Hold your loved one close today!

In 2008, research on Facebook found that for several reasons, people opt to end their relationship on today's date.

Research carried out by 'Information Is Beautiful' determined this by analysing the dates when users changed their relationship status to 'single'.

While the days of updating relationship status on Facebook are long gone, research and data would suggest that December 11th is still a popular choice to end it.

This date, whether picked consciously or unconsciously, stands out for several reasons.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the festive season may force some couples to reflect on the year together and this may lead to them realising their issues may have not been resolved.

"I think as the year ends couples break up because they assume that the underlying issues they had in their relationship would have been fixed by now and they dread carrying the same issues into a new year," dating expert Renee Slansky told the outlet.

"We tend to use this time of the year to reflect and ask ourselves what we really want and what's not working out and then make decisions to either continue or end."

The date could also be popular for break-ups due to being on the edge of Christmas festivities, but not too close that it could be considered a dumping at Christmas.

Psychologist Marny Lishman also tells the publication that tensions and pressures during this time of year could also be leading to December 11th earning it's nickname as 'break up day'.

"In many cases people can become quite overwhelmed, which can lead to feelings of stress. And when people are stressed, they can become disconnected, irritable, and unhappy."

This is backed up by Dr Dorree Lynn who told ABC News that spending Christmas together is as 'intimate' as it gets for a couple, and those who aren't meant to be tend to realise this around December 11th.

Gift-giving can also add to tensions, according to Dr. Lynn.

"If you're not sure, particularly if you haven't been dating for several years, a lot of people have issues about gift-giving and how intimate the gift-giving is.

"They get frightened because they don't want to put pressure on the other person, but on the other hand they don't want to feel like a fool giving something and not getting anything back."

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