This trend seemed particularly prominent in women in their twenties, who are now being dubbed SITCOMs (Single In Twenties Clinging Onto Memories), who said that they can’t help but compare people to their ex.
Relationships on Female First
When polled, 1000 men and women said that the main reason they can’t find The One is because they can’t get their ex out of their head.
Forty one per cent of women and 33 per cent of men said that those they meet online just don’t live up to their previous lover.
For 38 per cent of men, sexual compatibility was one reason they were finding it difficult to find The One, whereas this only affected 31 per cent of women.
Work commitments also stand in the way of trying to find true love, with 37 per cent of men and 24 per cent of women naming this a problem.
It seems that both men and women are seeking friends to set them up on dates, but the problem for 27 per cent of women and 31 per cent of men was that they didn’t have enough friends to set them up with a date.
Nikki Howarth, 26, runs her own successful business but finds that she fits in to the SITCOM generation. She uses both MissTravel.com, who conducted the survey, and its sister site SeekingArrangement.com.
She says, “I was in a very serious relationship for a long-time before I started dating on-line. It ended badly – he was cheating on me with another woman – but the truth is that I have not properly got over him.
“Every time I date a new man, I do compare them with my ex – both in the way they look and how we connect emotionally. I am always looking for the same electricity that I shared with my ex and I do tend to end relationships if they don’t live up to the one I had before. Why settle for second best? I guess I am a classic SITCOM.
“All my girlfriends are the same – we all look back on past lovers and try to find someone who will match them. It is not the healthiest way to find love – but we just can’t help it.”
It’s not just Nikki who fits the bill when it comes to being a SITCOM; plenty of celebrities are at it too.
Lauren Goodger and Cheryl Cole have both said that they are still very much in love with their ex’s despite seeing new people.
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