With Valentine’s Day approaching, love is in the air. As everyone scrambles to find their secret admirer or their star-crossed lover, we often overlook the built-in valentines we have every year: our gals!
It seems like nine out of 10 commercials during Valentine’s season depict the classic intimate relationship, with some even advertising nice jewelry to get for your partner. There is little to no focus on the friendships in our lives.
Galentine’s Day, widely accredited to Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) of “Parks and Rec,” is celebrated on Feb. 13. The holiday was introduced in the second season of the show as Leslie likens it to Friendsgiving; an opportunity to celebrate loyalty, love and friendship.
However, the festivities and celebrations may not come as warm and cheery for everyone. For those who don’t have someone to celebrate with romantically, there might be feelings of loneliness or depression.
While you may feel lonely or excluded as the season of love is upon us, remember you can turn to the people that are always next to you: your friends.
That is all the more reason why Galentine’s (or gender-neutral Palentine’s) Day is so important.
It’s very easy to overlook the stable friendships in our lives, as we don’t think about friend breakups in the same way as romantic breakups.
Additionally, focusing on the friendships in your life is actually key to maintaining a happy life and good health. Friendships can increase your sense of belonging, reduce stress, improve self-confidence and worth, encourage healthy lifestyles and even help one cope with traumas, according to Mayo Clinic.
This Feb. 13, focus on celebrating your friendships with some of these fun activities:
Have a Rom-Com Marathon
Nothing screams a happy Galentine’s Day more than watching a cheesy rom-com!
Cozy up with your friends and watch a fantastically attractive male lead chase after his love while breaking various traffic rules. Some of my personal favorites include “10 Things I Hate About You,” “50 First Dates,” “How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days” and “When Harry Met Sally.”
Relax With An At-Home Spa Night
Who says staying in with your girlfriends has to be boring? Relax with some skincare and face masks to prioritize self-care with your besties!
A refreshing night of self-care with your best friends will make you forget about the burden of Valentine’s Day.
Order Takeout With Your Friends
While couples are waiting on their reservations for their oh-so-expensive Valentine’s dinners, skip the hassle and keep all the fun by having a nice takeout night.
Order some Chinese food or pizza and relax with your friends. It also doesn’t hurt to think about all the money you’ll be saving rather than eating at an overly-crowded fancy restaurant.
Create Vision Boards Together
If Valentine’s Day is one of those holidays that brings more stress than joy, try channeling that into a fun vision board activity with your friends.
Vision boards are great for organizing your goals and wishes for the new year. What makes this even better is sharing your goals with your support system and encouraging each other to commit to them.
Do Some Valentine’s Crafts
Unleash your inner Picasso and get crafty!
You don’t have to be particularly artistic to do crafts with your friends either, in fact, it’s sometimes more fun to laugh at what you tried to create.
Exchange Valentine’s Candies
Just because you may not have a significant other to give you gifts and chocolates, that doesn’t mean you can’t exchange with your besties.
It’s very endearing to put the same effort into your friends as you would in a committed relationship. Enjoy Valentine’s treats and gifts without the stress of the holiday.
Valentine’s season is about love, and that is not limited to your romantic love life. After all, relationships can come and go, but your friendships are for life.
