How To Survive Your Long Distance Relationship

I never planned on doing long-distance, but I’m sure most of us don’t.

People move, we go off to school, we have summer flings that turn into whirlwind romances. (Only in Sarah Dessen books? Oh.)

If you’re new around here, I’ve been with my boyfriend Cameron since I was a freshman in high school. (Yes, 14. I was 14.) We’re best friends, HGTV-enthusiasts, and love a game of who-can-find-the-best-smelling candle at Target. 

Back in this post, I explained how we would be going to separate schools to finish out our degrees. It worked out better for me to go to Houston and Cam to stay at Arkansas, so, begrudgingly, that’s what we did. (I’ve actually had a lot of people text me asking if Cam is at Arkansas, so…yes! Haha. He graduates in May.)

So anyway, let’s get to the point of the blog post. How the heck do you survive?! Whether you’re just in the beginning stages of a long-distance relationship or you’re a long-time long-distance-r, I’m hoping today’s post gives you a little bit of inspiration, help, and hope.

Today’s post is also a collaboration with my good friend and excellent blogger, Ashley of A Blonde and a Briefcase. Ashley and her boyfriend (now fiancé!) did long distance throughout college and recently were able to move to Boston together for their post-grad lives. It makes me absolutely giddy to see their strong relationship and I’m so excited for them that they get to spend their lives together! Ashley will be giving some of her tips later on in the post, so stay tuned.

Plan trips to see each other before you head separate ways

At least a month before we left for school, Cameron had created a calendar with all the dates we were going to see each other. It’s important to sit down with you’re significant other and figure out how long you want to go without seeing each other. Can you do a whole month? Do you need to do only 2-3 weeks at a time? Also, don’t let anyone else influence your decision besides the TWO of you! You know yourself and your relationship, so be honest and figure out how to make the travel work.

Learn each other’s schedules

Not in a creepy way, but in a “I-know-this-is-a-good-time-to-Facetime-you” way. It’s nice to know when you’re S.O. is in class so you can wish them luck on their quiz or send funny dog pictures to make sitting through a long lecture a bit easier on them. I’ve also found that with long distance, sometimes you only get the exhausted-stressed version of yourself when you find time to talk. (Talking about me, not Cameron. I’m a high-strung mess most days.) It’s good to know when the other person will be taking a nap or having hard core study time, so you give them some time!

Apps can make it easier

So I don’t use a ton of apps in this category per se, but I do think having a countdown app makes things better. This was a piece of advice that I got from a lot of people going into my long-distance relationship and it’s worked really well. It’s great to see the numbers tick down!

 Invest in your friendships

I didn’t ever ditch my friends for my boyfriend, but I certainly opted for a night at home Netflixing with Cam rather than going out with my friends. Now that I don’t feel so much like Netflixing alone, I love to get with one of my friends and have a jam sesh in the car on the way to Michael’s to get crafting supplies. I’ve missed Cam a lot when we have to go a few weeks without seeing each other, but having some friend time really cheers me up.

Make time for long-distance dates!

I wanted to include this one because I think it’s such a great piece of advice! There’s no reason that you can’t have a date night even if you’re a few hundred miles away. I’ll turn this one over to Ashley and let her tell you her best ideas for a long-distance date!

And since I’m a newbie with long-distance, I decided to ask my friends over on Instagram for their best advice….

“…My biggest piece of advice is to carve out time for each other every day (texting doesn’t count). Even if it’s just a 2 minute phone call, it really makes a difference!” – @kaylavblogs

“Have something to look forward to when you see each other again, but at the same time, be there for each other every day that you’re apart. Support them, motivate them – do whatever it takes to make them feel loved on a daily basis. It’s a lot of work, but it’s so worth it to know that you are both happy and loved miles apart from each other.” – @lnruzin

“Hand written letters! They keep things romantic and it is always a surprise and brightens your day when you get something in the mail!” – @meaganmariegross

Thanks for the constant encouragement this year! You guys are such an amazing support system. What’s your best tip for surviving your long-distance relationship?

X,

Cristina