As a former Love Coach, and even now as a Mind-Body Wellness Specialist, when I start talking about Valentine’s Day, I have many people balking about it and complaining about a forced day to celebrate couples. Some even go as far as calling it “cheesy” or “a waste of time”. While I respectfully disagree of course, I do understand how some can judge the day so harshly, particularly if they are feeling lack in that area, either because they are alone or are unhappy in the relationship they’re in.
The thing about Valentine’s Day that makes it important, however, isn’t that it is a day just to celebrate couples. The day, in fact, is to celebrate Love overall, whether romantic or not. Whether we like it or not, having some form of Love in our lives is actually necessary for good health. There are constant articles and research coming out telling us that loneliness is detrimental for health. In fact, you can find quite a few such articles and videos on both my website and my YouTube channel. In Naturopathy, we learn that full healthy balance relies on health in three main areas: our mind, our heart and our gut. So full health can only exist if all three are looked after (I would add with exercise and looking after our bodies as well).
So having a day to celebrate Love and to remind us about the importance of having some kind of Love in our lives seems pretty key. But celebrating Love isn’t just for couples. We should celebrate the Love we feel for our friends, our family, our community and even a higher power. Why not use Valentine’s Day to reconnect with people we haven’t spoken to in a while and to celebrate our feelings of happiness for knowing them. When I was in high school many years back, before my close friends and I started dating, we would send Valentine’s Day chocolates and cards to each other on Valentine’s Day and write each other lovely cards to remind each other how much our friendship meant. When you’re a teenager and going through that time of feeling misunderstood and unloved as hormones are rampant, sometimes such a card from a close friend is enough to change the entire outlook of your day into a happy one.
So this Valentine’s Day, instead of hiding or rolling your eyes at the fact that you have to get through an entire day of smoochy couples and people asking you if you are doing something tonight, why not instead celebrate the fact that Love exists and that it is still our greatest weapon against hate and crimes of hate as well as against loneliness. And meanwhile, if you are one part of a couple, why not celebrate that as well and the fact that you’re still together against all odds, and remember what it was that brought you two together in the first place. Remember how beautiful your love once was and it can be again. Happy Valentine’s Day!
