Question About Dating During Divorce and Its Implications in the Church

I wasn’t in a good place when my divorce began. Although I’ve always considered myself Catholic, at that time, I hadn’t been to church in nearly ten years.

Throughout my marriage, I remained faithful to my wife. However, I was aware of her history of infidelity, though I could never prove it. That changed three months after filing for divorce when I was contacted by another man’s angry spouse, who revealed that her husband and my wife had been involved in an on-again, off-again relationship for nearly four years. This incident seemed to opened the floodgates of additional revelations like this.

Feeling hurt and betrayed, I decided to “fight fire with fire” and started dating myself, even though I knew deep down that my intentions were wrong and that this wasn’t who I truly was.

I went on several dates during that time, but none led to any physical relations or emotional attachments. In my heart, I believe that dating while in a healthy marriage would lean toward adultery. However, by the time I was dating, the relationship was clearly over, and the divorce process had already started. I had done everything I could to try to save the marriage.

This leaves me with a question: Were these dates considered adulterous in the eyes of the Church, even though no physical or emotional relationships were pursued? Do I need to confess this?

For additional context: I am now legally divorced and awaiting the resolution of my annulment. Over the past several months, I’ve returned to being a fully practicing Catholic.