From Bumble’s Dating 101 in 2021 guide.

Each new year, we dust ourselves off and start fresh. We consider what exactly we want our lives to look like in the 12 months ahead, and we set about making that a reality. As we go into 2021, there’s understandable anxiety in the air. The COVID pandemic continues to affect our lives to varying degrees. We’re still spending much of our time communicating through screens, with in-person dates running the gamut from “a bit risky” to “entirely off the table” depending on regional circumstances and personal preferences.

But it’s not all doom and gloom! Actually, what Bumble’s research shows is that many of you have embraced the last few months, spending time considering what you want out of a relationship. For example, 43% of Bumblers are feeling more confident articulating their dating needs, and 63% of Bumble’s community says that COVID helped them figure out what really matters.

“I think one of the wonderful things that I’ve really noticed about people dating during COVID is the fact that people are really slowing down,” says Jemma Ahmed, Bumble’s head of insights, who conducted research this fall on the effect of the pandemic on dating. “People want to build up more trust and know that that person is worth taking the risk for, if they’re going to progress.”

Lockdowns and quarantines have allowed for greater self-reflection and a renewed emphasis on protecting our own mental health. “We don’t always have, or take, the time to sit down and think about our relationships with ourselves and with others,” says Dr. Amy Cirbus, psychologist and director of clinical content at online and mobile therapy company Talkspace. “Maybe this is a good time to reflect. Think about who it is that you want to connect with. Which of your relationships do you value, and why?”

“COVID’s really given us a lot of time to think and to figure ourselves out,” says Ahmed. “People are really starting to take a lot more ownership of themselves and their dating journeys.”

You don’t need to take our word for it. Plenty of people have met on Bumble and started relationships at the height of the pandemic. We asked our community to submit their stories of love during lockdown, and were inundated with thousands of couples seeking to let us know that they found each other during this most strange of times.

To discover some of the most moving COVID love stories we found, click here. And if thousands of others can meet someone on Bumble right now, so can you. You’ve got this.