Fret not, my love.

You’ve made it through the toughest time to be single–the holidays. Now that the holidays are over and all 5,000 people on your timeline have shown off their holiday engagement rings, you should be able to shake off that negative feeling.

It’s super easy to feel like you’re bound to be single forever when the majority of the people around you are in (what appears to be) a happy relationship. If you’re spending a lot of time looking around on social media and not really spending quality time with yourself you allow those negative thoughts to really cloud your mind.

Here are a few ways to cope when you start to feel like you will be single forever.

1. Hang out with your single friends. If all your friends are in a relationship, it’s not a bad idea to extend your circle just a bit. It’s really hard to get away from feeling negative about being single when all you do is surround yourself with people who are in a relationship. Find yourself some single friends who are comfortable with their singleness. They’ll show you how to enjoy being single and you’ll have a lot of fun being with them!
2. Pamper yourself–a lot. One of my favorite things to do is find new ways to treat myself. Celebrate yourself and love yourself, always. If you can’t love you, how do you expect someone else to?
3. Spend time with family. Sometimes we are worried about the wrong relationships. Spend some time developing a closer relationship with your family to occupy your time and mind. If you are spending time around people you love, you won’t spend a lot of time thinking about the love you don’t have in your life at the moment.
4. Don’t wallow in pity. For the love of God, please don’t sulk. You are someone’s dream. I promise. Instead of sulking, celebrate your singleness and prepare yourself for the day that you do meet your partner.
5. Join a dating app. It’s 2018. There is nothing wrong with joining a social dating app to meet some potential partners. It can be scary and it can even seem desperate, but I guarantee you, you’re going to see some familiar faces. We all want to find love for the most part. You’re not doing yourself any harm by putting yourself out there. SoulSwipe is my favorite, by the way.
6. Don’t spend too many nights alone. Try to limit the time you spend at home alone. I’m not saying invite people into your room at night, but I am saying make sure you’re staying active and visiting friends and family. We all know that nighttime is the loneliest time.
7. Invest in a toy or a buddy. If you are strong enough to have a sexual relationship with someone you’re not in a romantic relationship with and it’s a mutual decision for both of you, I don’t see anything wrong in engaging in one. If you know that you will want more, I wouldn’t recommend it. Otherwise, invest in a good toy because it’s no secret that being single doesn’t stop the urge!
8. Go out on your own. I love going out on my own. I’ll be the first person to take a seat at the bar and start talking to other people I see out alone. It’s the perfect way to master your confidence. Without confidence, you’re not leaving much for people to be attracted too, my love!
9. Meet new people. How will you meet the one if you’re not broadening your horizons? Branch out and meet new people. Embrace the newness. Be flirtatious. Be kind. You won’t regret it. If nothing else, you’ll make some really good friends.
10. Keep hope alive. At the end of the day, you’ve got to keep hope alive. Never give up on love. You deserve it and it will find you. Stay confident in that fact. God makes us wait for the right thing. Waiting doesn’t have to be miserable, but we’ve all had to do it.

Here’s to being single and happy, boo! You got this!