Just wanted to throw that out there because I was seriously dejected a few years ago over this, but things have gotten better and better as I've gotten older.
Early twenties dating for men is hard, particularly in a skewed place like the bay area.
If I had to guess it’d be about status (young men are pretty low status) and age preferences. If women generally prefer someone a couple years older, the ones that might be interested in you are in college when you’re 22 so are not really in the same dating market.
It gets better.
But I do understand where you are coming from. I'm hoping better treatments come out soon..
Same. It's actually pretty important information to know at that age, as it'll help prevent you from settling into a LTR with someone that you're not compatible with, because "I'll never do any better."
I was most recently single at 43, and my dating prospects were pretty great compared to what I experienced at 22. If 22 year old had been able to foresee that, I would've saved myself quite a bit of grief.
But to be clear, there was certainly a wide spectrum of relationships between 22 and 43. For better or for worse.
If I had to pick an age to tell my younger self to hold out for, it would probably be the early to mid 30s. That seems to be when I, and other guys I know, stopped being idiots and started taking care of ourselves. And in the process gained some self esteem and confidence.