Surviving Valentine’s Day Single: How to Fall Back in Love with yourself.

14 Feb Surviving Valentine’s Day Single: How to Fall Back in Love with yourself.

Valentine’s Day is one of the most celebrated occasions marked with candy, flowers, candle lit dinners, gifts and many other creative ideas that’s shared with the one you love.  The history of this special day is mostly remembered by a “Roman Party or a Day to Celebrate an Execution.”

Roman Party:  An Ancient Roman Festival referred to as “The Feast of Lupercalia,” entailed a ritual where dunk and naked men sacrificed goats and dogs, then whipped women with the hides of the animals after soaking in blood.   Women would actually line up to be whipped as they believed this would make them fertile. This ritual was followed by a matchmaking lottery where young men drew names of women from a jar. If the match was right, the couple were paired for the duration of the Festival or longer.

Celebration of the Execution for Saint Valentines:  There are several versions regarding the history of Valentine’s Day. The one version that remains consistent includes a priest by the name of St. Valentines. In the

early days, The Catholic church named at least two men that were martyred on February 14^th, Valentine’s Day.  While both men were named Valentine, this legends consist of the conflict between the priest and the Emperor during that time, Claudius II. Around 1400’s, Claudius II banned marriages for young men as he felt they made better soldiers than men with wives and a family. Saint Valentine, felt this was unjustified and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When the Emperor discovered this, he had him imprisoned with a death sentence. Before his death, it is believed that he wrote a letter to a young girl who came to visit him. It is alleged that he wrote her a letter singed “From your Valentine.”

There are many more versions to this legend. However they all consist of sacrifice, worthiness, strong love and power. Being single on Valentine’s Day can consists of a mixture of feelings from depression to empowerment.  So you are not currently in a relationship. You are not alone. There are countless singles in the world that do not have that special someone to celebrate this day with. Let’s examine a few ways to take back your power and fall in love with yourself again. Despite what many believe Valentine’s Day represents, there are countless ideas and things to do to convey love on this day. You can celebrate this day with other friends, family members, and individuals that may have just gotten out of relationship or with mates of individuals that have recently loss their love in the last year.

9 Ways to Fall Back in Love with yourself.

• Get with a group of singles and go out. (Dinner, Movie, a Play, Bowling, Paint Ball, etc.) .
• Use this day as a day of self-care. (Go to the Spa, get a new hair-do)
• Find a quiet place to pray, meditate or just to relax.
• Listen to your favorite music.
• Look at old movies.
• Read a Good Book.
• Use this day to catch up on your rest.
• Go visit your family members or good friends that may not be in the position to leave their home or facility.
• Work on a project that you have been procrastinating on.

Feelings sometimes experienced by Singles during Valentine’s Day:

Stress, Anxiety, Depression, Grieving, Loneliness, Sadness and PTSD due to a former Traumatic Event.

If you are experiencing any of these feelings and cannot seem to function as you normally would, See below:

• Meet with a close trusted friend that you can share your feelings with.
• Meet with someone at your church or that share a similar faith to yours.
• Make an appointment to meet with a licensed professional counselor

At Top Priority Care Services, we work with individuals that are experiencing various stressors. Our staff specialize in these areas and will assist you in developing goals to help you reach your desired outcome.  Give us a call today! Winston-Salem, NC 336-896-1323 or Greensboro, NC 336-294-5611.

www.topprioritycareservices.com

Great Days Ahead,

Sharon P. Johnson 

References:

http://www.history.com/topics/valentines-day/history-of-valentines-day  “History of Valentine’s Day

https://www.npr.org/2011/02/14/133693152/the-dark-origins-of-valentines-day “The Dark Origins of Valentine’s Day.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/14/style/valentines-day-facts-history.html “Valentine’s Day: Did It Start as a Roman Party or to celebrate an Execution?”

https://www.mirror.co.uk/lifestyle/sex-relationships/relationships/valentines-day-st-valentine-meaning-11998683?service=responsive   “What day is Valentine’s Day 2018? Who was St. Valentine and what is the real story, facts and history behind February 14?”

http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/Pages/tip-valentines-day-stress.aspx   “Tip-Valentine’s Day Stress”