If you haven't heard about the self-help phenomenon that is the five love languages, which has exploded into popularity in recent years, then you clearly haven't been surfing the web nearly as much as we all claim to.

The initial idea, which came from a book written by Gary Chapman in 1995, outlines five different ways that humans tend to express affection to one another, particularly in romantic relationships. It's only recently that discussions on several different platforms of the internet have discovered that these languages extend past romance, and could possibly teach us how to improve all of our most basic interactions on a daily basis.

However, since there's a certain controversial holiday creeping upon us, I think now is as great a time as any to discover if there's any actual benefit that can come from being aware of this concept.

Maybe there is some truth that understanding the way you and other people communicate love can help us all stop wasting our time trying to read mixed signals? That's why I'll be breaking down each love language one-by-one to analyze what it means and how it should affect your interactions.

Words of affirmation

This is the person in your life that feels most understood and cared for when you're always open to telling them how much they mean to you — this can be tricky since those who thrive off words of affirmation would never openly ask for it the way speakers of other love languages might.

So this is one you may need to test out — I'm personally a strong believer that we should always be telling people how much they mean to us but am also aware that it may make certain people uncomfortable to hear aloud how awesome they are.

But if you tell whoever that person may be in your life that you're proud of their recent promotion at work, complement the way they always consider others or tell them in depth how much you appreciate their presence in your life and you just happen to see their whole face light up — I think that's a pretty good indication that you're speaking to their heart.

Gifts

Have you ever been given a gift and felt obligated to put on a forced performance on how much you liked it, without really knowing if you even liked it because you're so focused on giving the right reaction? If not, then you're probably in the category of people who thrive off of receiving and then owning physical symbols of love and friendship in your life, that always remind you of just how well those people know what you like.

This one has always been an interesting one to me since it seems that gifts seem to symbolize how well a person knows you more than anything, which is why the pressure of both giving/receiving could possibly intimidate certain people. This is also a language that goes both ways — if your special person is somebody who puts baskets together for holidays, relishes in the planning of birthday gifts and celebratory get-togethers, then there's a chance that they wouldn't mind receiving something thoughtful from you.

The wonderful thing about indulging in this language is that it forces you to consider how well you may know that person, and which of their interests stand out most to you when you think of them.

Acts of service

If there is anything in this world that's more underrated, it's the act of doing something for someone and expecting nothing in return. Perhaps even more underrated is when someone does exactly that for you as well.

This is alongside "words of affirmation" as being one of those languages that's hard to determine, because most people who love through acts of service will never explicitly ask you to do anything for them — they will, however, do those things for you.

This means it's worth keeping an eye out for those people in your life that show their love for you when they bring you a large blended coffee during your late night library sessions for no reason at all or cook you a dinner just because you happened to mention that you're running low on groceries. Chances are, they'll accept love in that exact same way when it's offered to them, and will clearly send them the message that their charitable acts do not go unappreciated.

Physical touch

Ah yes, the risque love language. Too often this one seems to be completely sexualized when the truth is that physical touch can really be or mean anything.

Sometimes a hug from a good friend is the best comfort on your absolute worst days, or sometimes leaning your head on someone when the world gets too heavy will show them just how much you trust them.

There are some people who can thrive off of relationships with little to no physical affection, and then there are people who are downright uncomfortable at the thought of it. Trust me when I say that this is one in which it's absolutely acceptable to ask someone beforehand how they feel about it; asking, "Can I give you a hug?" or, "Is it OK if I just lean my head on your shoulder right now?" can make certain that you're identifying your own way of expressing affection without overstepping their boundaries.

Quality time

Probably the most frustrating of all the love languages is quality time. I say frustrating because, in many ways, quality time is becoming a thing of the past. Time is a lot to ask from someone, especially seeing how people my age seem to be getting busier and busier each and every year, and the busier we get the less we are willing to give or ask for our time.

If this is your love language, you may find yourself feeling dissatisfied with text messages and Snapchats, but also feeling afraid of asking for more out of fear of asking for too much.

This is one that also goes two ways; of course, it's easy to tell how much someone values you based on how much of their quality time they're willing to spend on you. On the flipside, though, it's imperative to realize that if you'd like a fun, successful relationship in this day and age, you have to be grateful for the time people are willing to give up with you, and also fully aware of all the time you are giving to others.

We only have so much of it, after all.

What is your love language?

Many people would simply tell you to go take the popular quiz on www.5lovelanguages.com to find out how you communicate love, but I propose a different challenge to you: discover your language by observing the ways in which you feel most appreciated and the way people in your life react to your own expressions of appreciation, especially as we're exiting this confusing Valentine's season. This may lead you to not only pay attention to who and how you love, but to realize the way you deserve to be loved as well.