The Month of February LOVE, REVISITED by Svetlana Kogan, M.D. IFMCP

The month of February has always evoked images of Valentine’s Day celebrations. And what better time to ponder the concept of love if not on Valentine’s Day? Yet perhaps the most meaningful time to reflect on love is not tied to a date on the calendar, but to the present moment. Love is not an abstract idea reserved for special occasions—it is something we are invited to examine continuously, right now.

One of the clearest places to explore love is within family life. For many couples, daily routines have long shaped how love is expressed and experienced. Husbands and wives often fall into predictable patterns: waking early, getting children ready for school, heading off to work, spending long hours apart, and returning home at the end of the day with a sense of longing for connection. Over time, the brain learns to divide life into two distinct worlds—the professional world and the home world.

We dress for work and adapt ourselves to external expectations, while home becomes the space to relax, cook, rest, and recover. In many ways, we have delegated much of our children’s upbringing to schools, extracurricular activities, and structured schedules. While this division of roles allows for productivity and independence, it can also create emotional distance within the family unit.

When routines shift and life slows down, couples often find themselves spending significantly more time together than they once did. This can be both illuminating and uncomfortable. Many retirees, for example, discover this transition firsthand when work no longer structures their days. Suddenly, partners are face-to-face from morning until night. Privacy becomes limited, especially in smaller living spaces, and the opportunity to avoid one another disappears. These moments invite something deeper: self-reflection. When external distractions fade, we are gently—but firmly—asked to look at the person beside us and consider what truly exists between us. We are prompted to ask ourselves questions we may have avoided for years. How do I actually feel toward this person I promised to love? What sustains our relationship? What has quietly eroded over time?

For some, love falters due to a lack of patience. For others, it is the absence of genuine listening. Sometimes, the missing piece is compromise, empathy, or emotional presence. A partner is not a machine that can be switched off when something feels uncomfortable. Relationships demand engagement, even when it is difficult. Modern life further complicates this connection. Our attention is fragmented by emails, news cycles, phone calls, and constant digital communication.

We are perpetually stimulated, yet often emotionally unavailable. In this environment, loved ones can become background figures rather than central priorities. The essential question becomes: where do our closest relationships fit into our daily lives? How do we preserve a family nucleus—a place that truly feels like home?

These questions are neither dramatic nor abstract. They are quiet, persistent, and profoundly important. Love is not sustained by grand gestures alone, but by presence, attention, and intentional care. It requires us to slow down enough to notice one another—to listen without distraction, to speak honestly, and to sit in silence without discomfort.

At its core, love asks us to return to what matters most. Careers, entertainment, and social obligations have their place, but they should not overshadow the relationships that ground us. Our senses—sight, sound, touch, and presence—are designed to connect us to those closest to us, reminding us that meaning is often found not in motion, but in stillness.

February offers a symbolic invitation to revisit these truths. It is an opportunity to express gratitude for the people we share our lives with—not because circumstances force us together, but because we consciously choose one another day after day. Love is not something to be assumed or postponed; it is something to be discovered repeatedly, in every season of life.

In that discovery, we may find that love is both simpler and more demanding than we imagined. It asks only that we show up, fully present, with open eyes and an open heart.

Svetlana Kogan, M.D.

The author of ‘Diet Slave No More!’, Svetlana Kogan, M.D. IFMCP is a Board-Certified Internal Medicine, Holistic & Functional Medical Doctor with 25 years of experience.

Her website is CustomLongevity.com Office Phone: 239-676-6883