open space in the room where you condition.

4. Get things done. To help keep your mind off the fact that you’re single, maybe offer to stay late at work to catch up on stuff… or run errands that you’ve been meaning to for weeks. There’s nothing like staying busy to keep your mind off things.

5. Ignore the holiday all together. When you decide to hate on something or be depressed over something, you are letting it get the best of you. Don’t let Valentine’s Day get the best of you. Seriously. It’s just some Hallmark holiday used to give many businesses a profit. Go about your day like you normally would, because in reality, it’s just any other day.

Whether or not you’re spending Valentine’s Day with a romantic loved one, a platonic loved one, or yourself… don’t get depressed and don’t claim that you will be forever alone. You’re not alone right now… and you most likely won’t be alone in the future. Sure, there may be times where you don’t have a significant other, but that doesn’t mean you are alone.

So if you want to be upset that you’re not in a relationship right now, fine (you’re wasting your own precious time, though)… but don’t let a Hallmark holiday be the cause. For now, embrace the fact that you are young, single, and can date around and do your OWN thing.