Gen Z and Millennial Women Are Going Single

Posted by PSEDEN

2025-10-10

On 2025-10-10

Mandana Zarghami, 29, was single “most of the time” in her 20s.

In fact, she purposely didn’t sleep with anyone for four years straight, The Floridian recently told The Washington Post — and men of her generation made her decision pretty easy.

“I really don’t know what the hell happened,” the single Miami native said proudly.

Because of this, America is in the midst of an unprecedented sexual decline — and Gen Z and Millennial women, who are partly responsible, say they don’t mind.

Across the country, young single girls are abstaining from sex like never before—not because they’re saving themselves for marriage for religious reasons, but because they’re tired of today’s weird world of digital dating and hookup culture.

Remember those early commitments to purity made by Miley Cyrus, the Jonas Brothers, Demi Lovato and more? With support from high-profile celebrities like Lenny Kravitz and Khloé Kardashian, they’re back with Purity Pledge 2.0 — and word is spreading.

After too many failed situations (a slang term used to describe uncertain romantic relationships), Zargami grew tired of the emotionally immature, noncommittal men she kept attracting and knew she needed to make drastic changes in her romantic life.

Celibacy seemed to be the answer.

“As much as you want to blame other species, you also have to take responsibility for why you allow certain people into your life and why you allow people to basically walk all over you,” she told The Washington Post of her decision.

In an effort to get her romantic life back on track, she committed to a year off dating apps, going on zero dates, and even resisting the urge to look at cute men.

“The first six months to a year [was] It’s so hard because I think our growth as humans relies on connection with another human being — that intimacy, that emotional vulnerability,” she admits.

“But then one year turned into two, which turned into three, which turned into four. I made a promise to myself that I wanted to remain celibate until I was in a committed relationship,” Zargami said.

The 29-year-old broke a four-year streak last year with a man she ultimately didn’t deserve, and now she’s keeping her promise to herself as she’s back on the sexless bandwagon.

Zalgami is just one of many women her age who are openly discussing their journeys to celibacy and encouraging others to do the same.

Statistically, the number of U.S. adults attending hanky-panky parties has declined dramatically since the turn of the century—a long drought in the United States—and has continued to decline in the years since, according to an analysis of research published by the Institute for Family Studies (IFS).

According to the General Social Survey, the proportion of 18- to 29-year-olds who admit to not having sex doubled from 2010 to 2024, from 12% to 24%.

Even more shocking, according to the IFS, asexuality among young adult women has increased by about 50 percent, and these strong-willed women continue to increase that number.

One of them is 29-year-old New Jersey resident Kayla Caputo.

“I feel like hookup culture has ruined dating because it almost feels like that’s the end goal. Like people are so trained now to just ask you to go home with them — it’s so weird,” she admitted to The Washington Post.

Caputo has been abstinent for several months – although she has been on several journeys to celibacy in the past.

For her, she felt that sleeping with someone new “can cloud your judgment of how that person really feels.”

While these single women may not be entering the bedroom with a man anytime soon, that doesn’t mean they aren’t actively dating.

They didn’t even bat an eyelash when asked if they’d revealed they were single to men on a date. If anything, these empowered girls feel like it helps them weed out the guys who are just there to have a fun night out.

“Typically, if I feel like things are going my way, like, ‘Oh, they might be expecting something from me,’ I just like to be straight up and say, ‘I’m not going to have sex with you,'” Caputo says proudly.

“I say that really bluntly. Not only does it make me feel like I’m in charge, but if they’re just looking for a quick connection, then they don’t have to see me anymore.”

Dating coach Erika Ettin agrees with this no-nonsense approach.

“Unfortunately, I do believe there is a double standard, and while a man may want a woman to sleep with him sooner, he will generally respect her more if she holds off until she truly feels ready and able to communicate that,” she told The Washington Post.

“It’s also a good gauge of who just wants physical intimacy versus who wants to get to know someone.”

To find out what men think about this, Daniel Lebowitz, MS, LMFT, a sex therapist, marriage and family therapist, weighed in, telling The Washington Post, “Generally speaking, the idea of ’chasing’ is not what really makes a man act. What really makes a man act is what’s behind the chase—a man who knows his own worth and allows others to actually show interest in him. It’s a sign that the person you’re with is picky, but he’s picking on you.”

“Men like to feel special or unique, and if he’s lucky enough to get into her bedroom, it shows that he’s seen as worthy or valuable.”

While these women are still willing to explore romantic relationships without physical contact, they also place a premium on investing in themselves and their friendships.

“I have several friends who have also become celibate. It’s been great to be able to join this tribe and nourish those friendships and relationships instead of wasting energy, money and time on Tinder dates,” Ema Skaumimaite, a 28-year-old travel nurse who currently lives in Norway and has been celibate for five months, told The Washington Post.

In addition to de-emphasizing whether or not her date will text her after spending a night with him (a complaint of many single women today), Scommermet has experienced another unexpected benefit of celibacy.

“I learned a lot about myself, relationships, how relationships work and how I feel about the whole thing. It really helps when I meet another person, [because] My intuition has become stronger,” she explains.

“So every time I meet someone, I immediately sense their intentions.”