Online Dating

[E.M. Skies]

As an adult woman, the lesson of "stranger danger" has never left my mind. I have had relatives and friends sign up for dating sites and apps, some with very sweet success stories, but I just cannot see myself getting into this trend at the moment. Call me old-fashioned, but I prefer to meet people in real life and see how a relationship develops from there. I don't exclude this to dating, I have never tried to meet friends online either, but I do know people who have met their best friends online. Fear is what drives my decision. Ever since I was a little girl I was told to never talk to strangers, including people online, and it has stuck with me. I do not judge those who do meet people online, and as time goes on, I think that I would be more open to it, but for now, I'll stick to in-person relationships.

[gashin4]

I understand your position. Since I'm on my twenties, I'm used to using the Internet to stay in touch with my friends. With time, I made new friends from all over the world and it amazes me. I grew up in a small town, so the web really helped me to broaden my horizons. But I'm still afraid of online dating and I don't think I would meet a male in person. We hear too many bad news about this, no matter how many others turn out happy and sweet. 

So I guess I'm just like you, except that I'm okay with having online friends and occasionally meeting them in person.

[Bert22]

For me, online dating is not safe. It is because we cannot see the real and actual beauty of the person you are dating. We do not know how sincere he/she is, and we do not know what really his/her marital status is.

[Adesuwa08]

Online dating creeps me out, there have been so many weird stories of people who do this kind of dates but not all turns out perfect. I have a friend who went through a very tough situation as a result of online dating, I kind of stuck to that horrifying ideology till now.

I am not trying to say that all are bad but only minorities turn out well, online scavengers have used this medium to exploit people who trust them both emotionally and financially, they hurt these people and subject them to mental abuse which is always to their own advantage. I have made friends worldwide, good ones who have taught me the rule of exception. Not everyone gets lucky.

[musicfan96]

I have tried several different online dating sites. I find that more often than not, people my age (early twenties) that are on these sites are looking for hookups. I've gone on many dates from dating sites, and I am usually quickly able to see why these people can't find someone through in-person methods. I've only ever had one, short relationship with a person I've met from a dating website. It is harder for me to get to know someone well online than it is in-person. I've since deleted all of my profiles and have had much more success through conventional means of dating. Online dating might be better suited for an older crowd, but for me, it just wasn't working.

I've never been worried about any safety issues with online dating. I know to always meet in public place first, and to let friends know where I am and who I'm with. I also know not to post too much personal information about myself online. You just need to be smart when you date online. In terms of safeness, it's not much different than meeting someone in-person and then going out on a date.

[itswhtvr]

Online dating is really amazing.  People like to focus on the fact that you can easily hide your identity and intentions, but isn't that fairly easy to achieve in real life?  People that put up facades will do it whether or not their behind the safety of a computer screen.  It's also incredible how much the internet has impact us, right down to our very love lives.  People are meeting people online that they would probably never have the opportunity to meet, either by chance or in their social circle.  

While online dating isn't something that I'm interested in, it does certainly widen the dating pool.  It also allows you to find people with similar interests much more easily than traditional methods.

[4-bit-Poster]

My suggestion to people is to never miss out on something new or be afraid to try new things, because you think you might not like it. Online dating is something people around me have always been negative about, up until recently. If you're seeing it as something which is not 'in-person relationships' as you say, then you have misunderstood what it is all about. Most people who use online dating services, do not keep the relationships only online. They quickly meet up to test the chemistry between prospective partners. The point of using a dating website, is to find like minded people with similar interests. This way, you can weed out all of the obviously bad matched people before wasting your time on an awkward date. 

In fact you will increase your chance of finding love by searching a dating website, as you will go on a lot more dates and meet a lot more people than you can do by other means.

As for 'stranger danger', there are very clear and simple steps you can do to ensure you keep yourself safe. Some of these are common sense, but all dating websites will encourage them.

[bellastar]

I know for a fact on my account that online dating did not work for me. I did go out with a few men. But all they wanted was a one night stand.

I would never date anyone knows about internet dating. These sites never work and all they usually want is a person's money.

[AliD2018]

On 1/3/2018 at 12:55 AM, E.M. Skies said:

As an adult woman, the lesson of "stranger danger" has never left my mind. I have had relatives and friends sign up for dating sites and apps, some with very sweet success stories, but I just cannot see myself getting into this trend at the moment. Call me old-fashioned, but I prefer to meet people in real life and see how a relationship develops from there. I don't exclude this to dating, I have never tried to meet friends online either, but I do know people who have met their best friends online. Fear is what drives my decision. Ever since I was a little girl I was told to never talk to strangers, including people online, and it has stuck with me. I do not judge those who do meet people online, and as time goes on, I think that I would be more open to it, but for now, I'll stick to in-person relationships.

Online dating is one of the worst possible ideas mainly because you have 0 idea about the other person..Even blind dating is better than online dating. Personally i met my husband 4 years ago, in a car which isn't that different from online or blind dating but things began to develop between us so is better not to judge and just accept the fact that some people have these preferences and like to take the risks involved in such actions.

[dellmininotebook]

Online dating is not safe. It is better to use some famous social network site for this purpose. Never share your personal information with a stranger. It is better to date someone around you or the one whom you met in real life. If you really want to date online then try to stay safe. Never trust anyone before you meet them in a person. Never send or receive money to anyone for the traveling expense or for any kind of prize collection.

[LuckiestGirl]

Any time you interact with someone you've met online you need to take basic safety precautions. It's not the "online dating" that's dangerous, it's revealing too much information before you've vetted the person.  I prefer online dating because it lets you get to know someone deeply, through conversation, before you have to go out in public and see them face-to-face. I know some people prefer face-to-face meetings, but I'm an introvert, and I'm more attracted to someone's mind than their face. Nothing is sexier than a great mind. My boyfriend and I met online about 7 years ago and we get along famously. We've never actually argued, our communication is amazing. After 18 years in an abusive marriage, it's so refreshing to engage deeply and intimately with someone who feels safe. We talked online for 3-4 months before we met in real life. Ironically, he lives 9 miles away from me, so it's perfect.

[Alex Mihai]

Online dating can be such a fail, I`ve never done this in the last few years when all this industry boomed. But used to date girls when i was under 18 alot.

Why can it be such a fail ? Hmm... well, we all know pictures cand be edited and how many pictures we take until we choose the good one and how we cover our defects on social media websites and even if the photos have been taken for us.  So, i found myself in many strange situations dating someone totally different then her online profile.

[Sunshine Gramby]

My experience with signing up on dating sites online has been enlightening. I found that I was among the very few honest people on the sites. I ran into a few men and women with who I went to school. I had a  couple of fun dates...meeting men; but overall I would rather meet them in traditional ways. Being outgoing is a plus for sure in meeting people to date. Anonymous dating is too uncertain and possibly dangerous.

[Success Girl]

Many people have apprehensions about online dating. We all have heard our fair share of heart-rending stories about online dating, yet, there have also been success stories. Recently, my thoughts are beginning to change about that. The more I get involved with e-commerce and deal with webusers, the more the barrier and apprehensions seem to disappear. It looks like the person or webuser was physically present. That has set me rethinking the whole issue of online dating, to the extent that I'm beginning to believe, for those of us who are evangelical christians, you can as well pray and find out from God, whether someone you are communicating with online is the right person or not.