Relationships can be undeniably tough and cause a toll on the emotional, psychological, mental and physical being of the individual. With increasing emphasis on the desire to make money and avoid commitments and live a carefree lifestyle, institutions such as marriage and friendship have lost their meaning and significance. In this day and age of machine existence with zero focus on personality and emotion, maintaining intimate relationships, be it in any form, are not an easy task. With the added factor of long distances, relationships become even more complicated and difficult. They require a lot of consistent effort, hard work and dedication. However they also come with their own set of perks.
1. Trust grows exponentially.
Being far away from someone and still feeling close to them emotionally can help develop a sense of security in the relationship and developing a trust in insane amounts. You trust your significant other to not do things that are detrimental to the relationship such as to cheat, lie, etc,.. The ability to trust and believe in the other distance from even a far distance builds a positive character and climate in the relationship. This sense of trust helps prioritize the other individual and his needs and helps sustain the relationship in the long term as well. The increased sense of trust fosters a sense of hope for both partners. Thereby giving them a reason to work hard for the relationship, even when things do not go one’s way.
The absence of trust on the other hand can create a lot of suspicion, doubt, misplaced sense of jealousy and individual insecurity and loneliness. When this happens, the relationship feels more of a burden than a joy.
2. You don’t have to be presentable all the time.
Life is never easy. Working according to a fixed schedule often requires one to be prim, proper, well-dressed and orderly all the time. The individual is expected to constantly follow a particular order of rules and discipline. This can often create a mental and emotional strain on the psyche of the person. One loses the will to be free, authentic and original. Long distance relationships go a long way in making the process smoother. You can have your off days when you don’t have to dress up for your boyfriend or girlfriend (Not saying that you ought to dress up when you meet them XD). The individual is able to find time to be himself/herself and do as whatever he/she pleases, without having to think about someone else.
3. Independence
You start learning how to be independent because the both of you are in two geographically far places and you begin to learn how to get things done by yourself. The absence of the other individual teaches one to depend on himself/herself and to look within themselves for emotional and physical fulfillment. Being away from each other helps one grow and mature and build strong resilience and character. Relationships are about collective and individual growth. Both individuals must grow together in the relationship. As well as mature into free-thinking and self sufficient and self-supporting individuals in your own personal lives.
Many couples who stay together, do everything together, finish each other’s sentences and become so synchronized in their personality and behaviour, that it becomes difficult to differentiate one from the other. Although initially this may be seem romantic as if “they were made for each other”. However it can also have its own downsides. You have little space to discover yourself, your identity and who you are as an individual.
Being away from each other can feel suffocating and strenuous. Therefore long term relationships require a lot of resilience and patience. As a result this resilience gets manifested to various other aspects of life as well.
4. The Relationship is More Than Just Physical
Several relationships break off due to lack of physical contact. Long distance relationships can help strengthen the emotional bond as the person grows and matures into realizing that the relationship is more than just sex and there is something or someone worth to live for and something to look forward to. You both establish a mental, psychological and intellectual connection with each other from all the time you spend apart from each other. Partners find more time to talk about themselves and know each other personally and emotionally and not just to a physical level. A higher level of communication and investment in the relationship and the will to know the other person helps sustain the relationship for a longer period of time.
5. You unleash your inner romantic self
Starting from handwritten postcards and romantic letters to poems about your beloved, you’ve probably done it all. You end up surprising yourself because you probably didn’t even know you had a romantic side to yourself. You learn to express how you feel about the other person in a much more raw and romantic manner and learn to open up yourselves emotionally to your significant other. It helps the other person feel more special and appreciated. Handwritten card hold a much greater significance than cards brought at the store.
6. You guys fight, but every fight only brings you two closer to each other.
“Patience is a virtue”. Every relationship has fights. Often it is these fights that build a relationship and act as it’s strong anchor holding it down. The same goes for long distance relationships as well. All the fights you have is probably only because you both yearn to spend more time with each other. You guys only end up becoming closer emotionally with every fight that comes your way. These fights help teaching one valuable life lessons and help to value the other person and his/her time even more and be more patient and forthcoming. They teach one to be confident about expressing personal opinions and feelings and respecting the opinions and feelings of others as well.
7. Gifts and surprises mean a lot more now
When your beloved ends up coming to your city or town just to surprise you and make you happy, you can’t help but fall in love with him or her all over again. It means a ton to you. Every gift means a lot more to you and you just keep it with you forever.
Even something as small as a card or eatable sent by mail can go a long way in showing how much you care about the other individual. It can help show that you value the other individual and that you are grateful for them, so much so that you thought of them during your busy schedule and decided to do something to bring a smile on their face, even if over a long distance.
Over time we often tend to take others for granted. Expressing love through the giving of a gift shows that you are paying attention to the other person and care about them and their well-being.
8. Even the most routine things that you do with him/her become amazing
Even going to the bank or a grocery store or a mall for shopping feels amazing when you do it with your beloved. It helps develop a sense of comfort, easiness and freedom. It makes the other person feel involved and included in your life. It creates a memorable experience that creates a much more lasting and important influence for both partners in the relationship.
9. Both of you get some “me” time
You get a lot of personal space whether you like it or not, but you can make the most out of it and pamper yourself as well. It’s important for “re-charging” oneself and renewing and re-connecting with oneself and discovering what you like. Self care is a crucial pre-requisite for keeping a relationship strong, healthy and long-lasting. Activities such as reading, cooking, baking, exercising, watching a movie, playing a sport can help the individual to discover his/her authentic self.
“Me” time also helps the individual to refuel and cope better with the stress that he/she faces in various other aspects of life.
10. Fuels your desires
Your long-distance relationship stops your routine from becoming monotonous and it becomes something that you long for, be it emotional, mental or sexual desires. It allows space for individual growth and discovery and fulfillment. The partner because of less physical proximity with the other individual finds more time to spend on oneself. The individual finds more time to focus on career goals, personal hobbies and plan events on their own without any help. The mutual support of the other person at such a time of personal fulfillment can instill a sense of confidence, support and faith in the individual as well. Partners can set bucket lists for themselves, that they work to fulfill within a given period of time with the emotional support of the other individual. Such goals will help sustain and enrich the relationship as well.
The goal is to grow together and grow alone.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Anna
Divya is an enthusiastic blogger and speaker. She is constantly looking for new interests to explore into. She currently lives in Bangalore, India.
Source: https://www.icytales.com/10-perks-of-being-in-a-long-distance-relationship/
