When you are in a long-distance relationship, you may enter a new setting where you break your routines to love someone who is not physically close by. This could prove not easy and a deal-breaker for many, but also highly successful for some. The strongest factor for success is communication which keeps the flames burning and helps achieve relationship success.
What is the importance of communication in long-distance relationships?
Communication facilitates expectation setting, which is very important from the start of the relationship. You should always communicate things like how regularly you want to see your partner or whether you hope to move to the same city with them. It’s important to highlight all things that you want to share with your partner. The experience of opening up to your partner should be smooth and easy, and you should open up without feeling judged.
Having priorities set helps ease the long-distance relationship from the start. For instance, having a preplanned schedule that you follow daily ensures that you talk to your beloved, even when you have differences in time zones. Prioritize nurturing and growing the relationship into a partnership of trust.
Long-distance relationships have their challenges, but if you focus on communication it helps alleviate them as it facilitates self-expression. This helps the partners learn each other’s needs and expectations, better positioning them to ease fulfillment.
Communication helps evaluate the practicality of the adjustments you intend to make with your long-distance lover. Are the adjustments you made to accommodate your loved one practical? If not, you re-evaluate your options as a team.
9 Tips on how to successfully run a long-distance relationship
While some people can handle long-distance relationships with ease, others need help to ensure their relationship holds steady. The following are 9 tips that can be adopted to ensure there is communication.
- Prepare to work through the challenges together. Find ways to beat the time zone differences and make adjustments that reinforce your communication. Make communication the cornerstone of your relationship and optimize technology to your advantage.
- Use words of affirmation to show and reassure your partner that they are loved, respected, and cherished even in their absence. Be careful not to use judgment in your partner’s words.
- Be understanding to the defensive partner and help them knock down the wall of insecurity. Help them learn how to trust, love, and expect a different result from their past dating ordeals.
- Utilize the relationship positively. Look at the relationship as a pillar to lean onto for personal growth, strength, gifts, and capabilities. Utilize the relationship to push through. Let it amplify who you are and allow you to be more of who you are.
- Make sacrifices more for yourself than for your partner. This way, you will be happier than when you make sacrifices to change for you and your life purpose and less about your partner.
- Never fight over text or email. Always pick up the phone or get on facetime or zoom and work it out face to face.
- Be appreciative by putting yourself in your partner’s shoes and appreciating the sacrifices they make for your sake. Ask yourself whether you can do the same when the roles are reversed. If you want to make it work, the answer to that question should be a resounding affirmation. Be willing to make the sacrifices being made for you.
- Don’t use the relationship as a scapegoat to make changes in career choices and escape the stress of your job by now skipping town. This will feel great for you but overwhelming for your partner at first and eventually yourself.
- Change the narrative about love, dating, and conflict. Start seeing conflict as a gateway to intimacy and deeper connections. Use the new narratives as the basis of facing challenges together and putting on a united front.
Takeaway.
Your capacity to be in love is dependent on your capacity to be alone. The more you can be alone, the more you show up in the relationship, and the less you will need it to be complete. The distance can never really separate two hearts that are one in love.
Listen to the full podcast on the importance of communication in a relationship here.
If you want any tips on strengthening your relationship, get relationship help from one of our certified coaches.
