"Rebound dating is going from one relationship to another without even taking a breath," says Dr. Gilda Carle, relationship expert and author of Don't Bet on the Prince! : How To Have The Man You Want By Betting On Yourself.

It may seem unbelievable, but there’s a lot of that going on. “Everyone has “bridge” relationships at some time,” Dr. Gilda says. “That’s the bridge between what was in the past and what is going on in the future.” So-called bridge or rebound relationships can be helpful for someone who’s looking to get an ex off their mind, but unless both partners know what game they’re playing, the result could be a foul.

Why rebound?
Both men and women enter into rebound relationships for all kinds of reasons: to get over an ex, to make an ex jealous, because they’re lonely or because they’re looking for someone to keep their Friday nights busy and their bed warm. The latter is what it was for Rachel after her ex left. “I wasn’t ready to find my life partner,” the Berkeley, CA resident says. “I just wanted to erase my ex from my skin. I wanted to go to bed with a good-looking, safe man who made me laugh.”

She found that guy, and because they were thinking along the same lines, it was no big issue when their “one-night stand that lasted for a month” came to an end. But rebound relationships rarely end that well. Mostly because the people aren’t on the same page —one person knows the relationship won’t go anywhere; the other doesn’t.