Love, Family

5 Benefits To Being A Late Bloomer

Cheerleaders and nerd

The overnight British singing sensation Susan Boyle has given a whole new spin on the term late bloomer. After admitting to never having been kissed, as a 47-year-old woman, the folks over at Smitten asked their readers how many of them were late-bloomers. A late bloomer does not have to mean you are a 40-year old virgin or have never been kissed at age 47. It might mean that you had your first kiss a few years later than your friends seemed to, that your first relationship wasn't until after college, or that you just didn't really grow into your looks until a later age.

Often late bloomers feel like they are behind everyone else when it comes to sex or relationships and can feel this inexperience may cause some growing pains as they adapt to the learning curve in the game of dating. While this may be true, it got us to thinking about the benefits of being of the late blooming variety versus having been one of the "fast" kids who seemed to have such extensive sex and relationship expertise by the end of high school (or even middle school). Below are our top five benefits to blooming late.

1. Not wasting time dating the high school quarterback or cheerleader. While at the time kissing one of the "pretty populars" may have seemed glamorous, those people don't always turn out as the most desirable once the graduation gowns came off.

2. Older and wiser. Late bloomers start navigating the world of sex and relationships when they are older, more self-aware, and have seen the dating mistakes of those around them. This knowledge should help them avoid the blunders that haunted those who started early on.

3. Being a late bloomer usually means you're either super smart, really good at something, or used to be, well, less attractive. In any of these cases, it's a positive.

4. The jade factor. Late bloomers have not suffered teenage relationships which can jade their expectations when looking for a mate later in life.

5. Pent-up energy. All the years of waiting for sex leaves late bloomers with a lot of pent-up sexual energy and a shorter amount of time to use it. Should lead to more fun for them and their partners.