Can Online Dating Kill You?

Kissing frogs causes serious damage

Social media is jam-packed with people (women and men) complaining about the many downsides of online dating — the liars, the posers, the ghosts, the naked men, the guys with fish, the women with fish lips, the married people, etc., etc., etc.

And some are even really murderers. Yikes!

When I Googled “kissing frogs online dating” I got close to 9 million hits, including books with related titles.

So, even if you are committed to smooching lots of toads and even tadpoles to find your dream person, you’re bound to end up with a wart or two (or many more).

I haven’t updated this series in a while. That’s because I was doing two things over the past month:

1. Staying off the apps entirely so I could focus on self-care and work

2. Getting and treating warts (not literally)

Let’s talk about #2.

A new study revealed that close to 80 percent of people experience some form of emotional fatigue and burnout from online dating.

Although I didn’t field a psychological study, I would add that sadness, heartache, confusion and sometimes self-loathing are also among the symptoms.

I’m pretty strong and self-confident, but a couple of recent rejections left me feeling more than a tad depressed, anxious, and hopeless. And that’s on top of the fatigue and burnout.

This woman feels pretty warty these days.

• So, do I keep going to the “pond” to look for that prince? It is often filled with toxic waste and the frogs are often unwilling to leave their lily pads and try new things.

  

• Do I keep kissing but with pursed lips and a hardened heart? I never want to become that woman who treats humans like fungible reptilian creatures.

• Or, do I simply remain romantic and positive (as is my natural personality), learn to heal more quickly, and follow the dating equivalent of the “frog handling rules.”

I’m leaning toward the last one. After all, I haven’t drained all the ponds yet.

Perhaps Arizona is truly a desert and I need to wade in more cosmopolitan areas. And then, of course, we have the novel idea of meeting someone in the real world. I’m planning to attend more live events, volunteer, and maybe even go on a singles excursion.

And, as I often remind myself, warts are not fatal…just annoying.