Age Issue

Hi I was just wondering what do you think should be the age limit for a relationship or should there be one? For instance I think it is not appropriate for an 18 year old to date anyone 13 and under. However Once you turn 18 I think it is fine to date anyone older than you. What do you all think?

[Chris]

i think the age limit should be whenever in watever country you're old enough to drive.

[skwidge]

I agree "Once you turn 18 I think it is fine to date anyone older than you" but I wouldn't date someone way older than me. I would want someone as close as possible to my age. It would be too much like dating your dad O_o urgh! That's what I think anyway. But as long as both of ya are happy with it, I think that it's sweet as, whatever the age

i'm scared of dating older people.

[Janvier]

I prefer dating older guys, more or less 10 years older than me is about right. The youngest guy I dated was 20 and I didn't like it as much.

It all depends on the people involved. I think that if anyone is still in high school the best option for them is other people in high school. But after high school age gets much less important. I'm 19 and I think 18-23 is a good age range for me. It also depends on how old your friends are, if you're in college, your maturity level, and other random things.

[SJ17]

I would agree with 'over the age of 18 it doesn't matter'. Different people mature at different rates and it also depends what you want from the relationship. I generally go for older people but I think this is because I have a very strong personality and am attracted to people who can handle me/put up with me!

We don't wish to have our sexuality dictated to us, why should there be a right or wrong age difference? I think as long as you are happy then it is a healthy relationship.

I think that lex's rule of dividing your age by 2 and adding 7 comes in quite handy here. Which by the way, is a fantastic rule XD

So for example...
If you were 19....
youngest...19/2 = 9.5+7= around 16-17
oldest....19-7=12x2=24
ish.
lol.

[RENThead]

i like to use the 5 year rule..

tho not 13-18. once you turn 18 then the 5 year is acceptable...
but under 18...

[hoping]

Originally Posted by Janvier

I prefer dating older guys, more or less 10 years older than me is about right. The youngest guy I dated was 20 and I didn't like it as much.

Im the same i seem to be only interested in older guys, the guy i like now is 26 .

[EmperorNero]

If every person would be identical with every other person, a limit would be useful. Bot not otherwise. People are too different for it to work.

[Wander]

For younger people, I wouldn't go any farther than two years apart - 18 would have 16-20, 16 would have 14-18, etc. However, as a person ages, the differences in age start to blur. A 50/y/o is perfectly capable of dating someone in the 40-45 range, but a High School junior ought not be dating a person who's 12, even though the age difference is nearly the same for both cases.

[Chelore]

i have to say this but i think anybody should be able to date anybody but only if they truly love each other! <3 but i mean not like a 6 year old and a 67 year old! i mean like a mature person with anther mature

[littledinosaurs]

its so much easier in life to not talk about age with other people (as in your friends)

[Jamey]

As long as you're compatible, and it's not illegal. there's nothing wrong.

I used to feel that my age group wasn't as mature as I was, but I just realized that it was because I'm not interested in the same things, nor do I think the same way. It doesn't really have to do with age so much as it has to do with personality. It just so happens that most of the time, I only have things in common with older people.

[Matty]

In high school, I always felt that two-year age difference was the most appropriate of any.

After 18, it's all about preference...If I were dating, it would be anyone 18 (at my current age, I am not interested in anyone younger than college level) to about 21...I'll probably be someone who is always interested in my relative age group.

[ccdd]

I'd say that generally, when under 18, there should be no more than a 1-2 year age difference (if that - if someone is under 16 I'd probably be uncomfortable with anything more than a 1 year age difference), and that all laws of your country should be taken into consideration. Where you say it's innappropriate for an 18 year old to date anyone 13 or under, I'd feel very uncomfortable if an 18 year old was dating someone under 16. The only people who should be dating 13 year-olds are 13-year-olds, and possibly others of 12 or 14. But that's it.

Generally, in terms of how I'd feel comfortable if I had a child, assuming no laws are broken:

[Where one of the parties is X, the other should be Y]:

Under 16: up to 1 year age difference
16-18: up to 2 years difference, although flexible (depending on your country. I'd feel uncomfortable, even if it's legal). A relationship which crosses the 16 age boundary is difficult
18+: whatever, although a little uncomfortable them dating anyone too much older
21+: more comfortable with them dating whoever

Once both parties are over the age of 18, I don't think it matters. Although I find it hard to think of anyone under about 21 dating anyone too much older, although it's fine, and it does happen (just not something I'd've felt comfortable with at that age).

[pirateninja]

It's funny, I was nearly (but not quite) romantically involved with a 23 year old only earlier this year. I liked her, she liked me, and yet she could never stop feeling uncomfortable whenever I mentioned school or homework or something.

Fortunately, it was mutually agreed that we would not take it any further, and we cut it off before it got serious.

But even so, I guess it depends. Both of us felt uncomfortable with the age difference, so it would never really have worked anyway. But in a few more years, it would mean nothing. It does depend on what age you are though; when in your teens, probably best to date people in the 1-2 year age range, but it seems perfectly normal for a 50 year old to date someone in the 5-10 year age gap.

[BeautifulStranger]

Hmm...
I don't have a rule.
I've always thought that laws were stupid, as long as no one was getting hurt.

I was 14 when I started dating my first boyfriend, who was 18 at the time. And from him, I dated 2 more 18 year olds, and then when I was 15, I had a summer fling with a 23 year old. That was the only time things got illegal.

Now, I guess you could judge him, but I've never looked my age. So although I may have only been 15, I looked about 18. And more so, I initiated it. Not him.

Most recently with Mike... I'm 16 and he's 18. And now with Sal, I'm 16, he's almost 19.

I think as long as both parties are comfortable and mature enough to handle it, ages shouldn't matter as much.