Red flags can be difficult to notice when you are immersed in an unhealthy relationship. However, there are signs that will help you understand that you should move on. Are you in a relationship that makes you miserable? You wonder, is it time to say goodbye? Then the material described in this article can help you. Most relationships start out pretty fast, both partners feel a sort of euphoria. But when a relationship begins to fall apart, it becomes difficult for us to let go of a person, and we can’t always objectively evaluate reality. Let’s first find out, "What are red flags in dating?" and then we will list some red flags for dating a woman or a man.
Dating Red Flags – What Are They?
What are dating red flags? Red flags are early indicators that you may end up facing serious issues in your relationships down the line. These are signs that something is wrong in your relationship, and it needs to be addressed, otherwise, it can lead to greater problems.
What are the red flags in dating? These are manifestations of negative aspects of the character of your partner, and you should notice them before it’s too late.
How Important Is It to Pay Attention to Red Flags in Dating?
How important it is to pay attention to red flags in dating and relationships? It is very much important to pay attention to them and be at least somewhat rational when it comes to your feelings. I doubt it that you have never heard or found yourself in a situation when two people fall in love with each other and forget to think about the future, they are blind to each other’s weaknesses and thus, they end up finding themselves in a horrible situation. All of a sudden, when the feelings subside, they open their eyes to all of their shortcomings and weaknesses, all of their flaws and vices.
And this is why it is important neither to fool yourself nor make up any illusions about your partner, pay attention to the red flags that can pop up in your relationship. Now let’s look into some early red flags in dating. The more red flags before dating will you notice, the less “surprises” will you have to put up with down the line.
First Date Red Flags
We will talk about more important red flags that you can encounter like manipulation in a relationship later on, but let’s talk about the first stage of a relationship, mainly the first date that you have with a person. Here are the red flags that you can notice during your first date with a person.
1. They are too secretive with their phone
Everyone has the right to privacy, but if they constantly hide their phone, if several people chat with them at the same time, if they change their password every five minutes, this is a bad sign. Believe me. If you feel like your partner tries to hide something from you, and you feel like they are having an affair, you don’t want to continue a relationship with this person, then don’t forget about all of the women to date online you can find on the Internet.
2. They constantly make jokes about your appearance or life
Here’s one of the worst dating red flags for guys. “I'm just joking, calm down,” they laugh and let out another joke about your dress, career, or makeup. This person obviously does not value you as you are, and they are trying to make fun of you.
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3. They say that you are "not like the other girls/guys"
Oh, there are those people who like to tell you what they don’t like about people and convince you that you are not like everyone else! You are who you are, and you can be proud of it.
4. They use too many emoji
Emoji and emoticons are nothing wrong. Sometimes it is impossible to convey the tone of the message without them. But if a person uses them too often, stay away from them. This is a person who will try to cheer you up at a party, although you are already having fun.
5. There is something weird about the way they look at you
It may seem strange but listen to me on this one. All my exes with good eyes were kind, and all those who had cold, dead-like eyes were assholes. This is unscientific, but 100% accurate.
6. They do not want to introduce you to friends and relatives
When you have been dating for some time, it is natural that you begin to penetrate into each other's lives. This is normal, everyone wants to boast about their happiness in their personal life. So if your partner is struggling to do this – there is something fishy here.
7. Their jokes are aimed at topics that are unpleasant to you
Do not put up with guys who joke about rape and topics alike. This will not end in anything good. Now let’s talk about more serious red flags for dating you can come across.
Red Flags in Relationships That Can Lead to Problems
And here are the red flags that you can notice in a relationship that can lead to problems down the line.
1. You do not have shared photos
Yellow flag: Here’s the first of red flags in dating a woman, you suspect that they don’t really want to talk about their relationship with you. Check their Instagram. If over the last year, they’ve uploaded only three photos, something rather natural, food or nature, then they are one of those who are free from social networks. And in normal relationships, you can say “let's take a picture together” without guilt or inappropriateness.
Red flag: they constantly upload photos to Instagram, and you rarely ever pop up on those photos, and when you do, it is just a part of your arm, it feels as if they don’t want to talk about you. They certainly try to hide you from everyone else.
2. They do not like to cuddle and hug
Yellow flag: many people need time to get used to each other (and the person who kisses you every two seconds, while you talk to your friends, will get boring quite quickly). In addition, people can show affection in different ways. Maybe they find it to be more pleasing to cook a delicious dinner for you instead of hugging or kissing. In any case, it’s worth talking about, if this does not suit you.
Red flag: there is no alternative to hugging and kissing, they just don’t seem to be all that interested in showing their love for you.
3. You don’t have any oral sex
Yellow flag: at first, many are embarrassed to offer it to their partner. But it's worth talking about it and finding out whether your partner likes it or not.
Red flag: they never asked whether or not you want them to perform oral sex on you because they don’t like it for one reason or another.
4. You rarely quarrel
Yellow flag: you have a honeymoon, you do not pay attention to small issues and disagreements and resolve issues quickly.
Red flag: they apologize for their actions and yet repeat the same after a week. Or they don’t express their negative emotions about everything that is happening to them and what they feel about you, they end up leaving you behind without ever trying to address or fix anything.
5. You have different habits
Yellow flag: opposites attract. One of you likes to sit at home, the second does not. One of you is very organized, the second partner is not. In a relationship, it is important to grow next to each other and adopt each other’s features of behavior.
Red flag: they like your abs, but you feel guilty every time you go to the gym instead of spending time at home by their side. In general, this is one of the worst dating red flags to look for in a woman, if you don’t spend time together – you become alienated, and you will end up realizing that you don’t really know a person that is next to you.
6. On dates, you often watch TV
Yellow flag: no one forbids watching a new series of your favorite TV shows or movies. But if it seems to you that there is no communication between you two while you are spending time together – you should talk about it.
Red flag: if only one of you likes it or if you both understand that it’s much more difficult to communicate, and you don’t want to do it while watching TV. In general, a red flag would be a situation when such leisure time doesn’t satisfy you two.
7. They are friends with their ex
Yellow flag: they do not feel anything for their ex and communicate simply because they broke up as friends.
Red flag: they constantly talk about what their ex would say or do in this situation.
8. They have unpleasant friends
Yellow flag: your opinions on key issues differ, but you can tolerate them, and it feels ok to let your partner go to spend time with them.
Red flag: their best friend makes fun of women/men, have strong opinions about this or that thing, doesn’t tolerate minorities or people of certain culture/race. If you are forced to take a deep breath every time before starting a conversation, you should seriously think about whether or not you want your partner to communicate with that person and whether or not your partner is willing to break ties with them.
9. Your mother does not love them
Yellow flag: Here’s the last of red flags in relationships when dating. Parents can have their own opinion, this is normal. They may not like their work or lifestyle, but you know that parents are not always right.
Red flag: This is one of the more subjective red flags in dating, but it seems to work every time. She considers them a jerk and is ready to give a dozen striking examples in support of this thesis.
And here’s yet another red sign that will act as the conclusion to this article. You need to try to be objective. Only you can decide whether to be with a person or not, but if people who have known them for a long time say that they are selfish or love to embellish reality, then in time, you will come to realize how right they were.