Stop thinking about dating during your midlife period with disdain and start looking at it as a chance to enjoy yourself again. There has to be something deep down in us that believes that if something is too good too soon, there is something very wrong with that situation. That doesn’t have to be the case at all!
5 couples sat down with us to reveal some of their favorite things they discovered about dating at this point in their lives.
1. People are a lot nicer now.
At this point in our lives, we’ve seen enough meanness to last us a lifetime. With that thought in mind, it shouldn’t be so surprising to learn that if someone doesn’t want to date you anymore, they won’t make you feel like crap or hurt your feelings intentionally, instead, they’ll be upfront and honest. Ah, but this doesn’t just work for the breaking-up situations. Oh no, no. People are nicer, period. They return phone calls, they are thoughtful, and most of all, they are generous with their affection.
2. You can see potential in old friends.
As we go through life, there are going to be instances where some friends slip through the cracks and you don’t talk as much or you lose touch altogether. You go about your lives and you don’t really think much of how much your friendship has changed. However, now that you’re in your 50s when you are given the chance to reconnect with one another, you might be able to see your friend in a different light. Sure you may have always thought there was something special about them (that is why you were friends after all), but until now, you couldn’t appreciate it. Now? Now you can.
3. A chance to rekindle an old flame.
Now that you’re older, you can look at an old flame and appreciate them in ways that you couldn’t before. Or, maybe you both are in a place in your lives where you can settle down and give each other what you couldn’t before. The point of being open to looking at someone you dated before is that as time goes by, your preferences change and so can what you are looking for in a partner.
4. You can feel that puppy loves all over again.
Do you remember how you felt when you laid eyes on your very first crush? You know, the butterflies in the stomach, the giddiness that you can barely contain, maybe even experience moments of speechlessness. You can experience that all over again now that you’re older and are no longer married. In a way, after a divorce, you can emerge a whole new person and experience love like it’s the first time.
5. You’re more comfortable with your sexuality now.
At this age, you don’t feel the same sense of taboo when you talk about sex and what you enjoy—those days are long gone! You may find that now you are openly discussing things that you would never have dreamt about discussing, and that is definitely a good thing. When you’re in a relationship, you can never go wrong with a healthy sexual appetite!
Dating in your 50s doesn’t have to be a scary thing. It can be wonderful, invigorating, and you may enjoy dating so much more now than you ever have before. Perhaps dating is like wine—it only gets better with age.