SINGAPORE: Dating in the city-state is officially exhausting, at least according to one local man who recently opened up about the challenges of finding romance in a fast-paced world.
In a post on the r/sgdatingscene forum, he admitted that while he genuinely wants to meet new people and find a meaningful connection, the practicalities of dating these days feel like an additional full-time job.
“These days, [my job is already] pretty overwhelming, got multi inbox, WhatsApp chat, Telegram chat, Teams chat, Slack, and wanting to add another app to manage and monitor feels like needing to add one more metric to the daily dashboard.”
“[Also] profile and photo management and selection don’t feel as fun as character creation.”
He also tried attending different ‘dating meetups’ but described them as disappointing and even somewhat “scammy.”
“I kinda feel like it’s ‘scammy.’ You pay like S$30 to S$50 to rotate among people, play generic games, and listen to hosts of different types. Not a fun weekend.
“At this point, I dunno if I really want to date or maybe the fantasy idea of dating in my head.”
He also asked other locals in the forum: “Anyone else want to date, but the effort and logistics make you go ‘…sian’?”
“It’s not about desperation but about intention.”
The post quickly gained traction, with many Reddit users chiming in to share their own experiences.
One wrote: “Hey, I totally feel you. As my work environment is mostly male, it’s already hard to find a woman to talk to. It’s worse after a day’s work, and I’ve had enough of facing another human being. I just want to get back home and relax, so I can face another day of gruelling work.”
Another commented, “I used to feel the same way for a long time, but at some point, if you want to enter a relationship, you will need to put in the effort in dating. As you don’t know when you will actually enter a relationship, it can feel like you are just grasping for something that may or may not happen any time soon.”
A third added, “Then maybe don’t force it? If you’re already dreading the effort, how are you going to find someone in the right way? It’s not about desperation but about intention. Why do you actually want to date? If the reason isn’t strong enough right now, it might just not be the time.”
In other news, a young woman recently turned to Reddit to ask Singaporeans a rather unusual question: Can national service (NS) “fix” her 18-year-old boyfriend, who, according to her, is a “manchild, overly reliant, and horrible at basic hygiene”?
In her post on the r/sgdatingscene subreddit on Tuesday (Sept 9), she explained that while her boyfriend is affectionate and emotionally supportive, his refusal to be independent is giving her “the ick” and making her question if the relationship has a future.
Read more: Young woman asks if NS can turn her lazy, messy, croc-wearing ‘manchild’ boyfriend into a real adult
