Single Parent Dating Sites – Are You Being Safe?
How Popular are Single Parent Dating Sites?
Dating and the single parent. Online dating remains one of the most frequently used services on the internet. While online dating is nothing new, the increase in divorce rates has made single parent dating sites pop up like mushrooms. And for good reason. The appeal of using a single parent dating site rather than a more general site like Match.com or e harmony are numerous. One major reason is that the first level weeding process has already been taken care of and you will already have something in common with the other single parents on the site; kids. This makes single parent dating sites very popular with single moms and dads.
Why are Single Parents Flocking to Online Dating Sites?
Being a single parent is harder than most people think. Most newly divorced parents quickly become overwhelmed by the time and energy it takes to raise children as a single parent. Not to mention the cost. Hiring a sitter is a luxury that is just not in most single parents’ budgets.
Why don’t single parents date on the weekends that their ex has the kids and they don’t have to worry about a sitter? The answer is that many single parents are subjected to a cruel joke. Percentage-wise most single dads are the non-custodial parent and most single moms are the custodial parent. So this means that when single mom has the weekend off, all the single dads are home taking care of their kids. And when single dad has his free weekends, all the single moms are home with the kids.
A single mom once joked that she was going to take a second job delivering pizza on the weekends when she didn’t have her kids. Judging from all the pizza nights her kids had at their dad’s house, she figured delivering pizzas was a sure fire way to meet the single dads in her area!
Are There Dangers with Dating Online as a Single Parent?
Single parents can quickly find themselves isolated and lonely; not a good place to be. Staying connected to your old friends who are married becomes harder and harder because they just don’t understand what you’re going through. Connecting with someone who can relate sounds more and more enticing. Joining a single parent online dating site becomes the solution that more and more single parents choose. But be aware, being an isolated, lonely single parent has its blind spots and hazards.
Realize that your guard may be down when you interact on single parent dating sites and be careful not to accidentally give away too much information early on which could be dangerous to you and/or your children.
Naturally single parents will want to talk a lot about their kids so it’s extra important to safeguard them from anyone who would do them harm. And just like on the singles dating sites, some people are not who they present themselves to be.
Being a lonely single parent puts you at a greater risk of being deceived into a close connection and giving up personal details before you know who you’re really dealing with. In the wrong hands your personal information can put you and your children in harm’s way.
This all may sound discouraging, but before you completely give up trying to connect with other single parents online, there are some things you can do to make it a safer experience.
Single Parent Online Dating Safety Tips
Tip 1 – Don’t create bad karma. When creating an online profile be honest. Don’t do things like use your best photo from years gone by that doesn’t even resemble you today. If you’re 30 pounds heavier, or balding, your ‘white lies’ will come back to haunt you if you connect with someone online worth meeting. And worse, karma has a way of returning to you what you send out into the universe. If you don’t want to be deceived online don’t deceive others online.
Tip 2 – As a single parent you need to be sure to maintain the privacy of your kids. It’s very easy as a single parent to get comfortable and start talking about your children using their real names. You might later mention their school, and maybe you later talk about your work hours. The sad fact is that predators are out there online. Take steps to be sure you don’t put your children in any potential danger by identifying them by name or mentioning the schools they attend.
Tip 3 – Understand that if you spend much of your time online talking about your ex-spouse and what he/she did to you; you’re not over that relationship. This means you are a high risk candidate for having an unhealthy rebound relationship. This also means that if you’ve healed and are ready to move forward, you don’t want to get involved with someone who hasn’t let go of their ex-spouse yet. By avoiding those types you’ll save yourself and your kids a world of pain.
The bottom line is single parent dating sites aren’t the perfect solution but they can be a real benefit for single parents. Single parent dating sites are about the only viable way a single parent can connect with other single parents after the kids are off to bed without hiring a sitter and cruising the bar scene (which is probably even more dangerous!) If you understand your vulnerabilities and take precautions, you can feel safe connecting with other single parents online after the children are tucked in bed for the night. And who knows, you just might find someone special.