Keep Your Long-Distance Relationship Afloat this Summer

With summer fast approaching, many collegiettes are turning their thoughts to tanning, swimming, and relaxing in the sun.

But for some collegiettes the summer can also mean being separated from their significant other for almost four full months. And if that person lives far away from you it can make it even worse. Unfortunately, I have had plenty of experience with this since my boyfriend goes home to Miami and I live in Connecticut.

So from my experience here are some tips and tricks I have come up with to make a long distance relationship work and hopefully they can help you also:

1.)  Make Skype your new best friend.
Skype is invaluable for people living far apart. While calling and texting are also good options, calling can be expensive if you are on different plans and texting can be time consuming and take away some of the personal touch. After all, how many X’s and O’s can compare to an “I love you” in person? Skype is perfect because it’s free and you can feel like you are right there with the person. What I like to do is make “skype dates” at a certain time so you have something to look forward to.

2.)  Send each other care packages.
Nothing says “I love you” more than a homemade gift or care package. Take some time to buy them little gifts like their favorite candy or make a cute card with corny sayings. It shows your boyfriend or girlfriend that you care and miss them. I’ve also made videos or collages of our old pictures and sent it via email if sending it through snail mail doesn’t appeal to you. Either way, sending a little something to the person you love can go a long way in making you feel connected with each other regardless of the distance.

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3.)  Schedule trips at strategic times.
If it’s feasible, try to schedule a trip to see each other. But the most important thing is to schedule it at a good time. You don’t want to go visit them a week into the summer and then not see them for over 10 weeks straight. Instead, try to plan it in the middle so that you have something to look forward to and then afterwards it won’t seem like so long until you’re back at school together.

4.)  Watch a movie together.
There are multiple ways you can do this. One way is to skype while watching something on hulu or another website. You simply start the skype conversation and then pull up the website and start the movie or show at the same time. Another way you can do it is to skype or text while watching a show or movie on TV so that you know it’s happening at the same time. Another thing that can make you feel closer is to get into a show together that you can watch every week. It will give you something in common to talk about and have a set time every week that you’ll be doing something together.

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5.)  Texting throughout the day.
In this day and age, there is always the option of texting. While I’m not saying that you should be constantly on your phone, it is nice to be able to keep a relative amount of contact throughout the day. You’ll feel like you know what the person is doing so you’re not totally disconnected from each other.

6.)  Be flexible.
This is probably the most important thing to remember in order to make your relationship work. Unfortunately, being far apart, your schedules won’t always match up perfectly. Things may come up with your boyfriend’s friends at home and he may have to miss that skype date. Or you might decide to take a nap and forget to tell your boyfriend and not get back to their texts for a few hours. Just remember to be patient and understanding of each other and just look forward to when you’re back together again.