How about striking up a close friendship with a woman in recovery first, then seeing if it progresses to the point where you both want to have something more intimate? I too have always been very respectful of women in the program, I didn't cross the line and I've always tried to maintain safe distances and set boundaries for myself in an effort to have my relationships as safe and sane as possible. I guess what I'm suggesting is to keep it "light and polite" at first.
It didn't work well for me at first though. I formed a close friendship with another single parent about a year into sobriety, and for the next 1 1/2 years I dealt with issues of commitmentphobia and codependency. I thought I was ready for a relationship, but found out that I still had much work to do on myself.
I was three years into recovery before I was fully ready to commit myself to a relationship, thankfully it's a very healthy and loving one. Well, as healthy as it can be for two people who work their own programs of recovery
