I think we’ve all been in this situation at least once in our lives: you hook up with someone and then, for whatever reason, you regret it. Like major, stomachache causing regret. Like you wish you could turn back time and go back and stop yourself from hooking up with that person regret. Maybe you just hooked up with your best friend’s crush, maybe the hookup was terrible, maybe you did it with someone you really don’t have feelings for… either way, that feeling of regret sucks.

A new study on regret just came out and some of the findings were pretty interesting. Researchers found that the majority of the women studied were more likely to regret having casual sex that never led to a relationship while the majority of men were more likely to regret not having casual sex. Basically, women are more likely to regret a hookup than men are. And, as I said before, that icky feeling of regret is kind of the worst. So how do you deal with it? For starters, read these 8 tips on how to deal with regret after a bad hookup – even if you don’t need it now, it may come in handy one day.

Skip this Ad

Next

ADVERTISEMENT

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Take A Shower

This but sound ridiculous, but seriously - take a shower! If you hook up with someone and immediately feel like you need to get out of your own skin, hop into the shower. You're literally cleaning yourself and it may feel like you're cleaning yourself of the hookup also. Basically, you'll feel clean and new after your shower. Also, a nice, hot shower is relaxing and can help you forget about what just happened.

Source: ShutterStock

Cut Off All Ties

If you're totally freaking out about a hookup, you shouldn't feel like you need to keep talking to this person just because you guys did stuff. At the same time, I wouldn't just drop him/her without saying anything. If they're still contacting you, let this person know that you're not interested. You don't have to be like, "I regret that SO much," but you can just say that you don't think things are going to work out.

Source: ShutterStock

Let Yourself Cry A Little

It's okay to cry! If you're feeling totally bummed out about what you just did, let it out. Ignoring your emotions and just trying to push it to the back of your mind so that you don't think about it isn't going to help you move on. Cry in the privacy of your own room, scream into your pillow, whatever. Just let it out, girl.

Source: ShutterStock

Don't Beat Yourself Up

Okay, so you had a bad hookup. Maybe you got with someone you weren't supposed to or maybe the whole thing was just awkward and embarrassing. Don't make yourself feel horrible about it. This stuff happens and once it's over, there's nothing you can do to take it back, so you just need to learn to forgive yourself. Don't make yourself feel awful just because you had one bad experience.

Source: ShutterStock

Don't Feel Like You Have To Tell Anyone

Totally embarrassed by what happened? Don't feel like you need to blab about it to your friends. It's okay to keep some things to yourself and if you're not comfortable talking about it, you don't have to. Yes, it may help you to open up to your best friend, but if you don't want to, don't force yourself. This can be your little secret to forget about.

Source: ShutterStock

Learn From Your Mistakes

Mistakes happen. The good thing about them? They can teach you stuff. Take this bad hookup as a lesson for what not to do in the future. Also, don't repeat it. Some girls feel like they have to hook up with a guy a second time - maybe because they feel guilty rejecting the person or maybe because they're just hoping things will be better the second time around. But if thinking about doing it makes you squirm, then don't do it!

Source: ShutterStock

Focus On The Future

Like I said before, don't beat yourself up about this. Learn from your mistakes and focus on doing things that you're more comfortable with in the future. Living in the past and feeling regret is never going to make you happen, so don't focus on what already happened. Remember, you can't change the past, but you can make the future better.

Source: ShutterStock

Forget About It And Move Forward

Finally, it's time to move on. Stop thinking about it, stop talking about it and stop crying about it. Forget it ever happened and get on with your life. One bad hookup is not the end of the world.

Source: ShutterStock

Have you ever regretted a hookup? How did you deal? Have you ever had a terrible hookup? Tell us in the comments.

10 tips on how to make your ex jealous

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter