Wasn’t dating already enough of a challenge?

What even is the dating scene right now?

Dating is hard. It just is. It’s never going to get easier. Adding the stress and uncertainty of a pandemic when it isn’t safe to be within six feet of others, it can feel like those of us who are single and looking will wander forever. When one really sits with that thought, it can be outright terrifying.

What if it never ends?

I dealt with this firsthand in April of 2020, barely four weeks into what is presently months and months of the lockdown in the United States. I had been seeing someone since January, but our relationship was simply too new and too delicate for the pressure of a pandemic. Things just weren’t going to work out.

I was really hurt and upset at first. I really liked the person and it seemed I was stuck for another year or two of solitude right when it felt I had something good going with someone. But after some time, I felt ready to get back into the scene again.

The problem is, of course, for anyone who is single and looking right now: how the heck do we do that? What are the rules of meeting new people to bring into our lives when it’s not safe to be in the presence of strangers? Is there a way to build something with a new person so they are trustworthy enough to enter the bubble? What risks are okay to take and when?

None of us have all of the answers. Only you can determine what’s right for your circumstances, whether that means remaining virtual-only until society reintegrates or taking informed steps to connect with someone in person.

Instead of focusing on rigid timelines or preferred roles and texting scripts, I’ve learned that a change in perspective has been most successful, and that I will take this new attitude with me, even after the pandemic ends.

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PHOTO BY ANDREA PIACQUADIO FOR PEXELS