I'm (24f) chronically single and insecure about being sexually inexperienced--how can i stop stressing about this?
Hello everyone--first time posting, I hope this is the right place to post this but let me know if not.
I'm 24f and have been single my entire life--no boyfriends, nothing that could even come close to a relationship. I've had a few casual hookups in college, and about a year ago had a fling that lasted like 2 months and ended up being so emotionally devastating to me that I became completely celibate since then, and don't really plan on being intimate with anyone anytime soon. All of the casual hookups I'd had in the past were alright, but I realized I was kind of just sleeping with people in college because I felt like that's what I was "supposed" to do, and I'm just kind of over it now, I think casual sex is not for me, and anyway now that I've graduated I just don't find myself in a lot of sitguations that would be conducive to meeting either romantic or sexual partners (also have tried apps--never really had much luck).
Anyway for the above and a variety of other reasons I don't anticipate finding a committed partner anytime soon, though I would very much like to one day. All of which to say, it's likely that I will enter my first relationship in my mid-late 20s or even later, at which point I will have had sex basically a handful (like <20 ) of times in my whole life. Even though being single right now and not having sex don't really bother me in and of itself, I'm constantly comparing myself to others and thinking about how far behind I am of other people my age. I'm terrified that if/when I do eventually meet someone, my lack of experience and general lack of confidence sexually will be a huge turnoff, because at that age the majority of people will have had so much more romantic and sexual experience than me. Of course I like to think that the "right person" won't be bothered by it and will be willing to be patient with me, but realistically adults do like to have healthy sex lives with partners who know what they're doing in bed.
has anyone been in a similar situation or have any thoughts or advice about this? any thoughts would be appreciated.
tl;dr I'm in my mid-20s, have had very little sex in my life and worried about how my inexperience might affect my future relationship prospects.
Posted Feb 11, 2026, 10:17 PM UTC