9 Unexpected Benefits of Long Distance Relationship 

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Guest Post: Thanks to Katie for coming onto Simply Alex Jean to share with us the unexpected benefits of a long-distance relationship!

Hi there – I’m Katie, the blogger behind The Dating Bitch, a lifestyle and relationship blog where I write about modern dating, share personal stories, and offer advice to readers in an online advice column titled Dear Dating Bitch. I’ve also expanded to include Lifestyle posts about blogging, books, beauty, and more. You can find my blog and all my other links at www.datingbitch.com 

I’m so excited to be writing a guest post for Simply Alex Jean, and today, I’m going to share some unexpected positives that being in a long-distance relationship can bring. 

Unexpected Benefits of a Long-Distance Relationship

You might have clicked on this post to better understand what kills long-distance relationships. Wanting to learn more about is a distance relationship good? Or simply to learn the advantages of a long-distance relationship! Well, don’t worry we’re going to dive into the benefits of long-distance relationships!

Long-distance is really, really hard. Anyone who’s ever done a cross-country relationship can tell you that, myself included. But, while so many people focus on the negative parts (you know, the whole never getting to see each other parts), there are aspects that are incredibly wonderful too if you search for the beauty of long distance relationship. 

There are several long-distance relationships that work out well. Couples that have long-distance relationships work and commit to each other do require a bit more work than couples who can interact often in person. During a long-distance relationship, you’ll find you get good at phone calls, building a strong emotional connection, and taking the time to really connect as a couple.

With the right amount of work, a couple can navigate through long-distance. I’ve even got some friends who were long-distance for years and are now happy in their marriage to each other. With the right person, long distance relationships work out.

You Get To Know Each Other Really Well 

When you’re in a long-distance relationship, you’re not in person a lot of the time. Because of that, you’re spending a good deal of your time together on the phone, which means you’re talking… a lot. 

And while that can be frustrating at times when you just want to go on a date with the person you love, it also means that you’re really getting to know them in a deeper way. You’re not spending time talking about where to go to dinner or what to do over the weekend, because, for the most part, those things aren’t part of your relationship. 

Instead, people in long distance relationships focus on talking about your interests, your beliefs, your values, your morals, and what’s important to you. This time really enhances your communication as well as your partner’s communication skills as well. Long-distance relationships do provide you the space to have reflection time in between speaking with your partner. This allows you to really give meaningful thought to your conversations and this helps with being intentional in conversations and getting to know each other well. You might even find you become that friend that starts giving out relationship advice because you feel your communication with your partner is far above your friends.

There’s More Emphasis on Emotional Intimacy 

Are long distance relationships healthy? Because you’re spending so much time talking about those deeper things, you’re naturally going to develop a great deal of emotional intimacy. And, since you’re in a long-distance relationship, physical intimacy during date nights is going to take a back seat. 

You’ll be emotionally connected rather than lust-driven. And, again, while this might prove frustrating at times, it can also be a really good thing, especially in those early months when so many relationships are ruled by hormones instead of time spent together. 

Getting to know your partner on a deeper level is one of the benefits of a long distance relationship. It allows you to break down those walls and connect with each other, you might even be tempted to say I love you from far away! This emotional intimacy also helps with long-distance relationship trust. As you won’t be seeing each other often or every day, this helps deepen and build trust among each other. Want some simple and cute Valentine’s Day ideas together – check them out here!

You Have More Time for Friends and Family 

Let’s face it, when you get into a new relationship, you start to focus so much on your new boo that your social life – you know, the one you had before you met this amazing person – is suddenly less important. 

We’ve all been there – you go for Saturday brunch with your new fella instead of the girls, you take your new love interest to that concert you’ve been dying to see instead of your bestie, or you start forgetting about those mundane family activities with the siblings. 

One of the benefits of long distance relationship, you’ve got so much time apart that you don’t have to worry about those things as much. You can spend as much time with your own friends and family as you want, and in doing so, you’re developing your own life outside of your relationship (always a good thing).

