Dating

[Spherical Ice]

When it comes to having a boyfriend or girlfriend, how young would you say is too young.

I mean, some people in years below me are in "relationships", but I see most people saying you shouldn't have a girlfriend/boyfriend until you're about 18-ish. So...what do you think?

 

[Treecko]

Anyone around 10-14 shouldn't be dating. People at that age don't really know what they're doing or actually know what they're really feeling. They usually just go what their gut and never think it over. Plus that time is when people are starting to find themselves so they don't really know who they are. I'm 19, and I still don't know who exactly I am and what I'm gonna be doing. I have yet to have a girlfriend and go on a date.

 

[Esper]

It all depends on what they're doing with their relationship. There's nothing inherently damaging about two people who like each other wanting to date (or "date"). If all they're doing is kissing and holding hands then let them.

 

[Oryx]

I've found that unsurprisingly, the majority of people that start to date at an older age feel that no one should date at a younger age, and vice versa.

I personally think no younger than 12, but I'm not averse to puppy-dog love at a younger age. I'm just averse to the idea of 10-11 year olds emulating their parents/older friends and trying to have an adult relationship with all the implications. I would have said 13 but I feel like it's unrealistic to expect if 13-14 year olds are dating (7th-8th grade in the states), that a 12 year old should be expected not to just because of peer pressure once they enter middle school.

 

[Rogue planet]

People can have relationships if they want, just because someone's young doesn't mean they should be looked down upon because of it. Yes, most of the time tweens don't have "serious" relationships; but the same can definitely be said for the majority of young adults, as well as plenty of fully fledged adults. Slap labels around as much as you want, you can't put everything in black and white terms.

Why do we look for relationships in the first place? It's for our own happiness. Some people like to say it's for 'true love' and appreciation, others focus more on financial benefits or other mechanical viewpoints. Really, both are wrong. In a way the simplicity of youthful relationships should be the basis for an ideal relationship; age only brings about unnecessary complexity.

I wasn't ready for my first relationship; I'm not even ready for relationships now. Other people have good relationships at much younger ages. Categorizing entire demographics of people is rarely accurate and often far too simple.

 

[Meganium]

14 is a good age to have a relationship, imo. I feel disturbed when I see someone younger than that holding hands, kissing, etc.

My parents (especially my dad) didn't let me date till I was 16, even though back then I whined and whined about the restriction, at this age I realize that 16 is a somewhat perfect age to be in a relationship. Of course, with restrictions and carefulness.

 

[PlatinumDude]

I think 12-13 is too young for people to be in a relationship. 16-18 appears to be the right age to start one, IMO.

 

[Shining Raichu]

I say whenever a kid wants a relationship is whenever he/she should have one. Their maturity level might not be appropriate for a relationship, but that's something they will learn for themselves. It's not our place to tell them they can't because they're too young.

In any case, moving this over to Other Chat because it is, to put it into scientific terms, "discussiony" XD

 

[Alice]

I'd say you should at least be in High School. I got asked out a couple times in Middle School, and recognized even then that I just wasn't ready for it.

 

[Karma Police]

Well, imho, it doesn't really depend on age, but rather on your maturity level. Are you mature enough to handle a relationship? Are you emotionally and mentally stable to be in one currently? These are some things which defines whether one is ready or not. Just like Vendak said, saying "children below x age should not be in a relationship" is not entirely correct, what matters is his/her opinion about the matter and how exactly they handle the relationship.

What matters is that you should be able to handle all aspects of a relationship, heartbreak, being hurt, having to spend time, sometimes jealousy etc. unless of course it's just casual. As long as it's casual and only calling each other a bf/gf at a young age (like 10-12) is okay in my opinion. But still, it depends from person to person.

lol all this sounds so weird coming from a 14 year old

 

[Nihilego]

It isn't. You can't be too young to be happy in a relationship. I don't see what's wrong with being in a relationship at a young age at all. So what if it's not true love? I'd go into a bigger post here, but

People can have relationships if they want, just because someone's young doesn't mean they should be looked down upon because of it. Yes, most of the time tweens don't have "serious" relationships; but the same can definitely be said for the majority of young adults, as well as plenty of fully fledged adults. Slap labels around as much as you want, you can't put everything in black and white terms.

Why do we look for relationships in the first place? It's for our own happiness. Some people like to say it's for 'true love' and appreciation, others focus more on financial benefits or other mechanical viewpoints. Really, both are wrong. In a way the simplicity of youthful relationships should be the basis for an ideal relationship; age only brings about unnecessary complexity.

I wasn't ready for my first relationship; I'm not even ready for relationships now. Other people have good relationships at much younger ages. Categorizing entire demographics of people is rarely accurate and often far too simple.

demonstrates my thoughts exactly.

 

[ImSword]

What I think

I think that when you're 14, but if you don't feel ready, don't sweat it at all. I'm 16 now and started seriously dating when I was 15. But I have to warn you if you're a girl or boy, please wait for sex and stuff, it will **** you up really badly a lot of the time. I have a friend that lost her virginity at 13 and she got messed up real bad. Also, there were 2 girls that got pregnant at 14 in my school. So yeah, to sum it all up, start dating at 14 but if you're not ready don't worry, and wait for sex.

 

[EarthWolfblade]

[SIZE="a"]For real dating,no younger than 13 and no sex until marriage <_<[/SIZE]

 

[-Connor97-]

It doesn't really depend on age tbh :DDD, but i think if the two couples are under 14, then the relationship in't exactly a 'real' one :O
But id think ud have to be at least in highschool so :D

 

[Guest123_x1]

I'd say anybody below age 16 is too young to be dating. I've seen people much younger (around 12-14) in relationships (particularly a few I've seen back when I was in school), and I was never able to get into a relationship with anybody, and I still don't have a girlfriend yet after all this time!
Another bad part about relationships at such a young age is that a lot of guys end up getting their girlfriends pregnant at around age 14 to 16, then they deny that they're the father of their girlfriend's baby. (Never mind that we also have 12-15 year old girls wanting to get pregnant and have a baby when they're obviously not ready for the responsibility, they appear on trashy talk shows such as Maury and Steve Wilkos talking smack about their mothers saying how dead set they are about having a baby.)

 

[HoopyFrood]

Dating leads to promiscious behaviour, promiscious behaviour leads to sex.

Sex leads to pregnancy, pregnancy leads to death.

You've been warned children.

 

[OmegaRuby and AlphaSapphire]

Everyone is different but if I were to divide them into groups then I'll say these ages
For Mature people I think 10-11+ and for non mature people 14+
Thats just my take on things.

 

[twocows]

Whenever you feel you're ready for one. I don't see a problem with kids dating. Heck, I knew a kid back when I was like 8 years old who had a "girlfriend," he turned out just fine.

Relationships don't necessarily imply sex, by the way.

 

[miltankRancher]

When it comes to relationship. I think age is not factor. As long as you are ready for the responsibilities involved in it, you're good to go. But, if I am to give an age. I guess probably 15.

 

[Yoshikko]

Yes, well, I remember having a boyfriend when I was 4/5 years old, and yes it involved kissing - and not the kiddie kind.