No matter how much effort you put into having the perfect Valentine’s Day, sometimes it seems the universe is against you. Maybe you’re sad about spending Valentine’s Day alone, or maybe your date fell way, way short of your high expectations. Either way, you find yourself sad on Valentine’s Day.
You might feel the urge to get yourself a tub of cookie dough ice cream and watch The Notebook, which sounds amazing, but listen to me here — it won’t make you feel better.
And, okay, maybe that is what you need to do for a solid two hours and four minutes. (Yes, I know the exact running time of The Notebook off the top of my head.) But then you need to remember that every second you spend upset, is a second lost from your life over (in my case) a stupid person.
Today, I’m going to show you exactly how to snap out of the oh-so common Valentine’s Day depression. Consider it my “Valentine’s Day sad guide”.
Step 1: Get off social media!
First things first, put your phone in a box, in a drawer, inside your closet, inside another room, lock the room and loose the key. (Unless you’re reading this on a phone, which in that case, finish reading and then come back to this.)
Give yourself a minimum of 24 hours for the Valentine’s parade of social media posts to pass through.
Now, let’s proceed to the rest of our Valentine’s Day sad guide.
No romantic movies
Movie storylines transport people out of their lives; they make us feel things we otherwise wouldn’t. And that’s because movies have little regard for the ordinary, and rather focus on the extraordinary. This can work against us on Valentine’s Day, so choose your movies carefully.
While I myself have seen every romantic movie ever made in any language, watching a romantic movie when I’m sad doesn’t make me feel better about my current predicament.
Most of those stories, from an objective point of view either have a stalker main male character or the girl is just dumb. Not to mention they never show what happens after they magically kiss on a bridge in New York. (Where’s the nasty breakup via text three weeks later?)
Instead choose a comedy (not rom-coms) or my personal favorite: animated movies. Just be careful of princess movies because they have the same romantic tropes — Brave and Moana are good non-romantic choices.
Exercise
I know, I know: When you’re upset the last thing you want to do is get out of bed and exercise. But trust me on this, you will feel better (and if you don’t trust me, trust science).
When you exercise, your body releases endorphins which help with stress, and there’s something about serotonin and norepinephrine, but I’m not going to pretend I understand. Bottom line is that exercising makes you feel better, so go do it.
If weather allows, try doing something that involves spending time in nature, like going on a hike, outdoor yoga or hitting the beach; bonus points if you go with a friend or family member.
Take a risk
Why stop at releasing endorphins? I’m a firm believer in getting your adrenaline pumping from time to time. It’s not about just feeling better, it’s about feeling amazing!
Valentine’s Day is about self-love too. I’m not saying you need to go jump off a plane with a parachute, but do something that scares you. Maybe that’s taking a dance class or maybe it’s eating alone at a restaurant.
Conquering something you’re scared of will remind you of the fearless person you are.
Spend time with loved ones
Love comes in many different forms; Consider the love you have for your parents/guardians, siblings, grandparents, best friends, Leonardo DiCaprio.
So if you’re sad on Valentine’s Day, reach out to your circle. Not only should you talk about your feelings to those that care about you unconditionally, it’s also great to be reminded of the love that surrounds you regardless of what else happens in your life.
Additionally, being there for your friends during hard times lets you focus on others, and sometimes that’s a huge mental help when you’re feeling sad.
It’s one day out of 366 (leap year, baby)
Valentine’s is just one day of the year, and you know what they say, Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither is a relationship. There are 365 other days this year where things can go right, so really why does it matter if Valentine’s Day is sad?
Any day of the year could be your magical Valentine’s Day and you may not have noticed it.
You are amazing, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise
I recently tried out this class on networking, which was in all truthfulness, two hours I will never get back. But he did use an interesting anecdote that I will share today: “if I offer you 100 dollars, you’ll want it, right? If I crumple it and step on it, you’ll still want it, right? Even if I step on it and crumple it, it’s still worth 100 dollars.”
No matter how some people will treat you or make you feel, remember that you’re still worth 1 billion dollars.
There is no magic cure for the pain that comes with heartbreak. Maybe these ideas will work for you, maybe some of them won’t. In my opinion it’s all about movement, keep on doing things, because the world isn’t going to stop, and neither should you.
What do you think of our Valentine’s Day sad guide?
Have you tried any of our ideas? What did you think? Let us know.