I stopped Dating in 2022: A Review.

So, in 2022, I started the year off with some serious health concerns. I made getting answers and healing my priority and worked as much as I could to keep my bills paid in the meantime. So, I stopped dating. I stopped trying to meet people, I didn't use any dating sites, and even when I did heal and start going out again, I avoided men that expressed interest in me.

Then Roe V. Wade was overturned and honestly, I completely lost interest in dating. The risk was not worth it. I live in Texas because I have a great job here, but we don't have access to legal, safe abortions. There's a 3 month wait to even see a primary care doctor. Dating became so much more risky - a pregnancy isn't something I could handle health wise or financially. I encouraged all my friends especially in Texas to stop having casual sex because now we don't have a safe way out if anything happens. A lot of my friends have stopped dating and started having more of a FDS mindset because of Roe V Wade being overturned.

I had a male orbiter that popped back up into my life when I did get sick. I enjoyed the chats we'd have here and there - it was only over the phone. When I was sick, I couldn't go out much and I had just gone no contact with an abusive family member. I was vulnerable and looking back he used this opportunity to use me for attention. I had only entertained him here and there, and thankfully then I came to my senses when I healed up and deleted and blocked him. He had gotten entitled to me and started making a sexual innuendo. I didn't explain or give any sign I'd block him - we finished the conversation, and he was deleted and blocked being the none the wiser as to why. I want to make it easier for any other women he encounters to see the red flags. He was also a lesson that you CANNOT entertain male orbiters! They really are all the same and attention from a woman is currency to them!

I spent the rest of the year getting back on my feet - made a career change and grew my small business. I did things for myself that added value and brought joy to my life. I made connections with a few high value women, and we keep in touch. I also got a lot closer with one of my friends, another woman who also works in the same industry as myself.

I regularly keep in contact with my sister and my grandma - and when i crave a laugh or attention instead of seeking it from men, I'll spend extra time with them instead. It's been so much more fun and fulfilling.

I've found joy in going out with friends and family as well as alone - to the point where I don't miss dating at all.

I've spent more time wondering if I'm asexual - I knew being sick and all the meds I had been on had lowered my sex drive - but being better and off them for months I still rarely have an attraction to most of the men I see. They put no effort into themselves. Even when my sister visited, she looked around and said most of the men look "homeless" and "gross".

Looking forward, I still wish that one day I will be happily married in a cute little house with a high value man to come home to and have each other to carry through whatever life throws our way - but it feels more like a dream. I have not spent any time working towards that. Prince charming does not exist. Instead, I'm taking steps every day to save myself and create that life for myself instead. I replaced the daydream of the husband with a dog and having my sister move in with me.

My attitude towards men is uninterested and unbothered with dating. My focus is on being "selfish" and dating myself. I'm so much less stressed, happier, my mental health has improved, I feel more confident. If a man does want to enter my life, I will only be open to it if he is both physically attractive to me and passes initial vetting. I have hardly encountered any attractive men in Texas and have not seen anyone here in my age range that displays high value traits. The men that claim they are "good old country boys" are misogynists and extremely red pilled. In cities, there are a lot of grown men that still act like fuck boys no matter how old they are (especially in the boom towns).

I am looking forward to another stress-free year in 2023 where i work on myself even more and see what career and business opportunities are in store.

PS: My mom did ask once why I haven't met anyone and then had the audacity to bring up setting me up with this military scrote (that she's mentioned to me over the past 3 years here and there). His one social media is public, and my sister and I had combed through it before I started FDS and we saw how red pilled he was and not over his ex. Plus he had opposing political views and didn't support reproductive rights for women. My sister and I said no. When my mom brought him up at thanksgiving, I embarrassed her at the table and said, "well you are friends with him and can see he's posting all those things, so why do you want me to be with someone who doesn't support women's rights and still is not over his ex from several years ago?" She stumbled and then apologized. She agreed finally that he was not fit for relationships and has not brought it up since.