What is orbiting and is the dating trend worse than ghosting?

GHOSTING is a term that all daters are familiar with by now – but it’s so last year.

So what is Orbiting? And why is it so bad? We have all the info…

What is orbiting?

Surprisingly, orbiting has nothing to do with space or science.

It’s a dating trend that’s becoming increasingly popular, and has elements similar to ghosting.

While ghosting involves being completely blocked and cut out by someone you were romantically involved with for no apparent reason – orbiting can be a little more confusing.

If someone ‘orbits’ you they’ll ghost you on whatever platform you’re speaking on, and ignore your texts/Whatsapps and so on, but they’ll continue to like your Instagram selfies and/or hilarious Tweets.

Sound familiar? We imagine it does – this is very popular in modern day dating, and can be incredibly confusing.

The term was first coined by US website , where their writer recalled being ghosted buy a guy – but he continued to follow her, and look at all of her stories.

It was dubbed ‘orbiting’ due to those who do it ‘keeping you in their orbit’ – and it is ridiculously relatable.

Why do people do it?

Orbiting is pretty much the worst way of sending someone mixed signals.

It’s often seen as a way of keeping in touch with someone without making any effort.

Those on the receiving end can be led to think “should I reach out to them again?” as it seems like they’re wanting to remind you they exist through their scattered non-committed communication – but the reality is that if they wanted to text you back, they would.

What should you do if you’re being orbited?

The answer is relatively simple – if you don’t want to entertain them that is.

Pick up your phone, and block them on all the platforms they’re still mildly contacting you on.

It might seem a little OTT, but you’ll thank yourself for it.