Christmas can be a challenging time for those without partners, and a dating expert has revealed that many individuals resort to fabricating details about their love life to dodge uncomfortable conversations during the festive season.
The holiday period, filled with activities like visiting Christmas markets and enjoying intimate pub lunches, offers plenty of chances for couples to connect.
However, for single people, facing questions about their dating status from relatives during holiday gatherings can be somewhat exasperating.
A recent survey by Wisp, which included 2,800 single individuals in the UK, discovered an unexpected number of people either lying or embellishing their romantic affairs.
The dating app Wisp found that 70 percent of participants felt ‘more judged and scrutinized’ about being single during Christmas than at any other time of the year.
Younger generations, such as Gen Z and Millennials, are more inclined to fabricate details about their love lives during family gatherings compared to Gen X. Among Gen Z, 47 percent confessed to altering the truth over Christmas, whereas 35 percent of Millennials did the same.
In contrast, only 18 percent of Gen X are likely to misrepresent their relationship status during the festive period.
Interestingly, Wisp’s findings revealed that one in three singles lie to their families about their romantic status, feeling heightened pressure to appear ‘settled’ during holiday meals.
The study showed that 27 percent of single individuals claim to have a partner to evade probing questions, while 14 percent even fabricate names and stories for their imaginary significant others.
While it may seem extreme for singles to go to such lengths, Sylvia Linzalone, a dating expert at Wisp, suggests that this behavior is quite understandable.
“Christmas compresses all the usual dating pressure into one week,” she noted. “You’re surrounded by couples, traditions and well-meaning relatives who see asking about your love life as harmless – but for singles, it can feel like an interrogation. Lying becomes a form of self-protection.”
Linzalone further commented: “What these stats really show is how uncomfortable we still are with being single. People aren’t lying because they’re ashamed – they’re lying because they’re tired of defending their life choices over roast potatoes.”
Let’s allow singles to enjoy their holiday meals without added stress, shall we?