PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Although it’s a day of love, Valentine’s Day often brings with it relationship issues and can bring on depression.
Jill Lamar, a licensed professional counselor at Thrive Works in Philadelphia, said if love, care and concern is shown for a partner every day, “the impact of Valentine’s Day is really very minimal.”
On days like Valentine’s Day, where expectations are often forced upon us, Lamar said it’s important for couples to have a conversation about what it means to be loved.
“For some people, the things that are associated with Valentine's Day, it's not really what they're looking for. These are just kind of the trappings associated with love in our society,” she said.
Seventy-five percent of therapists surveyed about Valentine’s Day said they see a spike in loneliness among their single clients. Lamar said that has a lot to do with dating apps and other forms of social media.
“Comparison almost always leads to unhappiness,” she said. “We very rarely compare ourselves with those whose lifestyles aren't attractive to us, so we're always coming up short.”
Instead, Lamar said to treat and celebrate yourself with or without friends, and don’t idolize what a relationship should look like. She said the day is about love, so love yourself.
“You can either have some of your other single friends over and do something at home, whether it's opening up a bottle of champagne and just celebrating the fact that you are living the lives that you are and being thankful and grateful for what you have in your lives now,” said Lamar.