Learning how to love yourself comes with time.

If they cost you your happiness, your smile or your peace, they are too expensive. You can’t afford them. Put them back on the shelf.

With Valentine’s Day coming up, the same old « I’ll be alone again on Valentine’s Day » situation arises. What if you were your own Valentine?

I am 23 years old today. I just finished school. I have my own apartment. Everything seems perfect, right? A master’s degree, a roof over my head, loving friends, a family that I love. You’d think I’d have everything I need to be happy. And it’s true. Technically I don’t NEED anything else, except myself and programming my head for happiness. Living in a place where you feel good and having money in your account does help a lot to feel good.

But if we go straight to the point, what is missing from the picture is love. The one with a capital L. The one we’ve been hearing about since we were 4 years old and old enough to wear princess dresses.

In our twenties, as women, we really feel the pressure to get into a relationship, to « settle down ». What’s even more frustrating is that it seems like this disease is only for women. I have already spoken with several of my male friends and they don’t seem to know about this affliction for some reason.

Dear fellow women, calm your hearts. It’s not worth the pressure to find someone, to try to please so much that you end up doing things you don’t recognize yourself in. Not only is there no guarantee that it will work, that the relationship will last. But also by trying to force yourself, you risk losing what the person fell for in the first place: your uniqueness.

This advice applies to you as much as to me. Being yourself is enough, and should always be enough. Listen to your instincts and don’t let anyone make you doubt yourself. This is the best proof of love you can give yourself.

Take care of yourself.