During my freshman year of college some of my friends started using online dating apps like Tinder or Bumble, they said it was just for fun, for whatever reason, I was too afraid to try it myself. The rational fear of this is obviously, meeting up with strangers that are not being honest and are dangerous (so, disclaimer: be careful on these apps) but MY irrational fear was being judged by others. At some point I decided to finally give it a try and every time I would see someone I knew, (for example someone I went to high school with) I had a mini heart attack. This was because I know how often women are put down for using these apps. The thing that infuriates me about that is that there are so many men on there that are not being judged, so why are we? The sexual double standard of course. I am just bringing awareness to it, please stop judging women, stop judging ANYONE that uses these apps. As someone that is very shy it is hard to talk to people in person at first sometimes, especially if you like them. But chill out, I am not telling you to try these apps yourself, just please do not judge anyone that does. If you do use these apps, just be careful. Whenever you first meet up with someone make it in a public place just to be safe. Another thing is that people judge without knowing what you are on the app for. You could be on the app looking for a relationship, a hookup, friends, etc. But whatever it may be, it is no one else’s business so why do people judge?
The top three apps I suggest for you to give a try if you are thinking about online dating (especially during social distancing) are Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge. There are many more online dating apps than just these three but these are the ones I have tried out that I liked. On Tinder you swipe right on someone you like and left on someone you don’t. If you match, you can start talking to each other. I do warn you, there are some creeps on there (like on any other social media platform of course). If you want to decrease the amount of texts from creepy dudes though, I suggest Bumble. If you choose to get men as your option for cards and if you match with them, you will be the only one that can reach out first. It really gives you the power. It is not everyone’s cup of tea though (I prefer Tinder myself only because I do not like to always be the first one to reach out). Another app similar to Bumble is Hinge. On Hinge you upload your photos and people that are swiping get to like them or comment on them. You also get to answer questions you choose, allows you to see who has liked one of your photos or has commented on them and you decide whether to match or not.
These apps give you the option of choosing the age you want in a significant other, how far away they can be, etc. Also, what I like about Tinder and Bumble is that others can’t send you photos through the apps’ chat (so that you don’t receive unsolicited photos/videos). On Hinge, it gives you the option of calling and video chatting.
There are three things that I hope you got from reading this.
1. Do not judge others that use online dating apps
2. If you use them, always be careful!
3. There are various apps you can try for online dating