Valentine’s Day 2026

I have a special connection to Valentine’s Day since I was 6 years old, and my little brother had corrective open-heart surgery in Houston, Texas, in 1977. My parents came back from the US with a bunch of wonderful, red-hearted pillows, toys, and cards. They left me amazed by the beauty of all the red and elegant stationery, while we were incredibly grateful that my tiny brother’s life was miraculously saved. As of that day, my family secretly celebrated Valentine’s Day in a country called Yugoslavia in Southeast Europe, where no one was allowed to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Even though the tradition of Valentine’s Day stems from the Roman festival of fertility, which became a Christian holiday in the 14th century, it is associated with the time of year when birds start mating and with love and gift-giving.

Once I immigrated to the US as a 25-year-old war refugee, I could not believe that I was finally able to enjoy Valentine’s Day and celebrate it openly. Little did I know that my attachment would cause me to compromise on the beauty of this sweet holiday by expecting too much and feeling unseen.

Now, as a 53-year-old female therapist, after addressing my trauma wounds in therapy and subsequently earning a Doctorate in Psychology, I spend every year the whole week prior to Valentine’s Day educating my female clients about how to curtail their expectations of Valentine’s Day, and my male clients on how to deliver love romantically. I hope my clients hear me and understand that Valentine’s Day should not be a pressure-filled, stressful day, but instead a day of celebration, laughter, joy, compassion, and sharing more than expecting and giving. Saint Valentine was a Christian saint, and Valentine’s Day was associated with love in 14th-century Europe and has nothing to do with martyr Saint Valentine, who dedicated his legacy to saving the lives of persecuted Christians.

Let’s all finally make sense of this wonderful holiday and celebrate the fact that we can be with our loved ones and create one more special moment where we commemorate how much they mean to us.