dating

Online dating addiction is something that is increasing, and health professionals are reporting record numbers of addicts seeking help. Shrinking disposable incomes are being blamed as the main reason alarming numbers of online singles are becoming addicted.

Large numbers of people are switching to online dating for sex and relationships compared to conventional means of socializing such as bar hopping. Why? because online dating is either dirt cheap or 100% free, and just because people have run out of money doesn't mean their desire to hook up has wavered. Quite the opposite in fact, Professor Buckley from Monash University and the Sex/Wellness Research Centre tells us " Our questionnaire to both our students and their family members who are aged under 28 years of age and who are single were asked whether their social behaviours had changed since the recession impacted the economy".

Out of the 728 respondents, bars, night clubbing, private parties and social functions were frequented by 78% of singles under 28 years of age (14% chose online dating) as their instinctive social alternative, pre-recession. Unfortunately, and with 7 million American's out of work, blowing hundreds of dollars on a single night out on the town is simply no option.

It is also no option for our youth to stop advancing their opportunities to find a partner or to find sex, and since the recession kicked in, the internet is now what 61% of our randy respondents chose as their primary method of meeting people.

Online dating can be rather consuming. It's very easy to grow into a habit of checking your dating site for new messages multiple times a day. And thus, you are a candidate for online dating addiction. A five minute scan of your new messages can so easily turn into several hours of replying to new messages etc and if one of your friends sees that you're online, you can also get side tracked in live chat rooms - hang on, I was only checking my messages - five hours later!

Another big mistake online singles are making is joining multiple online dating sites to increase their chances of more dates. All that happens with this scenario is that you end up soaking up all your time managing your presence on the various sites instead of using your time diligently short listing suitable singles on just one dating site.

People addicted to online dating need to prioritize their lives to include more balance and make strict time lines when they are online and avoid becoming obsessed with it. Work out what you want. Whether you are only in it for sex or are looking for romance, don't waste your precious time chatting to and emailing other members you are engaging just for the sake of it.

You will have far more success with online dating if you know when to move on to the next person, or whether it's even worth replying to some messages at all.