Nothing to see here! Fast-forward a good decade and I am willing to claim the desperately dating title. I met my only long-term partner on Tinder in , though obviously we lied about how we met initially because it still felt embarrassing. But dating apps have changed a lot since that time… and not always for the better. At the end of , I was ready to Give Up. I deleted all the apps, bidding farewell to my bestie Bumble, my first love Tinder, and my mortal enemy Hinge.
I was breaking the cycle of addiction, cold turkey, very well aware the apps had been designed to make us keep using them, not to actually help us find our forever person. I had seen everything I needed to ever see. In February, a friend told me about being on Feeld. I had heard of it before, and knew it as the horny app: The app people use when they want to fuck.
A couple of weeks later another friend mentioned being on Feeld with their partner — they were dipping their toes in the overflowing pond of open relationships and figuring it all out together. With one friend having a successful hookup encounter, and another going on actual, real, organised dates, my curiosity was piqued. I had thrown everything I could give to the normie apps — was it time to see what the horny app provided for me?
The interface is different to other apps, but the premise is all the same: you like or ping! For those who are curious but a little scared by this sexually adventurous world, you can also put down that you're looking for mates, friends with benefits, or dates. The app has the whole range! By week 2 on Feeld I had caved and paid to become a member so I could see who had already liked me.
A man actually starting a conversation? This led me to numerous phone number exchanges, four first dates, and two second dates within the month. I met three men in quick succession in an almost job interview-like experience. From a pub lunch, to a coffee catchup, and then a casual drink, I went into the dating experiences knowing we had everything on the table already. Maybe a second date will feel less interview-like? No harm, no foul. Feeld, the horny app, had opened my eyes to what we were all doing.
