Therapist Says Valentine’s Day Is a Sham

Finally! Someone has done research that proves what a lot of men (and some women) have been saying for years: Valentine's Day is more a marketing device than a way to express love. After all, shouldn't love be everyday?

No, really, I'm not bitter.

Valentine's Day brings with it a host of unrealistic expectations that are guaranteed to make us very unhappy. In fact, these expectations have become so over the top that it's time to bring them back to earth, according to Vancouver-based therapist Candace Plattor.

"We are all supposed to be wildly in love with a 'perfect' (read physically beautiful with lots of hair on his head and no cellulite on her hips) person who will shower us with diamonds and expensive chocolates, while gazing soulfully and lovingly into our eyes. In the same dream-state, we become the perfect person for him or her as well, unable to do anything wrong in their estimation," she says.

Bull-malarkey!

This Valentine's Day Plattor wants to encourage men and women to celebrate their love for themselves at the same time they celebrate their love for their significant others. She can discuss a different sort of Valentine's Day that includes:

* Buying yourself some flowers or a box of chocolates or having a spa day to celebrate how amazing you are.
* Volunteering at a local animal shelter to share your love with the animals.
* Refusing to believe that "you're nobody till somebody loves you." Instead, use the day to feel proud of yourself.