Finding a date during the pandemic
Image Credit: Freeimages
March 07, 2021 - 3:31 PM
For many people, finding love can be tricky at the best of times.
Add in all of the complexities of life in a pandemic, and your odds of finding a partner certainly seem to narrow.
But there are some strategies you can employ to help ease your way through the potentially thorny world of romance, B.C. dating and relationship coach Shana Chow says, and it starts online.
"If you are serious about finding love and you're not doing online dating, you're doing yourself a disservice," she says.
Chow, who recently moved to Squamish from Vancouver "to get away from the city during the pandemic," says there has been a 15-20% increase in users on dating apps during the pandemic, and cites it as a necessary tool in connecting with new people.
"Many people are working from home, it's not like you can go to a nightclub or a lounge and go talk to a group of guys or girls because of social distancing. I was in Whistler this summer and you can't even go talk to another table," Chow said.
So you've found someone you're interested in. What then?
"The pandemic has added an extra layer. With dating you want to obviously know there's chemistry... and then there's long term compatibility (to consider). Well (questions about) COVID is part of that, right?" Chow points out.
While that conversation can be a delicate matter, Chow says it's best to have it early on. It's a matter of matching values with someone.
"It's completely subjective. It depends on your comfort level. Some people are mask-cautious. They'll want to social distance, they're sanitizing their hands, they're keeping six feet apart and so forth, and some people don't really care. It's totally subjective depending on your own level of safety and viewpoint on COVID."
Shana Chow, as featured on her dating and relationship website
Image Credit: Shanachow.com
iNFOnews.ca asked Chow how early is too early to have the COVID conversation, and she says it's a matter of judgment and sensing how the other person may feel about such matters.
"Some people would go out pre-COVID to a bar and have a one night stand without protection. Some people won't have sex for three months and make sure their partner gets tested beforehand. It's really about your level of comfort and matching of values."
But how do you broach the conversation without possibly offending that potential special someone? Chow says try and bring it up in casual fashion.
"'So hey, what's your views on COVID? Are you a yea to masks or a nay to masks? What's your views on it?' If someone goes on a tangent about how they don't believe COVID is real, then that probably isn't going to align with somebody who is really strongly opinionated on it."
And as for the first date, Chow has some ideas.
"Take a socially distant walk or coffee date, something outdoors. Now it's obviously a bit different in the Okanagan in the middle of winter, but going for a quick bite somewhere you're socially distanced and so forth."
Chow is hoping to attract female clients and views with her website, which you can go to here, and her videos, which can be viewed on YouTube.
And while COVID-19 has added a new level to the dating game, Chow says it doesn't have to be a complete game changer.
"Some people think love can't be found during COVID, that's not true. Like anything in life, If you have a desire you can go out and get it... you have to put yourself out there."
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