its harder when you get older

[BubblegumUK]

Hate the feeling that i'll be left on the shelf.

I really do think its tougher to meet people and form a romantic relationship, the older you get. By my age, 31, loads of people have babies and marriage, which makes meeting somebody who is single, who you have things in common with, somebody who you connect and somebody you actually fancy, increasingly hard. Throw anxiety into the mix and its fiendishly difficult. I don't go around hoping that i'll form a relationship with whoever, because with past experiences they just happen. I form friendships but i always get stuck in the friend zone, wether that is because of me i'm not sure. I'll explain.
As a guy, i find it really hard, because

1. i'm too scared to make a move incase i get rejected which would seriously affect my self esteem as its not great anyway.
2. I'm worried they'll think i'm too pushy or just after sex.
3. i've read the signals wrong and i'll make a fool of myself.
4. a lot of women like men to make the first move, refer back to no 1,2,3.

Just worried i'll never meet anybody again who'd feel the same about me as i do about them.

[Meewah]

As a fellow male, I think your worrying unnecessarily. 31 is not old, you could date a 21 year old tomorrow. May be go out of your area, that way if you get rejected you won't see them again. I'm not sure what you say but may be the halfway point between shall we go out and friends is something like going to the cinema on an evening together. I never made the first move in any relationship and my wife said she had to because she would have been waiting too long.

Get out there your never too old.

Mee

[Clint70]

Dont worry mate 31 is really too young to be worrying about being left on shelf. The main thing is to get out there and meet lots of different women.
It will happen, beleive me.
I had all the same anxieties as you and the object of my affections actually ran away when i kissed her lol.
I was in bits thinking I'd made a complete and utter fool of myself, I was so worried that our mutual friends would be laughing at me, how would i ever face her again and on on.
Guess what, she came and found me the next evening and kissed me and we have been happily married for 18 years now.
Dont stress to much about it what really matters is finding contentment within yourself if you have that beleive me your luckier then most cuples :-)