KATHMANDU, FEBRUARY 13

February 14th, or Valentine's Day, is 'I love you' day. Three little words that are spoken with great pleasure all over the world. There are assorted ways to express love in different countries. In our country, you say 'Ma timi lai maya garchu', in Chinese it is 'Wo ai ni', in Irish 'Taim i' ngra leat, in German 'Ich liebe dichm'...

The history of Valentine's Day dates back to the 4th century when a priest named Valentine defied Emperor Claudius II's decree that soldiers remain bachelors. For performing secret marriage ceremonies for these soldiers, Valentine was put to death on February 14.With his death, he gave birth to a day when people around the world celebrate love.

The way people celebrate this special day has evolved over the century. In the 18th century, lovers expressed their love for each other by presenting flowers, while in the 19th century exchanging cards became very popular. These days the internet has become the most popular medium to express love.

Many people celebrate their love for their partner by giving gifts or flowers and arranging meals in restaurants.

On Valentine's Day, people who are unlucky in love are said to suffer from a "broken heart".

A broken heart is an actual medical condition in which intense emotional or physical stress can cause rapid and severe heart muscle weakness, causing distortion and enlargement of the heart, a swelling that is quite unlike that heartburst upon falling in love. This condition can occur following a variety of emotional stressors, such as break up with one's girlfriend or boyfriend, fear, extreme anger, surprise and death of a loved one. It could even happen after divorce, breakup or physical separation, betrayal or romantic rejection.

The "broken heart syndrome" could show symptoms similar to patients with a heart attack, including chest pain, shortness of breath, congestive heart failure and low blood pressure. Typically these symptoms begin just minutes to hours after the person has been exposed to a severe, and usually unexpected, stress.

To a cardiologist, a heart attack means a blocked coronary artery, but in this condition we find the coronary arteries are open and the blood supply is fine. An echocardiography of the pumping chamber shows it's paralysed, plus it's taken on a unique and abnormal shape.

Time is the healer for the broken-hearted.

Around 95 per cent of patients recover from a 'broken heart' within four to eight weeks. Follow-up care is recommended to check for cardiac function. Love is in the air on Valentine's Day, let it remain so throughout the year. May love increase everyday as we look forward to the next Valentine's Day.

A version of this article appears in the print on February 14, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.