Advice to start dating again after long-term relationship and agoraphobia? [Ftm 21]
(tldr: I'm going on 21 and left a long-term toxic relationship about 2 years ago. I was 14 when it began and it took over the majority of my teenage years. I was struggling heavily and was diagnosed with agoraphobia atop some other anxiety disorders. Ive been able to grieve and move on from the relationship and am wanting to try my hand at dating again. It's been so long since I've tried to meet people/date, and it's definitely different then it was as a freshman in highschool. Looking for any and all advice!)
I apologize for the longevity of this but with all the different things playing into the complexity it's hard to shorten it.
I started dating someone when I was 14, freshman in highschool. The relationship was a little over 4 years long and incredibly toxic, cheating, abuse, manipulation, the works, leaving me feeling very stunted socially. During that relationship I slowly developed agoraphobia, something that seems to run in my family connected to genetic panic disorder. It absolutely destroyed me, making me feel even more stunted.
I came out as transgender (ftm) in 2020 and began to socially transition at 18, medically transitioning (testosterone) a year after that. The mix of the toxic relationship in very important years for socialization and weight gain on testosterone has plummeted my confidence, adding another fun layer to learning how to get into the dating scene.
Im finding it difficult that with my mix of anxiety related accommodations (not going to new places often, needing escape plans, fear of panic attacks, ect), stunted social development, and my, admittedly self believed, unattractive looks to get into the dating scene as an adult.
I'm not looking to date for marriage or even for anything long term, I know I have a lot of work to do with socializing and getting used to the idea of dating before I'll be ready to consider that, but I have no idea how to even start! If anyone has absolutely ANY advice I'd greatly appreciate it!! I'm open to experimenting and trying new things to the best of my abilities! Thanks for reading!