This Valentine’s Day I expect to be inundated with declarations of love,countless bouquets and the odd ostentatious wedding proposal. Of course, none of these will be aimed directly at me.
Instead they will fill my social media feeds, force feeding me other peoples’ gushing sentiments, to provide yet more digital reminders that I am 100% single.
As Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube have made our private lives 'public', public displays of affection have become increasingly ubiquitous. But could this trend damage our relationships?
Is social media putting our relationships in jeopardy?
“Choices of partners, honeymoon venues, wedding dresses: you name it. All get uploaded to Facebook and there’s a little 'like' button waiting to be pressed and ‘friends’ eager to give their opinion,” says Tracey Cox, HuffPost UK blogger and relationship expert.
In her opinion, social media has led to a subconscious dependency on the approval of others, which could put unnecessary pressure on couples.
Christine Northam, a counsellor for relationship advice charity Relate points out that worrying about the opinions of others could mean the decisions we make are not necessarily serving our own needs.
“Comments from friends will influence the way you deal with a relationship,” she explains. “By sharing everything you are allowing feedback on something that’s ultimately very personal.”
She adds: “People should make their own minds up. By asking for approval on the way someone looks or what someone does, you risk putting your friends' opinions before your own.”
"It seems that people publicly announce their relationships on Facebook very early. People have lost their inhibitions. This expression of love needs to be equally felt, or else there could be heartbreak" - Christine Northam, relationship counsellor
However, prolific HuffPost UK blogger The Guyliner has no such worries. As a writer who writes very openly and frankly about his love life, he argues that our desire to share details about our personal lives is hardly revolutionary.
“The need to boast about the strength of one's love isn't new at all – think of Valentine's messages in newspapers, idiots skywriting marriage proposals or getting down on one knee at football matches while a baying crowd looks on," he says.
“We share more because it's easier to do so than ever before. Had the means existed sooner, the Tudors too would've been scribbling 'verily loving the bones of ye, babes' in public too.”
Of course, the increased volume of information about our romantic exploits on the internet, doesn't necessarily equal more revelation.
Facebook is full of status updates that are designed to make our lives appear more interesting and, let’s face it, prettier.
“There’s certainly the temptation to ‘keep up with the Joneses’” admits Sam Owen, relationship coach and HuffPost UK blogger.
Yet, while we’re busy sharing pictures of our Valentine's Day minibreak, could we end up neglecting something pretty crucial, like our partner?
“You have to ask yourself ‘why am I doing this?’” Northam told HuffPost UK Lifestyle. “Why are you sharing with everybody else and not your partner?”
Northam adds that sharing too much information about your relationship online could also damage the trust in a relationship.
“Confidentiality and trust come hand-in-hand,” she explains. “By broadcasting every detail of a relationship on social media people breach confidentiality, which could ultimately jeopardise a couple’s trust in one another.”
But HuffPost UK blogger and psychologist Dr Raj Persaud disagrees that uploading a picture of your heart-shaped swan towel could trigger deeper problems for modern couples.
As a writer who engages frequenting with social media, Dr Persaud says that online public displays of affection aren't unhealthy.
“I don’t see posting pictures on the internet as betraying intimacy. If people were documenting their fights or their sex lives on the internet then you might have something to worry about.”
Do you think our desire to share on social media has gone too far? Here are some crazy wedding proposals to help you make your mind up.