Absence makes the heart grow fonder.

Being in a relationship is not always easy. It takes work to keep your love growing and flourishing. So if you’ve ever been in a long distance relationship, you know that this is even truer. I’m not gonna lie—it can be really difficult to sustain a long distance relationship. It’s easier to weather the storm when you know it’s a temporary separation. But what do you do when you want to maintain your relationship from afar?

Make sure to define the terms of your relationship. Are you allowed to see other people? Is the relationship going to remain casual while you’re apart? It’s best to know these types of things before you’re separated.

Also, know that if you want to sustain this relationship in the long run, one of you is going to have to move. You might hold off of this conversation until you’re both sure that the relationship is truly going to survive the test of time (and miles).

Be thoughtful while you’re apart. Make sure you still surprise him or her with loving gestures, such as a handwritten letter or a flower delivery. Stay connected with frequent phone conversations. And, in order to actually see each other while apart, get a Skype account so you can speak face-to-face. Don’t rely too heavily on email because it’s really difficult to get tone and inflection just right.

Share the load. Take turns traveling back and forth so that one person isn’t doing all the work. And when you are together, make sure to just relax and enjoy each other’s company. You don’t have to taint your precious time together by having a ton of heavy conversations.

If you’re in a relationship that you want to keep but live thousands of miles apart, it’s important that you know it will definitely take a lot of work, but remember that love is always worth the effort!

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