The new slow and painful dating trend of 'fizzling', explained

You've probably heard of "ghosting", the act of ending a personal relationship without notice or explanation.

A new dating trend is a bit more passive-aggressive and yet it seems to be causing a lot more pain. 

It's called "fizzling", sort of like when you crack open a can of soda, and it makes a slow feeble spluttering sound before it finally just stops.

In relationships, friendships, and even situation-ships, fizzling is a slow end to a once promising partnership. 

A recent report from the dating app Hinge, defines Fizzling as," …one of the latest issues people face with post-date communication. When daters don’t want to tell someone they’re no longer interested, they become slower and shorter in their responses before stopping altogether…"

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 Not a breakup, not ghosting, just a long, slow, burn. (Photo by Chesnot/Getty Images)

As Grammy award-winning and world renowned artist, Usher once said, "I feel like this is comin' to an end, and it's better for me to, let it go now, than hold on and hurt you, but I gotta let it burn."

Let it burn. 

The pain from being fizzled can leave a person confused and even more frustrated than being ghosted because of the nature in which it's done.

The fizzler has often times already made up their mind about wanting to end things, but instead of doing so, they put the other person on the back burner until something better comes around.

This can cause insecure attachment issues for the person being fizzled, as they're slowly being led on. 

The new tactic has daters on edge and on guard. 

Psychologist Dr. Jeff Gardere describes it as "a very slow death," based on the fact that the person is slowly withdrawing themselves from the other person.

Experts say fizzlers don't want to have a direct conversation about their feelings. 

"Most people are doing it because they are scared, and they don't want to hurt the other person," love and relationship coach Kavita J. Patel explained. 

Patel's advice is to respond by calling it out directly, despite the discomfort and awkwardness. 

Dating is already challenging as it is, but this new trend could have daters even more hesitant to open up to one another.