Valentine’s Day Ideas: What to do with your 5 Love Languages Result
By: Sophia Pei ‘22
With Valentine’s day just around the corner, now’s the time to find out your love language, or how you most prefer to be loved. Keep reading to find self-love ideas (after all, you should be your own best lover) or Valentine’s ideas be it for friends or your special someone.
What are the 5 love languages?
Basically it’s a personality inventory that ranks how you most enjoy being loved and also most commonly express your love. The 5 love languages are words of affirmation, quality time, gift giving, physical touch, and acts of service. Be sure to share with your loved ones so you can see how they most wish to receive and express love!
What do my results mean?
The survey ranks your love languages from 0 to 12 with 12 meaning you love to be loved in that way and 0 being that you don’t care for that mode of expressing love.
Look at your top love language(s) and match it to the corresponding category below to find the best Valentine’s ideas for yourself and your loved ones.
Physical touch
If you or your loved one’s top love language is physical touch then do things that involve human contact! Touch doesn’t need to be sexual: high fives, shoulder pats, and hugs are a great way to show physical and emotional support. Physical touch is an important way to show excitement, concern, care and love; fostering a sense of security and belonging.
Fun fact: Hugs that last more than 20 seconds have been associated with an increase in production of oxytocin, the human “bonding” hormone.
Self-Love suggestion: Treat yourself to a massage or facial!
Have a special someone or just want to have a fun time with friends? Register for a dance workshop or some other high-contact activities be it group yoga or aerial lessons!
Quality Time
If you or loved one’s top love language is quality time, then make sure you find a way to truly appreciate the time you have. There’s nothing like having someone else’s full undivided attention. This can be as simple as trying out mindfulness exercises and being more aware of how you’re spending your most precious resource: time.
Self-Love suggestion: Set 2 hours to pamper yourself at a DIY spa day. Get a bubble bath going and put on your favorite mask or try these easy DIY recipes!
Have a special someone? Rather than trying to go out and eat on Valentine’s day (probably one of the busiest days of the years), look up some recipes and make your own romantic 5-course meal!
Not much of a chef? No worries! Sign up for cooking lessons and learn to make something new together!
Valentine’s day falls on a 3 day weekend, so grab some friends and plan a road trip. Whether it’s a local destination or a weekend getaway, carpool karaoke and exploring a new place is a great idea to express your love for those who have quality time as their top love language.
Words of Affirmation
If you or your loved ones have words of affirmation as your top love language, then it’s essential that you express the things you love about yourself/your loved ones. Spontaneous compliments and praise can make anyone’s day but can be especially meaningful for those who have this as their primary love language. This can be as simple as sending a short text to remind your best friend why you appreciate them.
Self-love: Write down 10 traits or recent accomplishments that you’re proud of and post them around your room to remind yourself how truly amazing you are!
Have a friend who needs some appreciation? Write down all your favorite things and memories with them on little slips of paper and put it into a mason jar with some candies and pictures for a low-cost, meaningful gift that shows that how much you love them!
Feeling old school? Take some time to write an actual Valentine and mail it! There’s nothing like a handwritten cards that expresses all your favorite things to make someone feel validated and loved.
Gift Giving
If you or your loved one got gift giving as a top love language, then you need to spend time finding a meaningful gift. This has nothing to do with a person’s tendency towards materialism, but rather is based on the thought and effort behind gifts. This doesn’t necessarily mean you need to break your wallet. Meaningful gifts can come from simple things you encounter throughout your day. Maybe your friend needs a pick-me-up after their 8AM— then the perfect gift could simply be their favorite latte order.
Thoughtful gifts are often individualized. Make your loved one a portrait or a scene from a fond memory! Not an artist? Take advantage of the many resources and make a photo scrapbook or customized photo wallet.
Acts of Service
If you or loved one got acts of service as your top love language then it’s important that you show your appreciation. Sometimes life gets out of hand and it’s nice when others go out of their way to make life a little more manageable. With midterm season starting now, simple things like making your roommate lunch or even helping fold the laundry can go a long way.
Make a little coupon book for your special someone for them to “redeem” acts of service. Whether its doing a grocery run or helping them wash the dishes, they’ll appreciate your help!
Surprise your loved ones with a spontaneous outing. Relieve them of the pressure of planning by doing all the planning for them (just make sure your consult their schedule and it doesn’t impede of their other commitments)! For fun day trips and local plans check out this post.
Want more from Trojans 360?
Visit Trojans 360 on Facebook & Twitter to stay up to date with more student content! You can also Ask A Trojan an anonymous question, and we’ll try to answer it in a future post. And don’t forget to follow us on Instagram!
Trojans 360 is USC’s official student-run blog. Content created by students, for students.
