The Dating Apps that Balance Health & Love
Singles with health conditions often feel vulnerable, insecure, and frustrated when entering the world of online dating. Here are how dating platforms are balancing the importance of health and love.
Every person deserves to find love, regardless of the health conditions they may face. A variety of online dating platforms are acknowledging that health can play a significant role in someone’s life, and they are incorporating that into their features & philosophy.
Online dating platforms can do this by providing health resources, creating safe spaces, fostering greater understanding, and more. Here are some examples of these initiatives in action.
Providing Sexual Health Resources
In a recent episode of The GDI Podcast, Michael Kaye, Director of Brand Marketing and Communications at Archer, discussed the platform’s health hub.
This in-app feature provides the Archer’s community of gay, bisexual, and queer men with sexual health resources and information. This includes nearby counselling centres, sexual health testing hubs, and information on HIV medications.
While this information is relevant to the gay community, it definitely can be useful to all types of sexualities. As society increasingly encourages and accepts sexual liberation, we could see the health hub feature become commonplace across diverse sets of dating apps.
Finding Similar Lifestyles
Health conditions can impact an individual’s lifestyle, and with dating all about compatibility, sometimes singles want to find someone who accepts their unique way of life. One example of a dating app focused on this is Singles with Food Allergies.
The platform’s founder, Matty Thomas, who has food allergies herself, wrote that she was looking for a partner and wondered “how I would find a guy who would be comfortable in my dairy-free, shellfish-free, and nut-free household”.
Explaining the appeal of this health-focused dating, the platform explains “Due to food allergies, we have special social concerns. For example, yes, we enjoy interacting with others, but restaurants with busy kitchens on the weekends may become life threatening. For us, fun Meet & Greet opportunities do not revolve around dining out. Non-food social choices are limitless and we’ll use forums to share them”.
Platforms such as Singles with Food Allergies are a good example of how dating platforms can revolve around the lifestyle needs of singles with health conditions.
Creating a Safe Space
Jacqueline Child, who is disabled, faced ableist behaviours and abuse when she tried mainstream dating apps. In a discussion with Global Dating Insights, she explained that she wanted to create a safe space for singles with disabilities.
Dateability, created by Jacqueline & her sister Alexa, enables singles to be as upfront as they want regarding their disability. This helps users avoid the awkward and challenging conversation of explaining their health condition, something they faced on mainstream dating apps.
“Because I have invisible illnesses, I would have to explain my disabilities to my new connections. I questioned when and how I should do that. When is too early to disclose? If I don’t disclose right away, am I lying? How much information should I share?”, Jacqueline wrote in a recent blog post.
“Simply put, the mainstream dating apps are not a safe and encouraging space for many disabled people. Most people have to kiss a lot of frogs to find their person, but no one should have to go through abuse, harassment, or discrimination to find them”, she added.
Dateability now provides educational resources for singles with disabilities, including explaining how they may be fetishized for their health condition. It also takes a zero-tolerance approach to inappropriate language on the platform.
Creating a Community
“When you have Herpes, HPV, HIV, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Chlamydia, or other STDs, you may feel like you are alone in the world”, writes Positive Singles. Health conditions, especially when they can be transferred through sexual intercourse, can make singles feel isolated.
Increasingly, we are seeing online dating platforms address this feeling of isolation by creating community spaces where singles with health conditions can be themselves and find similar people.
One example of this is Positive Singles, a dating platform for people with Herpes, HPV, HIV, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Chlamydia, or other STDs. It has a range of community-building features, including chatrooms, live events, Q&As, and treatment stories.
Another example is Positive Plus One, which provides a community space for the HIV community. The platform provides opportunities for individuals with HIV to connect and get guidance, as well as partnering with relevant charities.
Conclusion
In modern society, where finding new connections is already difficult, it can be especially challenging to meet new people when you’re a part of a marginalised or misunderstood group.
All the platforms mentioned above are helping individuals find relevant support and like-minded people. For niche and mainstream platforms alike, the value of community-building, safe spaces, and educational materials, can’t be overlooked.
