Is ‘Shrekking’ The Gen Z Dating Trend That Will Save Us From Heartbreak?

<div class="content-list-component text"><p><span style="font-weight:400">Sure, beauty is subjective, but society has drilled the so-called “perfect” features into our brains. We know exactly how we rate, which traits to highlight, and which to… tolerate. It’s exhausting. Beauty is wildly unique, but that doesn’t stop us from running the same internal checklist every time we glance in a mirror or scroll through a dating app.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight:400">And here’s the kicker: every swipe, every crowded bar flirt, every attempt to “find your equal or maybe just slightly above” — comes with the risk of heartbreak. The kind that leaves you curled up in bed for days, texting tragic essays worthy of Charlotte Brontë, or filming sobbing TikToks destined for a glow-up reel that will never happen.</span></p></div><div><img src="https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/68f64b491800001196fe3a13.jpg?ops=scalefit_630_noupscale" alt="Finding your ogre (or legally-compliant ghoul of choice) might seem more desirable than a hot person who tortures you emotionally. Gen Z sure thinks so." data-caption="Finding your ogre (or legally-compliant ghoul of choice) might seem more desirable than a hot person who tortures you emotionally. Gen Z sure thinks so." data-credit-link-back="" data-credit="Illustration: HuffPost; Photos: Getty" />Finding your ogre (or legally-compliant ghoul of choice) might seem more desirable than a hot person who tortures you emotionally. Gen Z sure thinks so.</div><div class="content-list-component text"><p><span style="font-weight:400">Enter Gen Z’s latest solution to love’s misery: “shrekking.” Lime-green, low-key savage, and somehow genius, it’s the trend everyone is talking about. Let’s unpack it.</span></p><h2><strong>What is ‘shr