One question you might be asking is distance good in a relationship and the effects of a long distance relationship with the distance. This is one of the many benefits distance couples have in providing you the independent time to focus on what’s important around you, not just a new romance monopolizing your time. Now, this doesn’t mean you neglect your distance love. This can also be one of the disadvantages of a long-distance relationship is giving too much independence. It’s all about that balance which if maintained will have the benefits of being in a long-distance relationship.) 

You have More you Time

Similar to being swept up in a new romance and not having time for family in friends, the same can be said about yourself! You know those hobbies and activities you enjoy, you have time for them. One of the advantages of a long distance relationship is you get time for you. You can continue building those healthy habits you’ve been working on, you can keep up with your new gym routine, or continue bingeing that new Netflix show. It allows you to ease into the romance and not get swept up.

You have More Patience

You will grow to have more patience – because well, you have to. In today’s world, we’ve gotten used to things in an instant, you have a question you can have the answer in seconds, if you want a tv show you can have it in seconds on streaming. We now don’t have to wait really all that much for anything, which is a different story with our mental health. But overall, you grow to learn more patience. You learn to cherish the time together and be patient until the next time you get to see each other. This is one of the main reasons a lot of long distance relationships work out well is the patience the couple learns.

There’s an Old-School Romance to It 

In today’s world of online dating, it’s all texting and face-time. And while that’s certainly going to be a BIG part of your relationship when you’re going at it long-distance. You also have the unexpectedly beautiful option of letter-writing. 

Letters. As, in, those things you write with pen and paper and physically send through the mail. Not unlike any other relationship, your long-distance relationship work needs to be put in to help maintain it. You can write each other letters or just one person can write letters, it’s up to you two! I think it’s romantic when partners write each other letters, but I’m soft at heart!

When you’re in a long-distance relationship, in order to compensate for the lack of in-person affection. You’ll likely start to send letters and little gift packages to one another as a way of keeping some romance alive. And let me tell you, it’s really fun and exciting to get a letter in the mail from your lover. 

You Learn to Resolve Conflict 

Conflict is inevitable in any relationship, and long-distance is certainly no exception. But since you’re not in person, you can’t just “kiss and make up.” Instead, you have to actually resolve the issue by talking it out. Because of that, you’ll learn how to resolve conflict better, and the benefits of long-distance relationships. 

This is honestly how to survive a long-distance relationship for a long period of time! Conflict resolution is why to be in any relationship but specifically far away from love. It helps build long-distance relationship trust and is one of the many benefits of being in a long-distance relationship.

You Become a Skilled Planner

The time you get to spend together is precious, especially as long distance lovers. Together as a couple, you get really good at planning. You plan your next trip together and talk about what you want to do together. You often find that because your time together can be limited you’ll be more likely to plan activities and date ideas as opposed to winging it.

As you can see in other long distance relationship articles planning out dates and planning your time together becomes so important. You don’t want to sit around staring at each other and saying “I don’t know” when asking the other what you want to do. As well one of the positive effects of long distance relationship is that you plan fun and engaging activities. Yes, sometimes you want to stay home and cuddle up with a movie but there are also times when you’re wanting to take them to fun activities such as wine tasting, a local amusement park, a farmer’s market, or a local museum.

The Time You Do Spend Together is Magic 

Whether you get to see each other once a week, once a month, or every 60 days, when you do spend time together, it’s going to feel amazing. All of that other stuff is going to go out the window during that brief 3-days you have together, and you’ll more than likely make up for the lack of daily affection with a whole weekend spent canoodling and going on exciting dates together. Here are some amazing summer date ideas, winter date ideas, and fall date ideas!

One of the main relationships long-distance relationship work is because of that oh-so-sweet reunion. Savor that times together and enjoy your time together.

I’d love to hear in the comments some long distance relationship advantages and disadvantages that you can think of or you’ve experienced.

Thanks to Katie for this awesome post on the benefits of long distance relationship!