All Those Little Signs You’re Ready to Date Again

So you got burned. Or you burned someone. Or both of you torched each others’ hearts on fire. Either way, you’ve been through a breakup and your friends are starting to wonder when it’s safe to pry you off of the couch and send you into the wild world of dating. Well we’ve done them (and you) a favor and hunted and gathered a list of signs that will show you if you’re ready to swipe right again.

1. Not all men remind you of your ex

When in the fresh throes of a breakup, everything from cologne to accent to the way they cut their steak can remind you of your ex. But if you’re no longer noticing similarities between your old flame and the delivery guy, you’re probably ready to get back out there.

2. Setups intrigue you

When your heart is shredded into tiny little shredded wheats, you hear of a friend’s seemingly great single friend and he sounds like a monster. But now that you’ve started to heal, if that setup doesn’t sound like the worst thing ever, this is a good sign.

3, Your fits of rage have mostly normalized

AKA you’re not caught off-guard by anger blackouts towards your ex. You might even hear or see that they’re doing well and it won’t ruin your day.

4. You’ve found new spots that aren’t drenched in memories

This means that you have fun go-to places you can take new dates and not have to see your lovers’ initials carved into the wall.

5. You are actually enjoying being single

Because the worst time to date is when you feel like you must absolutely find a boyfriend or you will die. Being happy solo makes for great proof that you’re ready to get back out there for reasons other than desperation.

6. You’re no longer acting like a TV cop who just can’t let go of a cold case

Put another way, you’re no longer dwelling on what went wrong, who got in the way, what he said or she said. You’ve let those unanswered questions go (for the most part) and have just accepted that there are some things about past relationships that we never really figure out.

7. You’ve regained your confidence

Breakups have a dastardly way of making you second guess almost everything about yourself. You’ll know you’re ready to get in the dating game again when you’ve silenced the voice/lies from your past relationship and can feel grounded in who you are; realizing that you are a total catch.

8. You’re not sleeping in their T-shirt

Because that’s a pretty awkward moment if you bring a new date home. What’s this shirt by the bed that’s soaked in tears and bearing the logo of a school you didn’t go to? Try answering that one.

9. You’ve stopped being pessimistic about love

If your friends can finally start talking about the cutie in their life without you shouting, “OH JUST WAIT UNTIL YOU MOVE IN TOGETHER AND YOU FIND TEXTS FROM AN UNKNOWN NUMBER ON HIS PHONE,” at brunch, you’re probably ready to be open to new romance.

10. Your standards for a new relationship go beyond “Not [insert ex’s name]”

A surefire sign you’re ready to date again is if your new relationship must-haves go deeper than just a list of all of the things that annoyed you about your ex.

11. Your ex is history (seriously)

No one wants to date someone who still gets late night texts from an old flame. You know you’re ready to possibly bring someone new into the picture if your ex is out of your life for real.

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