The pandemic has, without a doubt, transformed dating. To comply with health restrictions, daters got creative and placed their love lives in the hands of technology and online dating platforms more than they ever did before.
Conversations changed. Daters asked each other whether they'd had the virus, if they were taking precautions by socially distancing from others, and whether they were willing to take a new relationship slower than they would have during pre-COVID-19 times. And now, as the vaccine rollout gains momentum, daters are asking a couple of new questions. They are:
Have you had the vaccine yet, and
Are you open to receiving it when it's your turn?
According to a recent survey conducted by the dating platform Plenty of Fish, the answer can make a difference. Over half of the single people surveyed said that if a potential match revealed they had no intention of getting vaccinated, it would be enough to turn them away.
As a modern-day matchmaker, part of my job is to help my clients have the most successful dating experience possible. That means identifying and helping my clients identify the people with whom they would be the most compatible. Vaccine status may be just the latest way to predict whether two people will get along.
What a potential match's thoughts about the COVID-19 vaccine status might say about them.
Communicating skepticism (or enthusiasm) about the new vaccine could become a jumping-off point for finding out how a potential match feels about political issues, healthcare, and whether they are ethical (i.e., have they jumped the line to get the vaccine, and how do they feel about people who do?)
Indeed, the ongoing pandemic has created countless social ramifications, many of which we have yet to observe. And people have conflicting opinions, many of which can become evident simply by asking whether a potential match has been vaccinated or plans to be.
Should you add your COVID-19 status to your online dating profile?
It depends. A risk of doing so is matching because of COVID-19, not chemistry. Since the pandemic began last March, many daters have found themselves in precisely such situations, questioning whether their relationship had more depth and meaning to it than the mere fact they were convenient to each other at a time when dating proved challenging.
If you can look at vaccine status as one way, not the primary way, to judge a match's viability, then advertise away. Think of your new status as just another checkbox next to those that include whether you smoke, hike, or want kids.
Some people will see your lacking the vaccine as a barrier to entry while others won't, or as a plus if you have received it. Still others won't care either way, depending on how they feel about your profile in its entirety.
Remember that a COVID-19 vaccine can limit risk for in-person dates but not alleviate it.
Though the vaccine's effects are still being analyzed and will be for the foreseeable future, Dr. Fauci clearly says that although the vaccine protects COVID-19, it is not a Get Out of Jail Free card. That means even those who have been vaccinated still need to take precautions — for themselves and those around them, especially the people who haven't yet received the vaccine and have no immunity against the disease.
Even so, the protection offered by the vaccine is proving to make matches who have been vaccinated more appealing than those who have not. Instances of daters posting their vaccine status on their profiles are becoming more frequent. It seems only logical they would; earlier in the pandemic, it wasn't uncommon for users to put in their dating profiles that they were COVID negative or that they had COVID-19 antibodies (meaning they tested positive and recovered).
But until the powers that be tell us we are all in the clear and out of harm's way from COVID-19, think of others' safety as you would your own. It is the right thing to do, not to mention being thoughtful and considerate of others will make you more appealing than any vaccine ever could.