“Why would she ignore me after a great first date?”

Your first date was awesome. So why has she disappeared?

“Why would she ignore me when our first date went without a hitch?”

Your head is spinning.

You go on a first date, the conversation flows well, everything seems great, and then… nothing. What in this world?

That’s what we’re going to figure out today.

You might feel confused, frustrated, or even worried. You may feel disappointed in yourself for being vulnerable toward someone. Vulnerability can feel painful when you’re questioning if she even likes you back.

Those reactions are normal and understandable when someone you thought you connected with suddenly falls off the radar.

It’s easy to get hung up on the fact that…

• your phone is quiet,
• your inbox is empty,
• and the silence is penetrating.

Do your best to look past the what so you can understand the why.

Figuring out why this happened is an important step toward moving forward in a healthy way and learning any lessons that are ripe and ready for you. Read this article below to learn how.

In this post, we’re going to…

• examine your gut feelings to decide what might have happened to cause the silence,
• discuss the difference between great conversation and great chemistry, and why that difference may be playing a part in your situation, and
• identify any other contributing factors that may be causing your date to hold back.

By the end of this post, you will have the introspective tools you need to follow your heart and decide whether to keep pursuing this woman or to move on.

Either way, you will have learned and prepared yourself for a more favorable outcome next time!

What does it mean if she hasn’t contacted you after a great first date?

When a woman is really into you after a date, she will likely be eager to talk to you and see you again.

Some women may be too shy to initiate contact.

But if days have passed and you’ve been sending texts, social media messages, and calls out into a void, your gut will be telling you something is wrong.

Reason being, when a woman enthusiastically initiates contact and responds to your text messages, she sends strong signals of her interest in moving things forward.

Yay!

This builds a rapport and naturally increases your confidence that things must be going well.

But…

When the opposite happens, it’s understandable that you’re left questioning her level of interest in you.

Those strong signals are now pointing toward her not wanting to move forward with you.

While sometimes, this can just be a part of dating, it becomes an empowering situation when you…

Take a proactive approach.

Since you will not likely receive an answer from her in this scenario, you will need to examine your own thoughts and feelings.

Ask yourself a few questions:

• What do I feel happened?
• Am I interested in continuing to pursue this woman?
• How could I potentially fix things with her?
• If that doesn’t work out, what can I do to move on in a healthy way?
• How can I better prepare myself for next time?

Asking these questions will help you process everything.

Now, let’s figure out what’s really going on here:

First, remember that great conversation is not the same as great chemistry.

While it is definitely a positive sign when you connect with your date over a good conversation…

Words aren’t everything.

Chemical reactions in the brain that lead to stronger attraction and romantic interest are released much more quickly and effectively if you can build physical chemistry as well.

Some well-timed physical contact, for example…

• a light touch on her arm, or
• a casual brush of your knee against hers as you sit next to each other…

can pleasantly make her more aware and excited about your bodies being close together.

Proximity in physical space builds chemistry and sexual tension if she is genuinely interested in you.

Great conversation alone, on the other hand, is something that platonic friends often share.

It could be that you interpreted the easy flow of words and exciting ideas as sexual chemistry between you, while she was connecting with you on a level which, in her mind, might have been totally unromantic.

Check out this other article for tips on how to pay attention to body language and any signs she wants you to make a move.

How can you fix this for next time?

If you do end up seeing this woman again, signal your interest with subtle advances using physical proximity and contact.

If she picks up on your signals and reciprocates, you’ll know she’s feeling the chemistry just like you are.

Perhaps things won’t work out with this particular woman, but proximity and contact are great tips to use on any first dates in the future.

To do this well…

1. Remember to keep it subtle, not overpowering or pushy.
2. Read signals such as her touching you in return to understand she’s feeling the vibe, or her leaning slightly away to know that you need to back off.

This way, you’ll be making sure that your date always understands when you have a more-than-platonic interest in her.

This is crucial in a dating context!

Then, the next day when she thinks back to your arm brushing against hers, she might very well be hoping you were feeling those butterflies, too.

It’s possible everything was fine, but something was missing.

Have you ever watched a movie and thought to yourself,

“Well that was a decent story, but it didn’t really speak to me…”?

First dates can be like that, too.

You may feel confident that the conversation and your signals that you are interested in her were on point. But that doesn’t mean she felt the hook that will keep her coming back for more.

You can build a pile of firewood with great conversation and pour on the lighter fluid with your subtle physical advances, but if she doesn’t feel the spark, she’s not going to light the fire.

There could be any number of reasons for that to happen.

None of them necessarily mean there was anything you could have done to get a different outcome.

Reflect for a few minutes: “Why would she ignore me when everything was great?”

This is where your intuition comes into play.

You may not know the answer. But you might be surprised how often your gut feeling guides you in the right direction.

For example…

• Perhaps she mentioned that she has a lot of stress and is dealing with a full plate.
• Maybe she conveyed a feeling that the two of you are looking for different things in a relationship.
• In online dating, it’s common for some people to go on multiple first dates. She may be narrowing down her pool of potential fits from her Hinge or Bumble matches.
• She could have recently had a difficult breakup and she just needs some space and time before jumping back into dating.

There could be lots of scenarios like these to explain why she is holding back.

If something is keeping her from taking the plunge, that something may have nothing to do with you.

Since striving for personal growth is always a good idea, however, you can still come up with a few ways to improve on future dates using all of the above pointers on chemistry, which is the area where most introverted guys struggle initially.

If you think about how the date went for several minutes and you’re still left scratching your head, it is possible that her vanishing has nothing to do with you at all.

Or, it could be that something really was off.

As we’ve covered, a great conversation on a first date is a promising start. But it’s nowhere even close to checking all the boxes necessary for a relationship.

Perhaps she noticed an incompatibility between the two of you that you didn’t pick up on:

• Did you make any jokes that didn’t go over very well?
• Maybe she’s hesitant because you don’t seem comfortable in your own skin.
• Were your text conversations awkward?

This is another area where examining your gut feelings can be a handy tool.

You may not stumble across the real reason she is ignoring you. That’s okay.

You are clarifying your own thoughts about what could have gone wrong.

You may decide you need to step up your game when it comes to dressing nicely. Or you may realize that a partner who ghosts you after a first date is waving a huge red flag. You might notice a pattern that you seem to fall for the women who are unavailable for some reason.

No matter the specific conclusions you reach, you are coming up with ideas for how you can improve for next time. Working on yourself sets you up for a better future.

And that’s empowering.

She could come back and the two of you may have a second date. Or, you might choose to move on and begin dating someone else. Either way, you’re in a great position to have a positive outcome.

You will be better prepared, more aware of potential red flags, and more sure of yourself because you reflected and put in the work you felt was necessary.

Conclusion on “Why would she ignore me after a good first date?”

From now on, focus on how you can improve for the future.

Remember the important points we covered today that you can focus on instead of worrying why things went wrong when she doesn’t reply.

Today, we learned it’s best to…

• Keep in mind that conversation isn’t everything when it comes to romance,
• Use your intuition to guide you on how to move forward and better prepare yourself in the future, and
• Understand that if she has decided it’s not a match, that’s okay. You can decide what is important to you for future dates as well.

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