Dating looks different for different people at different stages of their lives, but most people tend to agree on one thing: dating is not easy. The movies we grew up watching made us believe that love would come in the form of a serenade, a public confession, or an airport proposal. Realistically, it takes a lot of time and energy. It can also depend on certain outside situations that could halt or contribute to its progress. Like, say, a pandemic.
According to Pew Research Center, 71% of people under the age of 30 who are looking for relationships, have said that dating has grown harder during the pandemic. I know for me personally, the pandemic has definitely turned me away from dating. I feel uncomfortable socializing and avoid going out if possible.
Dating apps seemed to become a popular workaround for this issue. According to The Center for Digital Humanities at Vanderbilt, 31% of Americans using dating apps were using these services more now than before the pandemic. Dating online has worked for a lot of people, especially in times when they could not meet up in person and could only interact online through texting or calling. Personally, I tried dating apps for a while, which was fun initially but quickly lost its novelty. But now that public places are opening back up and people are back to seeing each other again, the original difficulties with dating have come back stronger than ever.
Dating is especially difficult for college students. According to Elite Daily, time management is one of the biggest issues with dating in college. The truth is there just isn’t enough time. College students have to balance school work with social life, while also meeting basic needs like getting enough sleep, food, and exercise. And unlike in high school, there’s no longer any guarantee that we will see and be surrounded by the same people every day.
College life and the effects of the pandemic may be making the dating world look a little bleak, but it doesn’t have to. To look at things on a more positive note, it’s all about adapting and working through it together. Because in all of the studies provided above, there were still a lot of people in happy, committed relationships, and a lot more looking to be in one. Reading through them actually made me look at dating with a little more optimism. Hopefully in due time, we will all figure out how to maneuver through these obstacles, and eventually find our person. For now, know that you are not alone: dating is hard.