“I used to be afraid of dating after I retired,” says Dorothy, a former nurse who lost her husband to cancer at age 64. “I was always worried what people would think of me. I was married to my husband for over forty years, so how would my family and friends take it if I decided to tell them I was dating again. Well, I met a gentlemen who I really hit it off with and we dated secretly for nine months before I told anyone. As it turns out, I had nothing to be afraid of”.

Dorothy was worried about how people would perceive her actions. Senior relationships and dating can sometimes be negatively affected or stifled completely by the false impression that family or friends will not be accepting of a loving and intimate pairing with someone new. While there are certainly instances in which some people may have a negative reaction to a new partner, in most cases these anxieties are completely self-inflicted. More often than not, seniors learn that family and friends are not only accepting of but actively encourage new senior relationships and dating.

And remember that new relationships established after an appropriate period following the loss of a spouse is not a sign of disrespect to the lost loved one. No doubt that more than anything else, a loving spouse would only want true happiness for their partner.

“When my wife died, I thought that was it for me,” states John, a 68-year-old former golf pro. “I loved my wife so much that I figured I’d someone dishonor her memory if I decided to date again. I thought I’d just give up on finding another woman to share my life with, or at least what was left of my life. Then, one day, I met the perfect woman and that was that”.

What John learned about senior relationships and dating is that it IS possible to love again, if you simply allow yourself to be open to the possibility. Losing a spouse isn’t a dating death sentence for the surviving partner, and establishing a new intimate relationship is in no way disrespectful. Instead, regardless of age, finding a partner to share your years with is a perfectly healthy and natural part of life.

“I finally realized that there was nothing wrong with finding someone new, even late in life,” added John, summing up his thoughts on senior relationships and dating. “All I had to do was to let myself accept someone new. And when that happened for me, it changed my life for the better”.

Why Are Older Men Dating younger Women?

Older men dating younger women are becoming a more popular phenomenon, especially in recent years. When an older significant other is with a younger one, this is commonly referred to as a May December romance, because there is a significant age difference between the woman and the man, or the man and the woman. While it appears much more common for younger men to date older women, older men dating younger women is also becoming a popular phenomenon, even though some will view it to be out of place.

Generally speaking, in situations of older men dating younger women, the younger woman is generally looking for something specific. It is a known fact that women can be attracted to older men for a number of reasons. This does not necessarily mean that an early twenties women will date a man of seventy five, but rather relative to their age, women are more than willing to date men who are a few years older than them, and this is how older men dating younger women comes into play.

In many cases, women are looking for their husband to be. The qualities that women are looking for in their future husbands are the same qualities that men slightly older than them are displaying. Most women are more than willing to admit that they are looking for a strong and confident man. Women are not necessarily looking for young and virile hunter gatherer types, but when it comes to older men dating younger women, the qualities that shine through usually begin with a man’s ability to support a family, or provide for that family on a long term basis. So usually in situations with older men dating younger women, the woman is looking for a man she can settle down with, regardless of whether or not this is what the man is looking for.

The traits that women are looking for in “husband material” are most commonly found in men aged eighteen and older, and as women age, they are still consistently looking for someone older, because it is assumed that older men are more civilized, more mature and more capable of providing for whoever they are with. This is the reason why older men dating younger women is becoming commonplace today. Women are constantly on the lookout for someone older and more mature, and most men seem to have no problem providing most of what these women are looking for, as they get to date younger as a result.

In these situations of older men dating younger women, the men are looking for something completely different, because most do not select younger women as ideal wife material. Still, in these situations, both the man and the woman in the relationship seem to get the traits and characteristics that they need, and if the relationship works and everyone is satisfied, that’s really all there is.