“Energy is contagious, and even a small shift in thought can have a big impact on how you feel and how others feel around you.”

Barriers need to be broken down before we can promote love and the first step towards doing this is to dispel fear.

“The opposite of fear is faith, so perhaps what we can do is have faith that things will work themselves out. We can never have 100 per cent control of the future, but we do have full say over our attitude,” Samtani says.

We need to choose harmony and love rather than anger and fear, and not follow the crowd, she adds.

“The easiest way to shift how we feel is to stop judging and acknowledge how others feel and honour the difference. Secondly, we need to come from compassion and understanding and remind ourselves that behind every behaviour there is a person who is trying the best they can to deal with their situation,” she says.

She offers some tips on how to create a Valentine’s Day with a difference.

“It’s the first Valentine’s Day of this decade. Let’s take this day as an opportunity to celebrate love – not just towards your romantic partner, but also to yourself, your body, your work, your friendships and your city,” she says.

For singles, Samtani suggests doing something loving for yourself, such as having a massage or just taking time to rest or walk on the beach – something that makes you feel good.

“It doesn’t have to be something that you post on social media about how much you love yourself. Rather, ask yourself: if you didn’t have any pressure to showcase your loving activity to anyone else, what would you do?”

For couples, she suggests seeing this day as an opportunity to appreciate little things about your partner that you may have overlooked in the past.

With schools being shut, many people will spend the day with their families. “And why not? After all, the day is about love, so you can take this opportunity to be with the people you love most,” Samtani says.

Families looking to make the day more loving can acknowledge each member for who they are and their unique contribution to the family, she says.

“The most loving moments with the family are when each member feels recognised for who they are and that they are as important as the others. There is no rule that says Valentine’s Day is only to show love to romantic partners.”

Many people still look at Valentine’s Day through a lens of what they should do to be normal and fit in with everyone else. But Samtani suggests dropping the ideas like going to an expensive restaurant or buying overpriced roses, and instead check in on what really makes your partner feel loved.

“If you want to do something meaningful, why not ask your partner ‘what makes you feel loved?’, instead of the usual ‘where should we go?’ If you do that, it could lead to a completely different answer, and you will be tapping into the essence of what this day is actually about.”

She also suggests making this Valentine’s Day one where you practise being kind to yourself as well as others.

Every time you find yourself being judgmental towards yourself or your partner, acknowledge it, then try to understand and accept your own behaviour. Acceptance doesn’t mean you cannot change – it’s just freedom from judging past actions so that you can look at the future from a different perspective.

The benefits of looking at love differently from common clichés is that we can finally move away from the “rules” and do something that feels authentic.

“Now so more than ever, we are realising the value of self-love, so why not do something this Valentine’s Day that shows love to yourself, and others?” Samtani says.

“The more you value yourself, the higher your self-esteem will be, and you will have greater quality of life. By self-love I don’t mean ego gratification, but truly feeling like you are good enough.”

“This actually is great practice to give up expectations and live in the present. The more you expect, the more disappointed you will be. Thinking the same way and doing the same things will give you the same results. Make an effort this Valentine’s Day to consciously do something different to get a different result.

“When you even do one thing that is different from your norm it has a ripple effect on all areas of life, and you will start seeing most things differently,” she says.

And finally, don’t forget to show love to friends and others outside the family on this special day.

Samtani believes merely saying “I appreciate you” isn’t enough and it’s far more meaningful to be specific and think of one thing that you really admire and appreciate about the other person, and name it. When you do this it becomes uniquely about them, and this is something they will cherish and remember.

Without sounding too saccharine, we could all tailor-make our own Valentine’s Day,

“To have a one-of-a-kind experience, you simply need to make it personal and think only about the person you want to show love to – yourself or someone else –and all the small, crazy, silly, quirky things that they love to do, and incorporate that into your day.”

Luisa Tam is a correspondent at the Post