'Tis the season for cuffing. Time to get into a relationship so you can visit the Christmas markets together, go to Winter Wonderland, snuggle up on the sofa in front of the fire. Wanting to have someone during the cold winter nights to keep you warm so you don't feel lonely is nice, sure, but do you need it? Hint: you don't.
The season's cosy desperation where content singles suddenly feel the urge to find a significant other. Brutally, it's a reckless idea; it appears to be a whole load of people who lower their standards and overlook every red flag for a couple of months of intimacy. Don't get me wrong, I would love a boyfriend during Winter, but maybe this whole "cuffing season" thing is down to us all wanting to satisfy an unmet desire for closeness in the colder and, statistically, more strenuous months of the year. Unfortunately, many people use it as a coping mechanism for lack of fulfilment instead of wanting to do the work to be comfortable on their own. It may be a temporary fix but, from my own experience, it's not worth it in the long run. Regardless if it's the inner romantic in me speaking, I'm not sure I want to throw myself into the whole "start the relationship now and have it end by Valentines Day" kerfuffle. A relationship with an expiry date sounds like setting one of us up for heartbreak. Now I know some of you may be thinking, "not all of us will end by February", but if you chose your partner out of desperation, they're probably not the right person for you.
So why not skip the whole relationship thing this Winter and focus on yourself instead? You don't need to jump into a relationship with a shelf-life of less than a box of biscuits for you to be happy; in reality, if you want to keep your mind and heart intact, then self-love is the way to go. Use this time to establish a deeper relationship with yourself and figure out your needs and what you're truly missing in your life. "If you can find happiness and fulfilment as a single person, you'll likely hold onto that happiness whether you're coupled up or not." If you depend on someone else to fill a void in your life, then, inevitably, when they're gone, you're not going to have made much progress on your self-growth. I'm not saying it's easy, and it's a struggle to fully come to terms with any issues in your life or any insecurities you may have but trust me, you'll thank yourself for it later.
If you seek a romantic partner this cuffing season, remember that communication is vital for it not to end up in tears. You can both have fun whilst keeping it casual, or it could blossom into something more significant. Either way, as long as you're both clear on what you want, it isn't a bad thing to enjoy a little fun. The key thing I want you all to take from this is that you don't need them to be happy this Winter. True happiness is about a mindset more than a romantic relationship.
