how to meet someone new, and dont know how to cope the situation i am in now

[noranora]

hi everyone,
i was thinking to put this here for a long time, but didnt know how to start with or, etc.
i am lone parent for a long time, before we had lots of ups and down in our life but now i am seriously thinking to meet someone nice, if i can
i am scared to put an ad on dating sites because i would feel embarrassed if any of my friends, my family, my ex, or my son would find and see it, i had to eliminate this option.
the other option is being sociable which i cant be so much atm, cos i have young dd who takes 24/7 attention of mine and i dont have family around.
in these circumstances i am falling for nice but wrong people for me.
for example, there is very nice man around but he is too much young for me-he seems mature though, and there is not much occasion to talk with him which makes me frustrated really-maybe he feels the same, i feel so, because i see him noticing-looking for me. if there was somebody else in my shoes they would get him immediately, he is so sweet , i am coming more and more shy when i see him , this has been going platonic for a very long time like 7-8 months and it is stressing me really.
so i feel really strange now, dont know what to do....

[noranora]

help please......

[Earlybird]

How old are you, and how old is he?

[noranora]

thats a bit sensitve subject for me
i am over 40, he seems 25-30, i didnt mean to start something, his attention drew me into it i guess.

[noranora]

i look a lot younger, that was tricky i guess

[Earlybird]

Does he have a general idea how old you are? Maybe he knows, and it isn't a problem for him.

Why is it a problem for you?

[lottymadbird]

i'm 40 my BF is 29 - go for it, its a good laugh !!!!

[haidee]

Hi Noranora,
I would recommend internet dating - it's really nothing at all to be embarrassed about, in fact if anything it's actually trendy. There are sites specifically for single parents and you can chat online and get to know people before meeting...if indeed you do decide to meet. Sometimes there's a lot of thrill just in the actual cyber flirting.

I'm not sure if the man you've met is for you or not, but in your situation it would be very easy to jump at the first person that comes along. There ARE millions of single parents out there, don't feel you have no opportunities. (1.9 million in fact).

I've recently started arranging meets and holidays for single parents and this is a good way of increasing your social life and making friends with both men and women without any pressure, I'd definitely recommend it.

Haidee x

p.s. Internet dating worked for me by the way, and a few other people I know...

[noranora]

thanks for your nice messages
yes, that man has an idea of how old i am, i told in a conversation how old my son is, so he can guess.
this platonic thing is going on for a long time, it became platonic because of me, i hesitated long time, couldnt respond well to his advances which upset me many times that i couldnt, i became so shy, but he did his best, it was all my fault.
i felt it wouldnt go further than some sort of casual thing, and i felt i wouldnt be able to do that, as i was sure i was going to put too much emotional stuff in it. but i liked him a lot, i still do.
i feel like i can fall for anybody now, so i must be careful.
in my life i made some mistakes, me and my young child we cant afford any more mistakes.

[zippitippitoes]

wel if you are both keen then age doesn't really matter?