How do people who've come out of comas navigate dating and age gaps?
So I was thinking of this situation earlier, and I know it's obviously kind of out there, but I think there is probably someone out there who has experienced this and it poses kind of an ethical dilemma.
So lets say that there's this 17 year old kid, and for some reason he goes into a coma for 10 years. When he wakes up, he would be 27 years of age, but of course his mental age would still be 17.
My question here is- what age range is this person expected to date? Is he, someone who is mentally still a kid, be dating someone closer to their 30s because that's his physical age? Or should this person who has the body of a 27 year old still be dating highschoolers because he has the mind and maturity and mental age of a 17 year old.
I feel like either way this person would be kind of screwed honestly. And again, I know this is a niche situation, but it's definitely one that has happened before to more or less of an extent, so what is the ethical solution here?
Posted Feb 15, 2026, 3:46 PM UTC