Valentine’s Day is a special day for anyone in love but the happiness of the day may be tarnished a little if you can’t be with that special someone on that day. If you’re in a long-distance relationship, or can’t be with the person you love for Valentine’s, we share some tips on how to make the day a little easier for you.
Sustaining Long-Distance Relationships
There are real challenges for long-distance relationships. You may be worried about how the lack of physical and emotional closeness will affect you both. This could lead to anxiety, and not trusting one other.
Even with the advances in technology, there is an unpredictability of not knowing when you will be able to speak to each other because of connectivity issues, time-zones, or conflicting schedules.
When you don’t succeed in finding time to speak, partners may take silence as a sign of waning interest, and when you do eventually manage to call, your partner might be frustrated and critical, which is usually masking an anxiety about being rejected. This lack of positive interaction may discourage you from calling home anytime soon. The situation becomes harder because couples do not have the chance to compensate for these difficult interactions with physical and emotional closeness.
This can be the source of frustration and cause arguments, as well as can contribute towards someone considering terminating a relationship.
However, some couples do successfully navigate long-distance relationships. Although they may face the stigma that they are not so close, this is a misconception. Long-distance relationships can show the same or more levels of trust than couples in conventional relationships. Partners tend to idolize each other. This could be because, when together, partners make an effort for the sake of their significant other. They are more tolerant towards each other because they know that their time together is limited.
Discuss your expectations.
How often do you wish to communicate, and will it be possible? Knowing you might not be available whenever they want to talk will help your partner be more accepting of the situation. Otherwise, they may interpret your silence as a sign of your disinterest.
Consider how will you handle decisions that both partners need to be involved in. For example, you might suggest that big decisions are postponed until you are together, but if this cannot be done, you may request that your partner writes you an email with the relevant information, and that you then discuss it verbally. This gives you time to think about things, as well as to have the information in a clear manner, without worrying about misunderstanding them when you speak over the phone.
When you’re apart
Send them an unexpected message or letter. It could be a photo of your surroundings, a message at a time of day they don’t expect you to do so. Remind them of a favourite memory of yours together. This is a simple and non-time consuming thing to do, yet it can show your partner that they are still important to you.
Organise a surprise through a friend. For example, ask the friend to arrange to meet them, to take them to a place your partner loves, keeping the place a secret until they arrive. When they arrive, your friend announces that it was your idea because you wanted to treat them.
Create shared rituals. Having rituals together makes people feel that they are a priority for their partner, because it prevents partners from taking each other for granted. If it becomes a habit, you are more likely to do it, and make an effort to do the shared activity with your partner. This creates a daily moment of connection with your partner. For example, at the end of each day, send each other a text with three things you are grateful for. This act not only helps prevent a low mood, but also allows your partner to share the positive of the day and it can become a moment of connection.
For when you’re next together
Coordinate time off, and plan ahead for special occasions where you may want to be present and plan your leave accordingly. Make sure to communicate in advance about what your expectations are, and for how much time you wish to spend together or apart while you are together.
Chocolate
Even without going into the history of the relation of Valentine’s Day and chocolates, it’s easy to understand why chocolate is the favorite way to express love on the Valentine’s Day. There is an allure to chocolate that in essence is exotically romantic, it’s simply an edible declaration of love that makes the recipients of chocolate feel special and undeniably gratifying. The chocolate looks, feels, and tastes heavenly. This luscious substance not only melts in our mouth in a burst of flavors but also melts our hearts in bliss. What about its health benefits?
Research has shown that chocolate, especially dark chocolate of which the concentration of the cocoa powder is higher can be beneficial to our health.
Here are three health and nutrition benefits of cocoa powder.
The antioxidants in dark chocolate have been shown to lower blood pressure, reduce the risk of clotting and increase blood circulation to the heart, thus lowering the risks of stroke, coronary heart disease and death from heart disease.
Flavonols prevent the immune system from going into overdrive and reduce oxidative stress, which is an imbalance caused by cells fighting against free radicals and a common cause of many diseases.
Flavonols in dark chocolate have a positive impact on brain function, including better reaction time, visual-spatial awareness and stronger memory. Though research is ongoing, one reason for this may be that flavonols increase blood flow to the brain.
People who ate dark chocolate reported that they felt less stressed, and researchers confirmed that after eating dark chocolate, there were reduced levels of the stress hormone cortisol. This may be related to dark chocolate’s effects on heart health, since stress is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease.
Let’s cook together a healthier chocloate avocado mousse
Ingredients
Cooking instructions
How to measure honey
Nutrition per serving
Because honey is so sticky, it can be difficult to measure it accurately – so much can be left behind on the spoon! If, however, you coat the measuring spoon with a thin layer of flavourless oil like groundnut, it will slip right off, ensuring that the right amount of honey makes it into your cooking.
Calories: 128kcal, Protein 3g, Carbs 17g, Fat 8g
