Relationships, though not rocket science, have never been easy. However, the rise of social media has entirely changed the paradigm. It’s no more meet and greets, blind dates, and random encounters. Today’s dating is all about social media presence and the kind of acceptance it brings your way.
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And Russell Westbrook agrees. Though he isn’t personally familiar with how dating works in the current era, considering his story began even before his NBA career. Russell first met his wife, Nina Earl, at UCLA, where he studied from 2006-08. After a few years of dating, the pair made it official in 2015, and very recently renewed their vows in a gorgeous ceremony in Portofino, Italy.
Nina, a therapist by profession, now uses her podcast as a platform to bring awareness to mental health issues and discuss topics that are tough to traverse. Staying true to the theme of her show, she found herself discussing the theatre of modern love and all that it entails with her husband, from Shakespearean tragedies to the complexities of dating life.
“But dating could be hooking up, dating could be a friend or partner you go to the gym with, and you guys sometimes go out to eat. Dating could be a committed relationship. Dating could be like, I don’t know. What the heck is even dating?” she very succinctly put.
To Nina’s amusement, Russell pointed out that sometimes you might text someone every couple of days, and they might begin to think you are dating. Westbrook was attempting to point out how complex the process has become. The couple then went on to agree that dating involved a lot of mixed signals. Signals that are sometimes near impossible to comprehend.
Nina also questioned her husband about what motivates people to date, and how the end goal is not always to get into a relationship.
“In our world, people are looking for some type of satisfaction, some type of approval of other people. Personally, I think that’s the kind of world … social media, everything is kind of like, ‘hey, you see me like I am trying to show you. Do you accept, approve of what I am doing, you know?'” Russell claimed in response.
He, refreshingly, however, asserts that it’s not necessarily a bad thing. If someone wants another to validate their approach or how they look or their way through life, it’s their business. But he does believe that it makes things trickier in dating.
Nina responded by adding an interesting point, asking if people prefer to value certain things that look for in a partner or if they just looking at what they can benefit from them.
She also recalled Westbrook telling her that often, young men believe success equates to finding someone attractive and having a child with them. Russ believes these preconceived notions depend on how they grew up and their past experiences.
Dating is as complex a notion as it gets. Humans are inherently social, but our emotions and motives, can make these experiences difficult for everyone involved. Hopefully, Russ and Nina shedding light on this would provide certain clarity to those that need it.
