Getting Back Out There After Lockdown

Now that social restrictions are starting to ease and more and more people are stepping out of their bubbles to restart their lives, many people are wondering: but what about dating? Is it safe to start dating again? And if so, how do I also start?

Here are a few things to think about before you dive back into the dating pool after months of isolation.

Are You Ready?

Just because you can start dating again, doesn’t necessarily mean that you should. It’s important to ask yourself if opening yourself up to love and dating is something you want to do, or if it’s just something that everyone else is doing right now. Often, it’s good to spend time alone and working on ourselves. There’s no need to follow the crowds if you feel content being single, or if you’re still not ready to make physical contact with people who aren’t in your bubble. Your physical health and emotional wellbeing are the most important thing to consider!

Be Sure of What You Want

If you do decide that it’s time to open yourself up to someone and start dating again after months of isolation, take some time to think about what you want. If you’re looking for a serious, committed relationship and wanting to settle down with someone, you should make this clear to the people you’re dating.

On the other hand, if you’re just looking for physical fulfillment, you should make that clear too, so that nobody has expectations that can’t be met. If you are looking for something purely physical, an easy way to go about it is to try out apps and websites like MILF app – when you use platforms like this, it will be clear what you’re after and you don’t run the risk of letting someone down.

Be Picky

This is good advice even when you’re not living through the apocalypse. Knowing what you want in a partner is an important step in the dating game and will help you to weed out the ones who simply aren’t going to cut. Yes, you’re allowed to be picky and no, you don’t have to settle just because they’re the first person who’s been interested in weeks.

Choosing to go out with someone based purely on looks or other superficial qualities might be fun for a while, but if you’re looking for something serious, you might find yourself disappointed a few weeks (or even months) down the line. Make sure you know what qualities and traits you value in a partner and if you’re not sure – find out! Chatting to different people and going on a few dates will very quickly make you realize what you like and what you don’t like. Use that to measure whether or not someone will fit into your life in the way you want.

Get to Know Them

If you’re taking the route of online dating, which probably is the easiest way to meet people during these times, you’ll want to make sure you know what they’re about before agreeing to meet up in person. Take some time to get to know the person – over messages, phone calls, and preferably video calls (this will help you make sure you’re not getting catfished). Building a good online connection before you meet IRL will be beneficial for your relationship and will make the first in-person date much easier to manage.

Be Safe

Sure, this could be meant in the typical sense of physical intimacy, but before you even reach that point, it’s important to be Covid safe. In the whirlwind of a romance, it can be easy to forget about safety protocols and fall into your date’s arms but that might not be the best idea.

If you want to meet up with your online honey, try to organize that both of you isolate in a very small social bubble (or entirely alone) for a week or two before your date, if you’re planning on having physical contact with one another. Otherwise, you’ll be fine to go on your date and simply maintain social distancing for the first few times you meet up.

Create a Bubble

Things might be going well with the person you’re dating, and perhaps you’d like to safely be intimate with them. Then, you might consider being in a Covid bubble with them – that means you’d isolate together, and both avoid contact with other people as far as possible. These arrangements would depend on the regulations and laws of the country you live in, as well as your personal preferences when it comes to socializing in the time of Covid.