Taking a Break From Dating: 11 Signs It Is Necessary

While some may be kicking off the new year by upping their efforts to find love, others may find it’s actually time to take a break from online dating. It’s the peak season for dating apps until Valentine’s Day, but all the clicking and swiping just doesn’t hold a significant enough return on investment for some of us, even when that return is at its highest. I personally have a love-hate relationship with online dating . When I first joined OkCupid five years ago, I thought it was pretty much the greatest thing ever.

All the messages in my inbox gave me a self-esteem boost, and all the dates made my life exciting. But after a while, I got addicted, and the app became a time-suck.

Relationships are hard enough under the best of circumstances. When we try to force ourselves to date, it may be time to take a break in order.

Melissa Maher. I started out having a few just here and there, but before I knew it, I was hooked on a handful or two of those little sugar pills at 3pm—every day, like clockwork. Sometimes pressing pause is just what the doctor ordered to clear the space for your next great relationship to enter. So if dating has started to feel like an awful lot of hard work these days, it might be time for a break.

Pushing through some resistance in dating may be an occasional part of the process, but have you passed that tipping point? Tune in to your gut and your energy to feel when a rest is calling.