Our idea for the Online Dating Experiment began when our friend Lauren told us she signed up for eharmony. We asked her if we could interview her each month to see how things were going since it was the first time she’d ever tried online dating.
Since Lauren’s eharmony recaps ended last month, we were excited to find out that another one of our friends, Sarah, was joining eharmony for the first time. So, of course, we had to ask her if we could tag along on her first paid online dating experience. And, because she’s a good friend like that, she agreed.
Here are Sarah’s details:
She’s 30 years old.
She lives in Bainbridge, Georgia (population 12,000).
She’s a pediatric nurse.
She works with the youth at her church.
SingleRoots: So, you’ve never tried online dating before. Why now?
Sarah: Honestly, it was a complete whim! I’d played around on “free weekends” before, so I got an email with a super awesome deal, and I joined quickly without much thinking. Like, literally… it went something like “Oh! That’s cheap! I think I’ll do it.” [Click. And. Done.] (There might have been a little post-sign-up freak out. Just a little.) Several friends and some members of my church family had recently suggested it, so I think that played a part in me taking the leap, too.
SingleRoots: Which online dating site did you pick and why? How long did you commit?
Sarah: I chose eharmony, and I signed up for a 3-month plan.
SingleRoots: On a scale of 1 to solving a Rubik’s cube, how difficult was the process of signing up and completing your profile?
Sarah: Signing up and completing my profile was a really simple process. It was, however, pretty lengthy. Part of me wishes you could “hide” your profile until you’re completely done with it. I ended up having to work on mine in several different sessions, so who knows who saw it in its lamest of conditions. (And really there could totally be a way to hide it, and I’m just technologically illiterate. Haha!)
SingleRoots: What are your first impressions?
Sarah: I was immediately surprised at the quality of profiles I received as matches. I was scared when I told it that religion was very important to me that my matches may be limited, but that was not the case. I was pleasantly surprised at the matches I was paired with that seem to be genuine followers of Christ. I was also pleasantly surprised that most of the profiles I was matched with were “beefy!” I saw very few profiles with limited personal information and no pictures. That was encouraging.
SingleRoots: Have you had any dates yet?
Sarah: Not yet, but I’m not giving up just yet! I have engaged in some communication with a couple members, but it hasn’t reached the point of an actual date yet.
SingleRoots: What is the most frustrating thing about online dating so far?
Sarah: For me, it’s probably the fact that I live in such a small, rural town. There seem to be plenty of good, solid matches out there, but they’re not right here in my own backyard. It seems that I’m will have to do some traveling to date, so that’s a little discouraging for me – simply because of my full schedule.
SingleRoots: What’s been the most exciting thing about online dating so far?
Sarah: The affirmation that there are some decent men out there. It’s helped me to have a little more faith in the whole idea of dating. It’s also been a little push for me to step out of my comfort zone, which I desperately needed. So on a personal level, just toying around with the idea of and initial process of online dating has been good for me.
SingleRoots: Okay, so you’re one month in. On a scale of 1 to Tom Cruise jumping on Oprah’s couch, how do you feel about online dating at this point?
Sarah: I’m probably somewhere in the 2-3 range… simply because I haven’t had any real “luck” with it just yet. We shall see what the future holds…
Have you recently tried eharmony or another online dating site for the first time? Can you relate to Sarah? Share your thoughts below.
Photo credit: Justin Gaynor
