Sexual Relationships 
Sexual Health 
Ah yes, online dating. There are thousands of articles on this subject and I know everyone's opinion is different. But since this is a MyTake after all, I thought I would share my experience as a single female in a small town where my options aren't endless and neither are the choices of where the first date would be.
For starters, there's the choice of an unpaid dating app or a paid dating app. I have used both and have found more matches on the unpaid apps than the latter. I believe this has a lot to do with the fact people don't actually want to spend money on the slight chance that they may meet someone great when they could just download an app for free and swipe away. I do think there are genuine guys on the paid apps but not nearly as many to choose from.
Speaking of choices, sometimes I look back and think, "This is really how dating has become?" It's extremely materialistic, confusing and frustrating. But I'm not here to give you all the things your parents and the internet warns you about. I just want to throw 5 things out there I have learned and will hopefully help someone else in this online dating world.
1. Make sure your profile is up to date and unique. Be yourself!
Use a few photos that are all less than a year or two old. I think its important to include a pic with friends or a full body shot instead of all close up selfies. DO NOT be that girl or guy who includes all group pics so its like a guessing game of who you're matching with. Throw in a few sentences of what you like to do or what you're looking for. Keep it simple and put things that YOU like to do, not what you think the opposite sex will like.
2. Talk to them for a few weeks or months to get to know them, but don't just make someone a texting buddy.
The end goal is dating after all. I have made the mistake of spending too much time getting to know them over texting or social media vs. actually meeting up with them and I think people lose interest if you just become a random number in someone's phone. Of course it's better to text a little at first so you don't just meet up with any random stranger or serial killer.
3. Be clear about what you're looking for...
Too many people are so vague about what they want on dating apps. I think this is mostly because they don't even know what they want themselves. But in my opinion, if you're only looking for sex, then put that in your profile! Nothing wrong with being upfront and honest. If you wanna get married tomorrow, add it to your bio! Foot fetish? Throw it in there! Honesty is key in dating profiles.
4. Don't ghost people, even if you've lost interest or are too busy to talk anymore.
Sadly, I have done this and regret it a lot. But I have also been ghosted many times and it completely sucks. You're really hitting it off with someone, even may go on a few dates and out of the blue you never hear from them again. I have learned that its MUCH better to at least be honest to text the person that you're no longer interested or are just too busy to date. A text takes 10 seconds to explain how you're feeling compared to the other person wondering for hours or days what they did wrong.
5. Don't expect much but also don't be afraid to go on lots of dates!
The biggest thing I have learned is to never get your hopes up that you're going to meet the man or woman of your dreams on Tinder. I have gone on a handful of really great dates but also some pretty horrible dates. I have dated someone for a year from a dating app. I've been on dating apps on and off for the past couple of years and have learned that you also shouldn't be afraid to go on all of the dates you can. You never know who you're going to hit it off with! What do you have to lose? If anything, you'll have a funny story to tell friends. Lord knows I have enough of those.
I hope this has helped someone out there trying to navigate all those dating apps. And please don't be too harsh on me, first MyTake here! :) Please leave your own advice below, I wanna know what others think about dating apps too.
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