There are more ways than ever to maintain communication in the 21st century. Skype, Facetime, WhatsApp, billions of people owning a cell phone and so on should make maintaining a long distance marriage easy, right? In the old days, you’d have to wait for a letter from your loved one that contained news that was at least 4 days old.
Even with all these modern conveniences, there are still hurdles in a long distance marriage. Here’s how you can make sure your partner and you get through them.
1. Build a pattern around both of your schedules – A long distance marriage brings with it different schedules, sleep times, time zones and so on. More often than not, couples fall into a pattern through inertia. However, you must ask yourself and your partner if it works for both of you. This is because a pattern that doesn’t complement both of your schedules will bring about resentment as well as frustration.
2. Technology isn’t the only thing you should rely on – As human beings, we thrive and rely on our social connections. Technology isn’t at a point where we can teleport someone from halfway across the globe. That is why your partner and you should keep something that reminds them of you. Something physical which smells like him/her would work great. Receiving something tangible in the post is also a great way of keeping the fire going.
3. Boring details are the norm – Just because you are far away doesn’t mean you shouldn’t know the general rhythm of your partners’ day. Stuff like who did you talk to during lunch break? Or what’s been ticking you off lately? might sound like stuff that doesn’t matter. However, it gives both of you the cast and context of characters who surround the person you love.
There are plenty more tips to make a long-distance marriage work. Trying these tips and slowly incorporating others will work wonders for your marriage.