Long distance can mean across the world or just across a state, but no matter how far apart you and your significant other actually are, the physical distance between you can sometimes make it feel as if you live on different planets. (Erin (Quotes)/Flickr Creative Commons)
Long distance relationships are not uncommon in college. Maybe you chose to keep dating your high school sweetheart after graduation or your boyfriend is on his semester abroad. Maybe you fell for someone at your summer job and they inconveniently attend a school across the country or you met someone online. Long distance can mean across the world or just across a state, but no matter how far apart you and your significant other actually are, the physical distance between you can sometimes make it feel as if you live on different planets. Here’s a few tips on how to make your far away relationship feel a lot closer:
1. Have a running conversation over text. Say good morning when you wake up and check up on them throughout the day. Ask about nothing and anything, and make sure you say good night before you go to sleep. If you and your partner say good night and good morning every day for a week, you might end up doing it as a cute tradition, and cute traditions are the foundation to a healthy relationship. If you ask them how they’re doing or what they’re up to, then they will feel like you’re thinking about them and they’ll know that you miss them. A running dialogue will help the two of you feel connected and in-touch.
2. I know it’s not always the most modern means of communication, but you have to call them. Talk to them on your way to class or when you’ve got down time. If you have an IPhone, FaceTime them too. Hearing their voice or seeing their face will make any boring walk to class a lot more exciting.
3. Plan a movie night. Movie nights are amazingly easy to have with your long distance partner, and you can do so through a few different methods. 1) You can play the movies at the same time and text throughout the film, which includes the added fun of trying to get the movie to start at the same second. 2) You can FaceTime while you guys watch the same movie. 3) You can try the app Rabbit which allows you to facetime and stream videos on your phone at the same time. These methods are all incredibly fun and easy, and despite not actually being together, you will be completely present with each other for the entire movie.
4. Plan visits. It can be harder to see each other if you’re across oceans, but you have to plan a visit. Planning a visit involves a commitment to the future and to each other. Surprisingly enough, if you have only one date in the semester or one week with them in the year, that time together will be more romantic than any of the dates your friends with partners across campus have. Just make sure to take advantage of every second with them.
5. Tell them that you love them and miss them every day. The two of you are doing something that other couples are terrified of, but you’re doing it because you’d rather be together across the world than apart. So make sure they know that you still want to be with them, but if you don’t feel you can honestly tell them “I love you,” then maybe this isn’t a relationship worth working for.
Long distance can be the most painful thing in the world, but it’s definitely not impossible. Bring romance and connection back to your relationship this semester, and you’ll find the two of you becoming even closer than before.
Rebecca Maher is a campus correspondent for The Daily Campus. She can be reached via email at rebecca.maher@uconn.edu.