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Dating Safety
Caution Date Safe
by : Britney Holloway
| It is indeed surprising that when polled almost 35% people
could recount at least one incident when they went on a date
to a lonely place in a vehicle that was not their own with
a person they were dating for the first time. Most are plain
lucky to have got out of those situations unscathed, what
with incidents of robbery, stalking and date rape increasingly
hitting the headlines. |
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When danger is ever
present why don’t people play safe? Marion
Keyes, who runs a security agency says that it boils down to psychology.
In our minds we don’t equate caution with fun and dating
is supposed to be fun. In a bid to enjoy ourselves we often take
risks and do things we would not normally do. As a result we expose
ourselves to danger.
While dating is about having
fun, it is extremely important to stay safe while dating. Safety, however
does not have to be a spoiler. You don’t
have to arm yourself with a gun or be accompanied by an army of bodyguards,
nor do you have to necessarily get a private detective to screen every
prospective date. Just follow the ‘precaution list’ our set
of experts has come up with and you will be ready to swing around the town
without landing into situations that could get you robbed, maimed or killed!
Tell Someone
This is the most important rule, and yet the one that most people ignore
because they are too embarrassed to tell someone to look out for them says
Sharon Marlow who runs a dating agency. If you are going out on a date
make sure someone knows your itinerary and calls you at your home or your
office (not on your hand phone), at the time you are scheduled to be back,
to ensure you got back safe. This includes dates set up through friends
and people you met at a party earlier, and not only dates set up online.
Strictly speaking the level of risk is the same and just because you said
hi to a bloke/ babe at a party does not mean you know him/her.
Drive your own vehicle
Arrive in your own vehicle.
This is important for two reasons. Firstly, it helps you to not give
out your address to someone you don’t know.
Secondly, it ensures you won’t be driven off to a lonely corner of
town and ambushed. If that is unmanageable ask a friend to drop in and
pick you up. Seeing that you have people around you whom you can trust
often fends of people who may not have the best intentions.
Set a start and an end time
It is imperative that you have
a set start and end time for the date. If you don’t like the person
it will be a relief to walk away without spending interminable hours
with them. If you like the person it will keep
you from looking desperate and ignite greater interest from your date.
From the safety perspective it will keep you to a known schedule and will
enable a friend to track you easily.
Meet for lunch at a public place
Never agree to meet anyone at their house for the first few dates. Meet
at a public place. Also try to meet for lunch as it is much safer than
the dinner alternative and much quicker too. A short meeting for coffee
is equally good.
Watch what you eat and drink
It is important be alert to what you are eating and drinking especially
if your date is serving you. Do not drink alcohol and do not leave the
table with your drink still filled. If you have to go to the washroom,
ask for a fresh drink when you return. Unfinished drinks are the easiest
to pour drugs into. Remember that paranoia may be what keeps you from becoming
unconscious and being mugged in the process.
Watch out for Red flags
If you listen carefully red
flags are easy to spot. If there are inconsistencies in what the person
told you online or on the phone and what they are saying
now don’t take time to be nice. Just make an excuse and leave.
‘You are in control’
If you feel uncomfortable remind
yourself that you are the one in control. At no point should anyone be
able to pressure you into doing something
you don’t want to do. Safety is not as much about logic as it is
about comfort. If you think you are uncomfortable but can’t pinpoint
the reason, your sixth sense may be trying to tell you something. Listen
to that voice in your head telling you to scoot. It will rarely lead you
down the wrong path!
Follow these precautions for
the first few dates with anyone and you’ll
never land up in a sticky situation!
Copyright 2005. All rights reserved
Britney Holloway writes for SinglesDating.com -
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