Being in a relationship with someone who doesn’t have a conventional 9 to 5 job presents unique challenges, but when you date a police officer on top of that, you are dealing with a slew of new challenges that are unique to this particular field. Doctors, firemen, and first responders have their own problems when they are faced with life or death situations, it’s not quite the same as the split second decisions that police officers may have to make.
Contrary to what you may see on the news about the police and what kind of troubles they face, the truth is they are just like us. They come from various types of backgrounds, life experiences, colors, shapes, and sizes. Some officers have families of their own while others do not.
When you want to date a police officer, you should recognize that there are a few rules that you need to keep in mind. Here’s a list of some of the most important tips that you could have in your arsenal when dating a man in blue.
1. Learning how to communicate with codes.
Police officers have codes that they use to communicate with one another, but keep their intentions a secret from others. The most popular are 10 codes. These codes can be used to keep things from the kids, coordinate plans and ETAs, but they can also be an adult way to clue your partner in on what is to come tonight. For example, “Hey baby, since I’m off for the next few days, are you 10-8 (in service) any of these days?” If a 10-8 is on the table then you can use 10-15 (suspect in custody) *wink wink*.
2. Be responsible when you play with the handcuffs.
If you’re going to get involved with a police officer, you get to experiment with handcuffs! Just be sure that when it happens (because you know that it will at one point or another), someone has the keys. You would be surprised by how many instances where partners don’t have the keys.
3. Don’t commit any crimes or do drugs with them present.
You don’t want to put your partner in that situation where they have to put their feelings for you to the side and do their job, or turn a blind eye and let you get away with it. It can be a hard choice to make, and if you care for them, you don’t want to have to make them choose.
4. Be flexible.
If you are someone who requires rigid plans with little to no wiggle room, then you may not want to get involved with a police officer. Their life is hectic and their schedule is never determined.
This means that they may be on call for the holidays, you’ll have to miss a few date nights because they are on a case, or they will miss a birthday or two because they couldn’t get off.
5. Get used to having your back against the door.
Whenever you go out, you may want to get used to having the door at your back. While most people don’t pay attention to where they are sitting, police officers tend to be very aware of their surroundings and may even go so far as to request being in eyesight of the door. You can get around this by sitting side by side, rather than face to face.
6. Don’t give in to temptation to get frisky while they are on duty.
You’ve probably seen cop shows where they meet up with their partner for a lunchtime romp and get it on in the back of the squad car. Unfortunately, this is just an example of Hollywood taking liberties. This kind of behavior could actually get them into hot water, which includes automatic termination and having their law enforcement certification revoked, thus ending their career.
7. There will be a gun wherever you go.
In today’s scary world, perhaps this is a plus rather than a negative for some. You can be sure that wherever you go with your partner, you are going to be protected and safer than others; unless they have a license to carry as well.