How To (Nicely) Stop Someone From Flirting With You

Picture this: You're alone at the bar, sipping a drink while you wait for a friend, when you see someone giving you flirty eyes. It's sweet, but they're not your type, so you look back down at your drink. But then they're walking over and you have to quickly think up an exit strategy.

Plenty of people have encountered that situation, whether at their own bar with a stranger or at their company holiday party with a flirty coworker. And it can be difficult to figure out how to let the flirt know that you're not interested without hurting their feelings. When the person who's flirting with you is creepy, it's easy to tell them to get lost. But when they're nice, getting out of the flirtation can be a little more difficult. But it's not impossible as Sadie Allison, PhD, sexologist, author of Tickle His Pickle and founder of sex toy boutique TickleKitty.com, knows from experience. "I remember being in those situations," she says, and she was able to get herself out using several different strategies.

Ahead, Dr. Allison suggests nine ways to avoid an unwanted flirtation. Hint: It's 100% okay to lie.