Valentine’s Day is a holiday that most people in relationships get rather excited about, preparing by buying their partners the classic box of chocolates, teddy bears, and bouquets of flowers.

Valentine’s Day is a great excuse to capitalize on spending time with the person you love most, but there are many flaws to the holiday itself, not only to the people not in a relationship but also causes separate problems for the people who are. 

There is so much pressure put on the couples of the world to have an extravagant, expensive, and romantic celebration with their partner, but not every couple can afford something like that. 

It’s naturally expected for there to be a special date and gifts, and this is important to many people. But especially with younger people in relationships who are simultaneously in school, it’s difficult to manage to find that kind of money to spend on your partner. 

Most of the typical Valentine’s Day gifts aren’t even usable on a day to day basis. If you get chocolate, you’re going to run out within a couple weeks. If you get flowers, they’re going to die within a couple weeks. A teddy bear? If it’s found in the Valentine’s Day section at your local grocery store, it probably has red or pink paws or is holding a heart, so it will probably only stay on display for a couple of days out of the year. 

At this point it doesn’t even feel like Valentine’s Day celebrates love, it feels more like it’s celebrating consumerism. It’s hard to avoid spending money on special edition goods for your partner when everyone else is doing it as well. 

Additionally, for people without someone to share the special day with, the build up to the holiday, as well as the day itself feel much more lonely than any ordinary day. The entire month before Valentine’s day while you’re witnessing Valentine proposals, and people are asking about each other’s plans, and you’re constantly seeing the seasonal holiday section at the grocery store is miserable when you’re by yourself. 

Being around so many people who have someone to go on dates with, and someone to buy them gifts, and someone to spend such a fun holiday with is exhausting when you don’t, and it sucks to feel like it’s constantly being rubbed in your face even though it’s actually not. 

No one is doing anything wrong by celebrating Valentine’s Day with their partner, however seeing it can sometimes feel like a punch in the gut. All Valentine’s Day does for some people is capitalize on the loneliness they’re feeling, and it kind of sucks.