Contributed by: kellyseal on Monday, January 02 2012 @ 10:04 am
Last modified on
If you're online dating, have you started going out regularly with one of your matches? You might have gotten to a point in your dating relationship where you wonder if you should remove your profile, or ask him if he's removed his. In other words, it's another way of having a conversation about where the relationship is headed and how serious you want to become.
So what does this mean? How do you begin a conversation about when to take down your online dating profile? And how do you know when the right time is?
This is a tricky subject, so I'll give you some guidelines of what to ask yourself to see if you're ready.
Have you had talks about being exclusive? If you haven't, you should assume he or she is still dating other people. People have different expectations when it comes to relationships, so communication is key. If you are afraid to bring it up, then don't be upset with him for wanting to date others. And don't insist he take down his profile just because you've taken down yours. The talk about where your relationship is headed is most important, not whether the profile page is active or not.
Communicate what you want. There is no standard for how a relationship should progress, so try not to put a time limit on when you should both take down your profiles. If you want to date her exclusively, then talk about it. Don't assume that just because you've been dating for a month or 3 months or even longer that you are in a relationship and she should take down her profile. She may have a different idea. Be clear and discuss what you want.
Don't feel pressured to remove your profile if you're not ready. Online dating is about meeting people and seeing who is right for you. If you are dating someone but still feel unsure, allow yourself the opportunity to search and date others. There's no crime in saying you prefer not to be exclusive.
If you've both agreed to date exclusively but he doesn't want to take down his profile, it's important to discuss why. This may seem like a no-brainer, but if he wants to keep his profile up, it's because he's still pursuing other women, or he's not ready for a relationship even though he does like you. Either way, it's not fair to you, so the best thing to do is keep your profile up and let him know you'll continue to date other people. If you want to be exclusive and he's shying away, he may not be right for you.