How to Make A Long Distance Relationship Work Fruitfully
Did you know that 55% of Americans say their long-distance relationship made them closer to their partner? We all know working on a relationship from a distance can be emotionally and mentally taxing but in the long run, it’s totally worth it. The key is figuring out what works best for you and your partner and then committing fully. In this blog, we’re going to be discussing some of the best tips for making a long-distance relationship last. Begin with an open mind and know that some of these suggestions may be challenging for you at first but remember, nothing is impossible. Everyone needs to start somewhere and you’ve come to the right place! Grab a pen and paper to write down notes and inspiration that comes your way. Now, let’s get reading our 13 tips for making a long-distance relationship work and how to implement them!
Discuss Expectations
At the start of your long-distance relationship, it is important to understand each other’s expectations for handling the distance. You may expect to speak on the phone once a day while sending text messages during the other hours of the day, or you may choose to have a morning and night face time call. Work together on this and know there is no right answer. The better you understand the expectations, the better communication you will have within the relationship.
Communication
There are many ways to communicate these days, so it is important to map out what forms of communication work best for the both of you. Another helpful tip is to choose a few different modes of communication; that way you can mix things up. Often having a single form of communication can get redundant or boring over time. With messaging, Facetime, Snapchat, TikTok, and so many more, there is a variety of ways to share fun messages with each other.
Find One Another’s Love Languages
Finding your partners love language and sharing your own will help to strengthen your relationship so much more. The five love languages are: words of affirmation, acts of service, receiving gifts, quality time, and physical touch. These are incredibly helpful when working with distance. Maybe yours or your partners love language is quality time or physical touch, which can be hard to act on when in an LDR, but there are still things that can be done. You can spend quality time on the phone together, create short videos saying words of affirmation, or even send a small gift from time to time. The options are numerous so get creative and have some fun with it!
Words of Affirmation
Sending words of affirmation is one of the most important things you can do while in a long-distance relationship. Not being able to communicate face-to-face magnifies the absence of physical touch and reading body language. Express how you feel and let your partner know how much you care about them daily. This can be a great way to practice communication skills and sharing words of affirmation. Phrases as simple as, “I miss you”, “I love you”, “I love our phone calls”, “I can’t wait to talk about our days together” and many more can add a feeling of affirmation and importance to your relationship.
Schedule Daily Calls
Go over your schedule with each other and find a time that works for the both of you to have a consistent phone call or FaceTime. Being able to speak on the phone each day majorly helps to keep the connection alive! Plus, having a set time each day to talk allows for something exciting to look forward to. You may not be able to be together in person at the end of each day, but you can have exciting calls to help with the absence.
Prioritize One Another in Your Schedule
It is so easy to get lost in your own schedule that you may forget about prioritizing each other. If you want things to last, understand early on that you must have the relationship on your list of priorities. You can do so by remembering the expectations that have been set previously and communicating any changes in your schedule. There may be days you see that priority fall short and that’s ok, keep an open mind and open heart and know you can try again tomorrow.
Think Outside the Box
Long-distance sometimes takes a lot of “thinking outside the box”, but don’t let that worry you! Something as simple as a creative virtual date night like cooking dinner together or working on a craft can go a long way. It isn’t always about the grand gestures but more the thought that counts. Maybe you have an item that you switch off with each time you are together, something like a little stuffed animal or toy. Bring it with you when you do something fun that you wish your partner could be there for. Take photos to share and let them know you are thinking of them.
Look at Things as a Learning Opportunity
There is so much to learn when in a long-distance relationship. You’ll learn more about yourself and your own personal needs above anything else! While you are still in a committed relationship, you’ll have more time to focus on yourself and spend time with family and friends. Take advantage of those opportunities! Times with family, friends, and your relationship might hard, and you may want to quit. Just remind yourself of the reasons why it’s all worth it and think of ways in which you have grown.
Make Time for Visiting Each Other
This tip may be a bit more far and few in-between, but it is important! Having scheduled trips to visit each other helps to speed up the time you are apart. It allows for you both to have something to look forward to; you could even put up a countdown in your home or on your phone. Making time to visit each other shows that you prioritize the relationship and care about sacrificing other things to be together. So many special memories can be made together when the time together feels sacred or special.
Stay Positive
Understand now there will be difficult and frustrating times. Along with that, commit to doing your best on staying positive. Being positive doesn’t mean ignoring what is hard, but it does give you the hope to keep going. You are allowed to have hard days; remember, your feelings are valid! But when you keep going and continue the positivity, you may just have the best reward of your life.
Be Upfront With What You Are Feeling
It’s often easy to shy away from sharing intimate feelings, especially when your feelings are hurt. Communicating over the phone can be awkward and uncomfortable, so push yourself to be open with one another. Don’t avoid the hard conversations. Listen to your feelings and let them be known. You may just be having a bad day and be particularly missing your partner more than usual. You are in this together and should support each other during the hard times.
Trust Each Other
Trusting one another may be the most important tip of all. The foundation for happy and lasting relationships is trust. If you or your partner do not have the ability to trust one another, then the relationship may struggle. Communicate and talk about trust: do you already have trust for each other? Perhaps you’ve had trust issues in the past and it’s an area you or your partner may need to work on. Trust doesn’t have to be earned immediately but talk about ways in which you can build trust for one another.
Be There For Support
Having any kind of support in life is so important! When you’re in a long-distance relationship, don’t be afraid to rely on your support system. Support one another when things get hard and encourage each other to talk with friends and family about struggles. There may be some aspects of your relationship you wish to keep private but remember it can also be important to talk with close friends or family when you are struggling. Receiving an outside perspective may be just the thing you need!
Long-distance relationships are no easy task but may be one of the most rewarding things you pursue. Give yourself grace and know you can do hard things! Work together in your partnerships, learn from one another and communicate constantly. There are so many beautiful things to be learned from when in a long-distance relationship, not just within the partnership but on your own as well! The bad days will come and go, so stay positive and trust each other! And most important of all, you are never alone. You have each other; you got this! If you're looking for more resources, check out our other blog on date night activities to do when you are together and 10 ways to express love to your significant other. Be sure to follow our Pinterest page where we have many boards where we share more relationship tips, date ideas, and more.
Thanks for reading, we’ll see you on the next one!