Some people cringe just hearing the phrase "long distance," but it is a term I have grown more than accustomed to the past year and a half. There are many articles out there that praise long-distance relationships and how they are not as bad as their reputation. Those articles are all true, and long-distance relationships really are not all that bad. But they aren't always as great as people set them out to be, either.
One of the toughest things about being in a long-distance relationship is managing communication. It's very difficult to find a time that both of you are available and not in class, at practice, doing homework, studying, or hanging out with friends. Finding a good time to call and Skype is not always the easiest task, and sometimes a whole day will go by and you will have texted each other maybe once or twice. You can always schedule a time to Skype and call, but sometimes things come up and you aren't always able to make it happen.
With long-distance relationships, the fights are always more escalated. It's so hard to communicate your exact feelings without being able to see him in person and portray your feelings. A call is OK, but it doesn't get across the whole message, and more often than not, there is a miscommunication between the two of you.
Of course, during all of this, you can't just drop everything and see your partner, because it's probably a school night, and you're left to wait it out until the next morning.
There are more times than you'd like to admit when you sit in your room and wonder if it's really worth it to be with them. These times either make or break you. You go back and forth, considering every pro and con there could possibly be about your relationship. The distance seems more challenging when things are bad, but when it's great, it's absolutely wonderful. It's always a balancing act, and it'll always be a Catch-22 either way.
However, long-distance relationships are not the end of the world. Fighting and miscommunications occur whether you are together or apart, and everyone has doubts in their relationship at some point. If you think your relationship is worth all the miles between you, then you will know.
While there are some downsides to being in a long-distance relationship in college, I could not be happier with mine. It may be hard to navigate sometimes, but I wouldn't change it for anything.
