June 20 is the first day of summer in the United States and all the single people out there looking for a relationship should stay home because right now the only relationship they should be forming is with themselves.

Don’t get me wrong, I can totally see the appeal of getting a summer ‘boo.’ Summer romances are known to be passionate and meaningful, but forming relationships in quarantine sounds like a waste of time.

The New York Post states that long-distance relationships have a 58% success rate. This might sound like a hopeful statistic, but it’s only painting half of the picture.

According to Mayo Clinic, it takes only five minutes of close interaction with a carrier of COVID-19 to contract the virus. 

There are too many aspects of face-to-face dating that do not translate in an entirely online format.

Body language and physical contact play an important role when getting to know someone, but that is a luxury single people do not have in quarantine.  

“UCLA conducted a study that showed only 7% of communication comes from the words that are spoken,” according to Better Help. 

Until further notice, the non-verbal facet of dating is lost.

The reality is the emotional energy spent on building a relationship over the internet can go away with the click of a button, the possibility of being ghosted is easier now than ever before.

According to Psychology Today, Gili Freedman and colleagues at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland published a study about the practices of ghosting.

They found that 25% of participants have ghosted potential lovers and about 28% of respondents felt that it was acceptable to ghost someone after just one date. 

Quarantine is testing many couples as their relationships suddenly become long-distance or not long-enough distance due to social distancing orders.

According to an article in Forbes, “Only 18% of surveyed couples reported satisfaction in communication with their partner, with the largest source of conflict reported was how often to have sex, followed by purchasing decisions, then phone time.”

Single people should stay away from the dating scene all together until it is safe to go out and socialize because, at the end of the day, safety should be everyone’s top priority. 

Don’t be a hopeless romantic and try to meet someone you swiped left on a dating app knowing that you might be a carrier of COVID-19. 

You are not only putting yourself at risk but also the people living in the same household as you and the other person.

If you think you found the one, and both of you are willing to practice strict social distancing rules, then go for it.

But if you have not, use this time being single at home to work on yourself. 

Get creative and change up your look by cutting or dyeing your hair to a style you have wanted to try out for a while, spend time with family, housemates and pets. 

Embark on a journey to get your desired body goals, just because a summer ‘boo’ is out of the question doesn’t mean a summer body has to be.  

Remember, the reason we are in quarantine is to protect ourselves from the virus and flatten the curve until a vaccine is created. 

Santa Clara County’s restrictions continue for the safety of everyone and the desire for physical love will be even more painful knowing that your long-distance lover is not really that distant.

We should take advantage of this time during COVID-19 restrictions to prioritize ourselves so that when the time is right we will be ready for any relationship.