Valentine’s Day is a loved and loathed holiday. It’s over commercialized, there’s pressure to buy expensive gifts, flowers, chocolates, and finding the perfect card that expresses exactly what you feel. Some couples get into Valentine’s Day and see it as the perfect way to reiterate their expressions of love, while many single people would rather ignore the day all together.

If you are newly divorced, your first Valentine’s Day as an unmarried person may stir up a lot of  emotions. You may feel free, you may feel relieved, or you might feel totally bummed out. If you’re dreading Valentine’s Day, there are numerous ways to get through it and you may even end up enjoying the day:

Don’t Dwell On the Past This Valentine’s Day

Were the Valentine’s Days of your past horrible or were they fairytale material? Regardless of how Valentine’s Day used to be, it’s important to focus on the present. This is your time to change the way you feel about Valentine’s Day. While there’s an overwhelming pressure to celebrate your love for a significant other or even finding your soulmate, people often overlook the general celebration of love. Valentine’s Day should be a day where you celebrate the love you have for family members, your children, friends, and even yourself. You are in control about how you choose to view Valentine’s Day, make the best of it.

Celebrate Love & Treat Yourself

Don’t wait and wish for someone to buy you flowers or other tokens of love and appreciation. This is a day to treat yourself and celebrate self-love. Buy yourself your favorite chocolates, a bouquet of flowers, or the latest tech gadget you’ve had your eye on. Don’t feel guilty or feel undeserving, everyone deserves a little something and you are no different.

Have Kids? Have a Special Date with Them

If you are feeling emotionally raw this Valentine’s Day, don’t forget about how your children might be feeling. Kids will often hide their emotions, particularly if they sense that their parents are bummed out. Consider putting aside your own feelings and focus on making the day extra special with your children. Whether you make homemade Valentines for family and friends or go out to eat and see a movie, forget about all the negative feelings you have about your divorce and focus on the love you have for your children.

Spend the Day with Friends

You may be tempted to spend the day at home, alone, but unless you plan on doing something productive you’re likely to feel lonely and upset. Rather than having a pity party for one, call up your friends and go out to dinner or host a gathering at your house. Remember, you don’t need to be in a relationship to appreciate and love others. Tell your friends how much you appreciate them and show your gratitude for the support they have given you during a difficult transition.

Pay it Forward

Even if it feels like you are the loneliest person on the planet, you aren’t. Sometimes one of the best ways to get out of a “I hate this day” funk is to perform random acts of kindness. Buy a big bouquet of flowers and hand a flower out to each person you pass on the street. Buy bags of chocolates or other treats and give them to a nursing home facility or a food shelter. Your small token may brighten someone else’s Valentine’s Day.

Valentine’s Day can be an especially painful holiday for newly divorced people. Everywhere you go, ads and social media and society are singing love’s praises and encouraging you spend a special evening with your significant other.

That all sounds great, but there’s just one problem: you just lost your significant other. The one person in your life to whom you were expected to share these special moments is gone. Granted, divorce is a choice, and you’re likely happy to be free from your strained relationship. Still, it’s tough for a divorcee to spend Valentine’s Day alone. These tips are here to help the newly divorced on the supposedly most romantic night of the year.

Friendly Valentine’s Day

Plenty of people hate Valentine’s Day, and for a huge array of reasons. Some hate it because it’s tack and commerical, others resent society telling them when to celebrate something as personal as love, and still others simply enjoy being contrarian.

In any case, the point is that you shouldn’t have too much trouble getting together with other people who reject the Valentine’s Day spirit. Have a big dinner party and watch horror movies. Talk about all the bad relationships you’ve been through. Have a laugh and enjoy yourself.

Go On a Date With Yourself

If you don’t feel like laughing in the face of your loneliness, you could always just embrace the pain. Some people find it helpful to give themselves a long evening of introversion and self-indulgence. Think about all the romantic trouble you’ve been through. This experience may be extremely painful, but you may come out of it with a new perspective on love and human relationships.

In a strange way, the intensely personal misery journey is a lot like a date. You can grab a bottle of red wine, watch old movies that make you nostalgic, and reminisce about old times. Note that spending a night alone with wine and memories is NOT recommended for everyone—only do this if you think it will help you understand and move past your grief.

Ignore the Valentine’s Festivities

If watching other couples celebrate their relationships is painful to you, try to ignore it. Stay in that night. February 14th is just another day, and you can spend it the way you would any other day. Do your normal things don’t let Valentine’s Day get to you.

Find New Love

If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em! For some people, joining a holiday is the only way to go. If you’ve recently gotten divorced, the world of new romance has recently opened up to you after years of deprivation. Take advantage of it. You don’t need to get too serious if you don’t want to. It’s your time to shine and have fun.

So fall in love again. Have a good time. There are plenty of people in situations like yours, and it won’t too hard to meet them. Don’t give up on love. Start again and make your romantic way through the world. Romance is yours again!