Today is February 6th, which means we are just 8 days away from possibly the worst day of the year if you're single like myself...the dreaded day that begins with a V...what is it?....Valentine's Day.
The time of the year when red roses triple in price, your local card shop becomes a tacky explosion of 'To The One I Love' cards, your inbox is flooded with Valentines emails from your favourite restaurants, you can't even pop into tesco for a pint of milk without being slapped in the face with Valentines gifts which you will not be receiving, the colour red is abso-bloody-lutely everywhere and even your beloved asos keep emailing you to see if you're Valentine's Day ready yet. (I thought you loved me asos!)
So although I try very hard not to be a bitter, single, cat-lady on the one day of the year where PDA rules seem to be abolished for the weekend and it's socially acceptable for both men and women to be as soppy and loved-up as they want, to be totally frank, it's extremely hard not to be. Facebook will be an explosion of cringy relationship summary statuses, Instagram will be raining 'luckiest girl' hashtags and lots and lots of Michael Kors watches, and Twitter will probably be full of the likes of me ranting about the commercialisation of the day of love, who really as much as they deny it, would rather be woken up to a bouquet of ridiculously overpriced roses and that Thorntons chocolate selection box, than waking up alone.
So, on my 22nd consecutive year of being single on Valentines Day, I'd say I've earnt my right to be a professional guide on how to survive Valentines Day if you're single, so here are this year's top 10 tips to get your single ass through February 14th...
1. TREAT YOURSELF
Just think about all the money you've saved not having to buy your other half a cringy card and an overpriced aftershave. So take that £60 you would have spent on him and treat yourself girl. Being single won't seem so bad when your Zara delivery arrives on Monday morning, believe me.2. GO ON A GIRLS NIGHT OUT
Round up your single friends, buy yourself a new outfit, get all dolled up and head out into town. Many of my Valentine's Day's have been spent this way, and I honestly think I've had some of the funnest nights out on Valentine's Day. Chances are, everyone's that's out is single and doing exactly the same thing as you and your friends and are up for a good laugh. And 4 gin and tonics in, when you're dancing the night away with your best buds and your new bessie mates you made on the dancefloor, you will not wish you were sat in a boring restaurant.
3. PAMPER YOURSELF
When I'm feeling shitty, the one thing that always sorts me out is a good ol' pamper sesh. Book yourself in for a massage, go and get your nails done and then come home and have a long candle-lit soak in the bath and pamper yourself silly. After a few hours of pampering and TLC, you will feel like a new woman and all set for a cosy night in bed with a glass of wine and a good movie (as long as it's not The Notebook!)
4. AVOID SOCIAL MEDIA FOR THE DAY
Although it may seem a little extreme and not doable for us Instagram addicts, I can assure you of one thing...checking social media on Valentine's Day will not make you feel better about yourself. And just remember, an Instagram post does not reflect reality. You will never know the ins and outs of a relationship, despite what people try to portray through their social media profiles, so comparing your lovelife to superficial and staged photos on Instagram will not help anybody. People only show you what they want you to see.
5. BE THANKFUL FOR WHAT YOU DO HAVE
On a day where you're forced to acknowledge what you don't have, take the time to acknowledge and be grateful for what you do have. Yes you may not have a 'bae' or an 'other half', but you do have family and awesome friends. So spend some quality time with your best friend and go on a road trip for the day, do some retail therapy or go and visit your Grandparents for the day.
6. DON'T DRUNK TEXT YOUR EX
It's normal to get a little lonely on Valentine's Day and very easy for the nostalgia to hit once you've had one drink too many. But that's no excuse to drunk text your ex (or even worse, call them) and trust me, you will not be thanking yourself the next day. No good can come from a weak moment down memory lane, so if you are going to drink, stay off your phone or delete their number for the night.
7. HAVE A GIRLY NIGHT IN
If you don't fancy going out on the town for Valentine's Day, bring the party to you instead and invite your fellow singletons round for a girly night in. Order a takeaway, make some cocktails, play a fun board game like Articulate, or just slob on the sofa with some munch and treat yourselves to a movie marathon. Staying in with your girls beats staying in alone crying into your tub of Ben & Jerry's hands down!
8. EMBRACE YOUR SINGLE STATUS
Social media and movies (and not forgetting those blunt comments from your Grandma about being single) can often make it seem like being single is a bad thing. But lets shake off that stigma and embrace the single status. Being single is a sign of independence and that is something which we should embrace and appreciate a bit more, starting with Valentine's Day. Celebrate the fact that you can be selfish with your time, you can starfish in that double bed to your hearts content without a boyfriend snoring in your ear and can go to a cocktail bar and flirt with the cute waiter as much as you'd like. Being single does have its perks!
9. DON'T FEEL SORRY FOR YOURSELF
It's so easy to want to curl up under the duvet, eat ice cream, watch movies all day and feel sorry for yourself, but that certainly won't make yourself feel better, so direct your energy elsewhere and make sure you have a plan for the day. Whether that's your girls night in, or your girls night out on the town, you'll have something fun to look forward to, and that's better than moping about hating on the couples of the World.
10. LOVE YOURSELF!
If you won't be waking up to a 'Good Morning beautiful' text, wish yourself a Good Morning! Often we rely on a compliment from a man for our confidence, but this doesn't have to be the case. So put on your favourite outfit, do your hair, look in the mirror and know you look good and compliment yourself! There is absolutely nothing wrong with loving yourself, so embrace your single status and show yourself some love this Valentine's Day.
xoxo
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