Long Distance Limbo, Pt. 1 β Your Relationship Isnβt Real! Myths and Misconceptions
– Sempronia Hobgood GiftBasketsOverseas.com

Long Distance Relationship β the βblind dateβ of the modern age: no other relationship βphraseβ has the potential to make people react like youβve recited the chant to summon Cthulu, except perhaps, βWe need to talk.β If you can get past the funny cats and even more questionable content on the internet, youβll find virtual oceans of questions about the legitimacy of long distance relationships. Weβve seen everything ranging from βItβs not a real relationship,β to βHow do you make it work?β Β Weβre wondering where all the confusion is coming from.
Has the media hyped up the idea that relationships must be tactile and clingy or they are nothing at all? Worse yet, have we bought in?
To help get some answers, here are 4 things you need to know about long distance relationships before you pass judgement:
1. You Canβt Handle The Truth!
Youβve heard this one: people have long distance relationships because they canβt handle βreal ones.β Weβre here to tell you that some towns are so abysmally out of candidates for real companionship, that looking elsewhere is actually the better option. We donβt have to name names, you know if you live in one of these.
Seriously, even if your town if is full of look-alikes of your idols, why limit yourself? In this day and age of instant connections, easily obtained webcams, free international communication, and even ridiculously fast international delivery services, chances are better than ever that youβll find someone who fits you. Someone who piques your interests, shares your values, and expands your horizons if you increase your pool of potential friends and love interests to include connections you can make on the web β responsibly and safely.
The fact is, long distance relationships of any sort (and there are many) can be just as complex, fulfilling, rewarding, and even fun as the types of relationships society is more ready to accept.
2. You Canβt Possibly Know Each Other
Not living next to one another means you have tons more to talk about. You donβt have the same friends, you likely donβt run across the same things, maybe youβre countries apart and have different cultures. In this way, distance can be a perk. Distance gives couples the opportunity to explore every tiny detail of a partnerβs life, and, in turn, to come up with fun ways to spill theirs.
While βnormalβ couples often spend time turning into vegetables watching their show of choice cuddled next to each other in silence, those who live apart learn to fill the distances with discussions, meaningful messages, heartfelt romantic gifts, creativity, and honesty. Β It can mean admitting the dark things youβd rather hide, learning to take the time to treasure each moment you can connect, and finding creative ways to remain a part of each otherβs lives, even far away. Β If weβre brutally honest, cuddles would be great, but they arenβt everything, and living without them is doable.
3. It Canβt Be Realβ¦(youβre not doing βitβ)
Another misconception is that long distance relationships are sexless, depressing things for those who can otherwise not βget any.β Wrong! Suffice it to say there are ways around such things, and, believe it or not, despite our severe lack of teleporters, it is not impossible to visit oneβs far off love.
Plus, while love-making for many traditional couples can become routine, couples that are separated have to become inventive to keep the fires of romance burning. They get flirty, they learn the art of intellectual foreplay. If you didnβt know, pictures are fun, presents donβt have to be mundane, and phone calls donβt have to be about talking.
For the record, when separated loves do come together, they have drawn up ideas nearly as complex as battle plans for what theyβll do when theyβre together. The moments apart make the ones together sweeter. And despite the myth, after months of only talking, long distance couples certainly have more tactile things to do.
4. Long Distance Relationships are all Romantic Β
Here is the grand-daddy of Long Distance Relationship myths. You donβt need Cupid to be involved in a long distance relationship. If youβre interacting with someone on a regular basis, youβre in a relationship with them. Whether itβs a business relationship, a family relationship, a friendship, or something else. Keeping up with your school buddies from home on Facebook? Or enjoying weekly raids with your WoW guild? These modern activities have sparked awesome, long-lasting, healthy, relationships that were at one point in time long distance only.
But itβs not just computer and video game enthusiasts, even businesses are jumping onto the long distance relationship bandwagon. Β Are you Skyping or emailing with team-members from departments in other states, or working on international issues with co-workers or customers across time zones? Youβre in a long-distance relationship.
And donβt forget about the circumstances that can bring distance to families β both joyful and sad. Sending your overachiever for a semester overseas? Youβll be doing the long distance dance. Or maybe your family homes a hero whoβs deployed overseas. Yep, thatβs a long distance relationship too.
And of course, thereβs one of the most common kinds of long distance relationship β the ones where family members or friends have simply moved to other cities, states, or countries. In fact, there are so many types of long distance relationships, weβd be surprised if you arenβt in at least one.
Long distance relationships are nothing new. Ever since civilization started people have developed ways to connect with each other from afar. Messengers on foot, packages and gifts in ships, carrier pigeons, smoke signals, telegraphs, telephone, even Twitter. Why? Because there have always been long distance relationships, and weβre just getting better at them.
Image #1 by Dvortygirl
Image #2, #3, #4 by Brightdrops.com