Single Girl’s Guide To Valentine’s Day
With a whopping 49% of the U.S. flying solo this V-Day, Cupid is getting equal amounts of hate mail and love letters. If you’re dateless on the 14th, follow our guide to having an awesome single girl’s holiday. We talked to relationship experts so that you won’t just feel great this Valentine’s Day, but may even score yourself a guy for next year!
Go Out!
According to Dr. Helen Fisher, who works with Match.com, there are 96 million single people in the U.S. So, get out there; don't stay home! Want to feel like your most confident self? "Do flirty gestures like swishing your hair, don't slouch and smile," says Dr. Fisher. "When you smile, people naturally mimic you, which triggers a release of dopamine (the feel-good hormone) in the brain."
Send flowers to yourself
Some may see this as desperate. Those people are being small-minded
(and are probably NOT single, so who are they to judge?). If you can't
bring yourself to send flowers to yourself at the office, send them to
your house. There is something about a bouquet of flowers that brings
sunshine and hope into your world. If flowers can be that beautiful in
the first couple weeks of February, which is still cold and miserable in
most parts of the country, then maybe your love life has half a chance
too. It's all in how you look at things.
Boycott
You can take a stand against Valentine's Day. Form a coalition with
other singles and come up with a catchy name for your group --
"Single-by-Choice," or something of that nature. Host your first meeting
on Valentine's Day in a lounge and vent about all your failed
relationships. There's half a chance you'll come away feeling hostile
and depressed, but there is also half a chance you'll come away feeling
glad
you are single. There's even a remote chance you'll meet someone while
you are out pretending it's your choice you are alone on Valentine's
Day. Whatever the outcome, at least you're not at home, in your
thread-bare pajamas, pegging out the pity meter.
Make dinner plans with kids, your sister or a friend
Valentine's Day is about love. You love lots of people, right? Does
it have to be about celebrating a romantic relationship? Of course not.
This year, just think of Valentine's Day as a way to express your love
for your kids, a friend or your sister. Go out to dinner with your
chosen guest. And never forget this one simple rule when it comes to
Valentine's Day: It comes around EVERY year. Just because you're not
caught up in a passionate love affair this year doesn't mean you can't
be by this time next year.
Be grateful
How valid of a "holiday" is Valentine's Day?
It's a little bit made up. There's talk of some dude named Saint
Valentine, and from there things get a bit cloudy. It's just one day. In
the name of an attitude adjustment, focus on what you have, rather than
what you don't. So what have you got? Great kids? That makes you the
envy of at least half of the women out there. A job? Again, in this
economy, that gives you something to celebrate. Your health? There you
go. There is no greater gift. And at the risk of sounding cynical,
remember there are lots of women in relationships
this Valentine's Day who are completely miserable. Think about it.
Review the relationships of the women in your immediate circle. Sad
though it may be (and we would never encourage rejoicing in the misery
of others), are they really better off than you are? Even good
relationships take work and have occasional drama. Maybe it's okay that
you have a year off from all that.
