My boyfriend and I have been wanting to go on more dates to strengthen our relationship, but we're constantly running into the issue of what we're comfortable doing. Both he and I have fairly severe social anxiety, though it manifests itself in different ways for both of us. We both also struggle with agoraphobia, me much more than him, but are trying to push each other to work through our phobias.

We've talked about what we want to do for each other, but there's always problems. He's always wanting to take me out to a restaurant, but I have a lot of trouble eating in front of people. I want to take him out to a movie, but he has trouble with the environment and crowds. I worry about taking him somewhere boring or that he wont like or wont be able to handle, and he worries that he's done something wrong if he's set something up at home. And in my opinion, we've maxed out or "stay at home dinner and movie nights". Whenever either of us do manage to do something we're both maxing out on our PRN's just to get there, and although we have fun it's also far more exhausting than a date should be.

So I was going to open up the floor and ask for date ideas that can accommodate social anxiety, a low budget, and fun or quality time. Especially since its so close to Valentines day. (I want to do something nice because its his first V-Day with a girlfriend)

Somewhat Successful Ideas:

1. Live Theatre: for some reason it is easier to handle than movies, mostly because it's less crowded and everyone pays full attention to the actors and not the people around them. The downside is that it's hard to duck out of a performance compared to a movie.

2. Stay in Movie Night: can get boring and repetitive, but it's a good stand by just being the two of you. You get some alone time at the very least. Maybe watch something cheesy or from your child hood. Pull out the old VCR.

3. Boardgame Night: is awesome. If you have some boardgames that are two player, pull them out and play.

4. Halo Night: or an equivalent. I prefer retro games or racing games, but I tried this because he enjoys video games a lot. It was fun, although I had a hard time because of my fear of playing in front of others. I just picked games I was good at

5. Bookstores: My boyfriend loves books, and is working on his library science degree, so taking him to a big bookstore was really nice. Just walking between the shelves and talking about his favourite series, or stuff that I had read and thought was good. It was low pressure and fun. The downside is being tempted to buy things, and possibly going your separate ways.

6. Coffee Shop Date: Between doctors appointments, or before and after, me and him go to coffee shops and just sit and talk. It's not very romantic in my mind, but it's a nice way to spend time.

So that's what I've got so far? Any ideas from anyone else?