Valentine’s Day is generally seen as a celebration where people show their love for each other through expensive gifts and fancy dinners, but it brings a massive amount of stress along with it.
The fear of giving a gift and a significant other not enjoying it, as well as the pressure of not having a valentine are all some major stress factors of Valentine’s Day. Overspending on gifts that need to be perfect makes for a Hallmark holiday.
Some people may not realize that the holiday forces couples, particularly newer ones, to question their relationship in a way they might not have thought about before.
Valentine’s Day can serve as a method of confirmation and assurance for many relationships, but for others it can ruin it. The special day can take a dive if there are any uncommunicated doubts or unshared feelings from any of the participants.
Any possible second guesses can turn to action around Feb. 14, which means that there is a possibility of those unmet feelings turning into a serious argument or worse, a break up. That’s a stressful situation that many couples, especially in college, do not have the time or energy to deal with. The Tuesday before Valentine’s Day, also known as Red Tuesday, is dubbed as the day where someone is most likely to get dumped.
Several dating sites around the world including a British site, Illicit Encounters, have done research showing every year there are plenty of people that plan on breaking up with their significant other before Valentine’s Day.
Research done by YouGov Omnibus states that 12 percent of Americans aged 18 through 34 have ended a relationship on Valentine’s Day. Another 11 percent of the same group have ended a relationship before the holiday.
As for all the single pringles out there, the immense amount of pressure for not having a valentine or are unable to find one is ridiculous.
The better part about this, however, is that our generation is so encouraging of self-love and acceptance that being your own valentine is a running trend. Another rising solution for singles is to spend their Valentine’s Day with a group of friends instead.
Being your own Valentine or celebrating with friends can save money. Money is either being spent on personal expectations or the bill is split between people.
That is important because in the United States, people are encouraged to spend absurd amounts of money on gifts that are supposed to signify their love.
Popular Valentine’s Day gifts like flowers, jewelry, chocolates, extravagant dinners and giant stuffed animals can quickly rack up an unwanted bill, especially for a budgeting college student.
The price of roses skyrockets around Valentine’s Day. Just about any girl loves to receive flowers, but a few red roses shouldn’t be breaking the bank.
A good way to save money on eating out at a fancy restaurant, is to instead cook dinner at home with your valentine. That way you spend quality time together in the kitchen instead of in a booth with other couples surrounding you.
Valentine’s Day may be good for the economy because of high prices and sales, but it really isn’t the most beneficial thing for ourselves.
Valentine’s Day is, in my opinion, the most overrated holiday because it brings a lot more stress than it does joy. It truly is a Hallmark holiday.
Anteia McCollum can be reached at [email protected]