Casual Sexting May Not Be Great For You, So Think Twice Before Sending That Pic

So you matched with this new guy on Tinder. And he's pretty cute, too!

You're doing a good job with the back and forth banter and... BOOM! Next thing you know, you've got his number.

Now, the two of you are texting nonstop, and you even have a date planned for next Tuesday, when all of the sudden, mid-conversation about puppies and your plans for this evening, he hits you with a surprise dick pic.

For some reason, you can't really even begin to fathom how or why he thought this was a good idea.

Unfortunately for the guy, his "genius" idea was, in fact, not at all genius, and a new study out there found just how bad of an idea it can be.

Why might sexting be a bad idea?

A new study, published in Computers of Human Behavior, of 352 college students found that most of us have some experience with sexting, as 58 percent of the students reported they sent a sext and 62 percent had gotten one. Most people also reported that they sent the sext to be flirty and to make their partners happy.

But unfortunately, sexting may not always make people feel happy, especially when it's just with a casual partner, according to the study.

Researchers found there were two factors that went into whether or not sexting might affect you negatively: the gender of who sent it and the nature of your relationship.

As far as gender goes, the study found that (shocker!) women reported having more negative experiences with sexting than men did.

Now, for the type of relationship, the study found that people tend to have less-than-great experiences with sexting when they're sending the sexts to casual partners over committed partners.

Study author Michelle Drouin explained to PsyPost, "Many people experience regret or worry about the pictures they have sent to recent partners, and some even report discomfort and trauma at the time they sent the pictures."

Does sexting ever go well?

Yes, it actually does sometimes, again, depending on what kind of relationship we're talking.

The study found that people in committed relationships reportedly had fewer negative experiences with sexting than people who sexted casually did. So it can actually be a good thing, or at the very least, a neutral thing.

In fact, a study by DrEd found that people who sext regularly within their relationships reported having better sex lives.

So don't let this study deter you from sexting completely! Maybe just make sure the person you're sexting is in a committed relationship with you already before sending an unsolicited pic of your privates.