Teen Dating: 6 Tips!

hey my lovely teen side of the relationship community side!

I am Hope and i will lead this teen corner in our forums and am so excited to get to know you all better and to discuss things with you!

Today, i wanted to talk to you about teen dating - and share 6 helpful tips!

Dating Tip 1: Take Your Time

Some teens date, some dont. Charles Wibbelsman, MD, chief of adolescent medicine at Kaiser Permanente in San Francisco advices our precious teens: only date if you know yourself and know you want to date. If youre not ready, its cool to stay single and hang out with your close friends!

Dating Tip 2: Find Someone Who Likes You Back

Feelings that arent returned can make you question everything about yourself. Did you say something wrong? Were you wearing the wrong things? In a healthy relationship, the feelings are mutual. You respect each other and have fun together. If this doesnt describe your situation, theres nothing wrong with you, but you probably do need to keep looking.

Dating Tip 3: Know When to Move On

Sometimes you have to admit it, the relationship isnt working. Maybe the love of your life has turned mean and selfish. Maybe you realize you want something better. Danielle Greaves, MSW, who works with girls at The Guidance Center in Cambridge, Mass tells teenagers all the time, It hurts now, but you can get through this.

Dating Tip 4: Talk About Social Media if you need to!

Social media puts the ups and downs of dating out there for everyone to see. If you like someone and they like you, its perfectly OK to ask them not to post things about you online, including pictures. Some things dont have to be shared with the whole world.

Dating Tip 5: Protect Yourself From Pressure

Pressure is not love, and its not even normal. Most teens say theyve never felt pressured to be in a relationship before they were ready. Still, a little mental preparation never hurts. Decide ahead of time what your values are and how far you want to go. That way, you wont have to figure it out in the heat of the moment.

What can you do to keep yourself out of the pressure chamber?

! Avoid situations where a your partner might expect more than you want to give. And if you feel pressured: talk! It is okay to not want some things. And you dont owe your partner anything you dont want to do.

Dating Tip 6: Give Love Time to Grow

Sometimes the idea of love is better than love itself. How do you know if youre really in love?

If youre infatuated, need constant reassurance, and have trouble thinking about anything else, these are signs youre not really in love. Its fun for now, but in time youll probably feel disappointed.

Mature love grows stronger with time. The more you get to know each other, the stronger your feelings. And you dont have to be someone youre not. You like each other for who you truly are.

do you have any other tips? feel free to share them with us!