Care Home Residents Share Their Relationship Advice For Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is going to be a little different for everyone this year.

Thanks to lockdown, many of us will be spending the special day without our other halves; then, there are the others who haven't left their loved one's side in 11-months (and are going slightly bonkers) and the singletons, who feel like they may never be able to date again.

Basically, we could all do with some love advice right now, and who better to offer it than the elderly?

Yep, residents at a Halstead care home named Colne View have shared their heart-warming and hilarious relationship advice ahead of Cupid's holiday, because nothing teaches you about love like some first hand life experience...

Nell, 102

Colne View care home)

Nell's marriage advice is something we could all heed.

Ron, 88

Colne View care home)

Ron has been married for 50 years, so you could say his advice is tried and tested!

Sheila, 86

Colne View care home)

Sheila was married for 53 years, so you can bet she knows it when she warns men are immature!

Cyril, 96

Colne View care home)

Former veteran and carpenter Cyril fell in love with his neighbour Vera, after she asked him to fit some shelves.

The pair remained married for the rest of Vera's life, and, sweetly, Cyril still says it was "the best day's work he's ever done".

Betty, 92

Colne View care home)

Betty has been in a successful 30 year marriage, so you know you can trust her!

Margaret, 103

Margaret

Preach Margaret!

Razvan Stanbeca, Home Manager at Colne View, said: "The true course of love never did run smoothly, which is why we could all do with some advice from the older and wiser members of our community.

"Writing our relationship advice provided the perfect activity to reminisce, which can be incredibly beneficial for older people, especially those living with dementia. Reflecting on strong memories from the past helps to boost confidence and offers the chance to re-live happy times, which can then prompt conversation.

"We have some fantastic people living here at Colne View, who always have so many fantastic words of wisdom to share. We learn a lot from their lifetime of experience each day, which is why their advice is so special - and often gives us all a good giggle too!"

Topics: Sex and Relationships

Joanna Freedman

Joanna is a journalist at Tyla with a particular interest in highlighting women's issues and telling inspiring first person stories. She's also their resident foodie, and loves covering exciting new beauty launches, too. Contact her at [email protected].

@joannafreedman