I don't think that you can let the storms of life overwhelm you. When you do that, you are no better than the craziness that caused you to be under attack.
I don't get a whole lot out of the romance thing, but I realize girls do. So I'll go out of my way to make them feel romanced.
You can't pander to your audience. You might in the short term, but ultimately you can't hoodwink them, either.