8 Ideas for a Happy Valentine’s Day Without a Partner

You Don’t Need a Date to Have a Great Valentine’s Day!

Valentine’s Day is fast approaching… Are you feeling depressed yet?

For many of us, Valentine’s Day, a holiday that is supposed to celebrate the beauty of love and friendship, has become a source of anxiety and pain. Why?

Because Valentine’s Day reminds us of the ways we do not measure up, fit in or have enough.

We have been brainwashed to believe that we must be in a happy relationship with an affluent, thoughtful and generous companion to be happy.

Commercials start early on flashing at us diamonds, romantic scenes and marriage proposals.

As the day goes on in the office, we keep seeing the delivery guys from the flower shops bringing in the bouquets—the spring mixes, the roses, the long-stemmed roses—and we wonder…is that one mine? When will mine come in?

So, if you’re the unlucky gal who got the gas station 3-mum-bouquet with the teddy bear on a stick, or worse—the boyfriend who forgot, or worst—no man at all, you will feel miserable and will wish that the calendar missed Valentine’s Day altogether.

Unfortunately, unattached women feel bad about themselves on Valentine’s Day because we are conditioned to believe that we need a partner to validate our self-worth and to offer us gifts of flowers, candy and jewelry to demonstrate their affection.

 

With all this misguided brouhaha, no wonder we lose the meaning of this joyful feast and the precious gift every moment brings with it.

I therefore declare that Valentine’s Day is an overrated holiday and propose changing the rules of engagement from this day forward!

Make this Valentine’s Day your best up to now and keep on making them better and better every year!

The simple solution to enjoying ourselves without a partner is to nurture ourselves, and to give to ourselves those things we have been trained to expect from a partner.

 

Self-worth comes from within and can be cultivated. With a little self-care and love towards others, you can make this Valentine’s Day the best up to now!

Here are 8 fun ways to celebrate:

1. Buy yourself flowers the week before Valentine’s Day, before prices go up, and enjoy their beauty for days before the depressing holiday.
2. Go to the spa or even better–turn your home into a spa–and treat yourself to a scented bubble bath with candles, music, a glass of wine, a hair and facial treatment, and emerge feeling like a goddess.
3. Buy yourself a beautiful piece of jewelry to represent your unwavering commitment to put yourself first. Remember those right-hand rings that were popular 15 years ago? Women of the world, raise your right hands!
4. Have a party with your unattached friends and share the genuine beauty of love and friendship, which is what Valentine’s Day is truly about. Have each guest bring a festive dish and a small present and have a secret-cupid gift exchange.
5. Volunteer at a soup kitchen or homeless shelter. Performing acts of kindness makes us realize how blessed we are and reminds us to be grateful for the things we do have, instead of focusing on what we lack. Doing nice things for others takes the focus off our limitations and puts us in a happier state of mind.
6. Have a special date with your pet! Take your dog for a long walk in the woods or a play date at the park. Curl up with your kitty and watch your favorite movie.
7. Treat yourself to the book you’ve been dying to read and don’t stop until you’re finished!
8. Have a fun date with a child! Do you have a friend or relative with a delightful young kid? Offer to babysit and play with the child, play like a child! Do something you enjoyed doing when you were a kid! Your friend will be grateful for the couple time with his or her significant other and you will feel great about yourself.

These are just eight ideas, but the possibilities are endless!

What makes you feel joy? Go ahead and do it—on Valentine’s Day and every day of the year!

Life is not a dress rehearsal. May you enjoy the beautiful life you deserve!

 

Sonia Frontera is a family attorney, empowerment trainer and full-time doggie mom. She is the proud survivor of an unhappy marriage, a liberating divorce and is living proof that there’s life after separation.  Sonia is the author of the #1 bestseller “Solve the Divorce Dilemma: Do You Keep Your Husband or Do You Post Him on Craigslist?”

She loves to hear from readers and can be reached at her internet home.

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