I got to 32 without ever being kissed or going on a date – I always assumed men would chase me but it never happened | The Sun
GROWING up Allora Campbell always imagined her 'Mr Right' would one day sweep her off her feet, just like they do in the movies.
But having got to the age of 32 without ever being kissed or taken on a date, she's realised her approach to romance clearly isn't working.
She'd always expected she would get her "meet cute" or be pursued by men – but it never happened.
But Allora insists she's not embarrassed to be a "late bloomer", and is now taking matters into her own hands.
She set herself a goal of going on dates for a month in January this year.
Having felt she was “falling behind the expectations of dating in society”, she's now been on four dates and has finally been kissed – describing the moment as “sweet”.
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Allora, a marketer from Rochester, New York, says: “I’m 32 and I had never been kissed or been on a date until last month.
“I presumed that women were meant to be pursued or some sort of meet cute would happen. But that never happened to me.
“I thought there must be something wrong with me."
She admits she went nearly two decades without going on a single date after she "lost trust in love" when it was unrequited in her early 20s.
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5“Instead of taking the narrative into my own hands I just put all my energy into my career and travel," she explains.
“I felt like I had wasted 15 years coming to terms with it."
Allora admits she had grown up expecting she would meet someone or would be hit on by guys.
She says: “I was crippled by a gender role. The prince to princess.
“When it didn’t happen, I did a lot of second guessing. I’d question – ‘am I good enough?’
“I’d download a dating app once a year, have bad experiences with creeps, and delete it without going on dates.”
But Allora finally realised she needed to put herself out there.
"During the gap between Christmas and New Year, I was snuggling my dog and thought, 'If you do nothing, nothing will change'.
“I love my life, but I wanted to try dating. I spent so many years worrying about what people would think about me.
“It was self-sabotage. I downloaded the dating apps and decided to try for January.
"My goal was just to get out on dates and feel comfortable enough to do so.”
Allora says she didn’t really expect anything, but ended up with a connection with a guy – and they've now been on four dates.
“I was terrified for the first date. I sang ‘I have confidence’ from the Sound of Music for my entire drive," she says.
“He was so cool about me not being kissed or having been on any dates.
“He’s been really respectful. I had my first kiss, and it was really sweet.”
Before this year, hardly anyone knew Allora had never been on a date – but she took the plunge to share her secret on social media.
She says she was shocked by the number of fellow ‘late bloomers’ who reached out with support.
“I thought I was the only person in the world going through this,” she says.
“I feels like you're carrying a deep dark secret. It made me braver saying it out loud.
“I could always deflect any dating questions, so no one ever really knew before. It’s not something I’m embarrassed about anymore.”
Now Allora wants others to know it’s never too late to join the dating game.
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She adds: “There’s no timeline. Life is a marathon, not a race.
“There is nothing wrong with coming to dating or romance at a later stage.”
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