Can't believe I'm actually posting this, lol.
I've met a girl on OKcupid 10 weeks ago. There is a lot of mutual attraction, we have a similiar sense of humour and get along nicely for the most part. She was looking for a serious relationship, I was open for anything, but I developed strong feelings for her and she says the same is true for her. There are a few potential and real issues, tho:
She is 11 years younger than me, I am 33, she's 22.
She has a daughter, 3 years old. While I can see myself being a father, I'm not sure I can do it at the stage I currently am. We've seen each other 2 times now, havent seen the daughter yet.
She had a rough childhood/past with verbally abusive parents, toxic ex-partners. Had 2 or 3 episodes with A LOT of casual sex through partying and dating apps (as a form of self-harm, but says she doesn't regret her experiences). We've talked through most of this and I gave her a lot of emotional support. She claims to "hate men", says she feels like she might be 22 body wise but 50 in her mind.
She wants another child or 2 in the next 6-7 years, also to prevent her daughter to be a lot older than her siblings. While I can understand having that wish and all that biological clock thing going on - I think that's the wrong order to approach this. I've always been a fan of meeting someone special and fitting first, then think about children and marriage. As she never had a safe and stable home in her past, that's her biggest wish though.
She doesn't really wanna go out. I partied a lot when I was her age (vastly different life situation though, ofc) and while she'd like to go to the restaurant or go for a walk once in a while, she doesn't wanna stay up all night and dance and have fun (with a babysitter at home, of course). Might be a problem, cause I'd like to be able to do that occasionally.
She suffers from Borderline. I'm quite understanding and careful with conditions like that due to having cases in my family and among my friends and she says I'm handling that well, but I don't always think she's handling it perfectly. I often feel like I'm walking on egg shells, trying to avoid triggers (like hanging up the phone too quickly, cause that triggers her fear of losing someone/me in that case). We have fights over things like this regularly, as while she claims I'm generally handling her condition well, I am not careful and considerate enough in situations like this, which is true I guess.
She's becoming a state secretary, regular daily schedule (also bc of her daughter). I'm a student still, will be done in a year or so. I sleep longer than her, more free-time etc. Also, would be a long-distant relationship as long as I still need to be at university. She lives near my hometown though, to which I wanted to return after my studies anyway.
I developed feelings, I'm unsure whether I should really go for it for several reasons. Might sound more negative than it is, among other things the sex is great, I like her personality a lot, find her funny etc
Just writing this down already felt great, but I'd love to hear some neutral thoughts on this. Hope I didn't forget anything important.
tl;dr: girl I met and developed strong feelings for has a child and mental issues, wondering whether I can provide what she needs
Thanks for any input!
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* This article was originally published here