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Valentine’s Day 2025: February sees high breakup rates on Valentine’s Day, earning the tag the “month of broken hearts”. According to studies, love actually starts in October and often ends by February, a period also known as the ‘cuffing season’
Studies suggest that the season of love starts in October due to hormonal changes, with short-term romances ending post-winter. (News18)
As Valentine’s Day approaches, it feels like love is in the air. Some plan different surprises to celebrate their relationship while others seek unique ways to express their love to their significant other.
This makes February the ‘month of love‘. However, this month is also “the end of romance” as many studies have revealed that most relationships end on Valentine’s Day.
Science Behind Love
Harvard Medical School professors who have studied the evolution of love and its impact on the human body believe that love is more than an emotion; it is a chemical reaction where the reward circuit chemicals wash over the brain, causing physical and emotional symptoms like flushed cheeks, sweaty palms, racing heart and passion or anxiety.
Studies suggest that being “in love” also releases high levels of dopamine, which makes the individual experience pleasure and euphoria, and other chemicals like oxytocin and vasopressin. Released during skin-to-skin contact, Oxytocin, or ‘Love Hormone’, deepens the bond between partners and vasopressin influences the development of long-term, monogamous relationships.
Additionally, the primary male and female sex hormones, testosterone and oestrogen, also affect the development of feelings of desire and attraction.
According to a Harvard University research, love does not happen in a day. It consists of a few stages. A person gets attracted at the lust stage. Love hormones are released at the attraction stage and in this situation, the person always thinks about his love, due to which his thoughts move away from hunger, thirst and sleep. The last stage of love is attachment. At this stage, understanding and mutual attachment make the relationship strong.
Season Of Love
According to psychological research, as soon as the winter season begins, the brain starts feeling the need for a partner. Therefore, the season of love begins in October, not February, in the northern hemisphere.
It is named the ‘cuffing season’, which ends on Valentine’s Day in February. This season is also called ‘winter romance’.
Research by Australia’s Baker Heart Research Institute revealed that the level of a hormone called serotonin falls in winter, which worsens a person’s mood. In such a situation, one needs the ‘happy hormone’ dopamine to stay joyful and content. When a new person comes into their life and romantic thoughts fill the mind, it warms the heart in the cold season. Affectionate touching can lower cortisol secretion and increase oxytocin release, making the people involved in the act happy and relaxed.
Short-Term Romance
Relationship expert Dr Geetanjali Sharma says the word ‘cuffing season’ is derived from the English word ‘handcuffs’. It means to arrest a person in your love. Cuffing season is considered the short-term romance of youth which vanishes as soon as the winter season ends.
According to Dr Sharma, today’s youth prefer dating for a shorter duration. With the advent of dating apps and social media, they have the option of many partners, so they do not want to be tied to a single person. Even dating apps, that push users to have more matches rather than meaningful connections, influence the pervasiveness of cuffing season. In this short-term romance, everything seems fine till February 14, but after that, the relationship generally breaks.
In 2007, Yahoo conducted a survey in which it was said that breakups between couples happen the most on Christmas and Valentine’s Day.
End Of Love?
Finally, it depends on the romantic partners if they want to continue their relationship after the cuffing season. A cuffing relationship can possibly turn into a long-term relationship if the partners discover a genuine and deep connection or if they feel that their relationship can move beyond just companionship, that was the sole reason for seeking a partner during cuffing season.
What is important is to be upfront about what one wants from the relationship and manage one’s expectations in the relationship and on their partners accordingly.
