Who Needs Valentine’s Day When Your Daughter Can Celebrate This!
Is your daughter sad about being “Boo-less” for Valentine’s Day this year? No problem!
[In case you didn’t know, a “Boo” is a boyfriend/girlfriend.]
I’ve got just the solution for her: Forget about Valentine’s Day!
Before she rolls her eyes at both of us if she’s reading this post, let me explain.
Obviously, Valentine’s Day is a BIG deal for teens.
Especially for girls who are already under a lot of pressure to be in a relationship or hold on to one.
And for many young ladies, that pressure boils over on the one day of the year when being “Boo’d Up” is celebrated as a national holiday.
They either feel left out because they don’t have a Boo, or they do have one and feel like they have to offer sex as the ultimate Valentine’s Day “gift.”
“I am a senior and while you were here you told me exactly what I had gone through and how to stop it. I asked you about becoming abstinent after Valentine’s Day because I felt as though sex is the only thing that would make Valentine’s Day special. But you made me realize there are other things we could do. I am worth more and you made me realize it. “
Either way, when it comes to our girls, I believe we’d be doing them a favor if we shifted focus away from Valentine’s Day and encouraged them to celebrate Galentine’s Day instead!
Let’s Celebrate #BFFsBeforeBoos
Never heard of “Galentine’s Day?” If so, you’re not alone. I recently learned about it myself.
The concept originated from the former NBC show, “Parks and Recreation.”
Full confession: I’ve never watched the show.
But apparently in a 2010 episode, the main character Leslie Knope, hosts an annual brunch on February 13th to celebrate her love for her “lady friends.”
Galentine’s Day may be a made-up holiday, but I’m 100% here for it!
Anytime we can encourage teen girls to create and sustain healthy, non-romantic relationships is a good thing.
According to one study, forging healthy friendships as a teen can benefit your daughter well into adulthood.
Researchers followed 169 teens (starting at ages 15), for 10 years and found that the ones who had strong friendships “reported less depression and anxiety and more self-worth at 25 than they had at 15 and 16.”
In other words, having a BFF is better for your daughter in the long run than having a Boo.
“This class has opened my eyes. It makes me realize my best friend can do better things in life for me than a guy.”
Plus, according to Catherine Bagwell, a psychologist at Emory University’s Oxford College, teen friendships are ‘the building blocks for supportive, positive romantic relationships.”
So it just makes sense to encourage your daughter to celebrate her friendships on Feb. 13th and not worry about romantic relationships on Feb. 14th.
Which is what I did in my latest Instagram post for teen girls. Have your daughter go here to check it out.
Will your daughter be celebrating Galentine’s Day tomorrow?
If so, and she has access to a phone, I’d love to see pics of her and her friends celebrating.
Tell her to use #BFFsBeforeBoos. Or, she can email pics to me at info@jackiebrewton.com.
