Hold me! I'm scared!

When did relationships get so scary? In the old days they were fun. Snogging at the movies, holding hands at the train station, sharing a six pack of West Coast Cooler on the beach. Good times. Summer of 69 stuff. Nobody had to think about where it was going? And was this The One? And could I live with this person forever?
Now that I’ve been around the block a few times, the start of any new relationship leaves me in a cold sweat. The whole blending of lives and toothbrushes and friends and bodily fluids…eeek! Give me a slasher flick anytime. And I’m not the only one.
A friend of mine is in a new love tryst and recently left me a phone message…or rather a distress call.
"Ah, can you call me back please? As soon as possible? I am like FREAKING out here. Freaking out!"
No longer is commitment phobia a strictly male response.
It seems even if your new flame is sexy, sweet and seriously into you, our brain hasn’t quite forgotten the world of pain you suffered on your last trip down relationship lane.
You thought HE/SHE was the one didn’t you? And look where that landed you? Just as we start to sing along to love song dedications, our whole body is screaming with every fibre of its being: "ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR COTTON PICKING MIND DOING THIS AGAIN?!"

Here’s my handy 3 point plan for getting through the first two months:
1. Enlist a pro-relationship buddy. It's the opposite of a breakup buddy: You ring this person at any time to hear a pre-arranged list of relationship pros like: regular sex, spooning and a Saturday night date.
2. Remind yourself how hard it is to find a good mate. Visit dating sites or chat to your single buddies about their last dating disaster.
3. Make a list of the lovely things your new flame has done for you lately. In the case of the scardeycat lady above, he cleaned her apartment and left a note saying he dug her. Awww. Now that’s worth a little cold sweat!

Tell me. Are you scared of new relationships? How do you remind yourself it’s all going to be okay?