How to Deal with Extreme Loneliness in a Long Distance Relationship

Feeling lonely is a common problem in romantic long distance relationships. It seems that when you are far away from someone you care about for long extended periods of time, you can get hit with really deep feelings of sadness, depression and the general feeling of being physically alone. Go figure.

What isn’t common is the knowledge about what to do when those feelings hit. You don’t want to allow them to cripple you or your relationship by dwelling on them, so you should really try hard to keep those feelings at bay and your own mood positive.

By using the tips below you can ward off feelings of extreme loneliness in a Long Distance Relationship, even if temporarily, so that you can survive the challenge of long distance love.

Find ways to focus on others

You should definitely make time to focus on one another for the sake of keeping your relationship alive and thriving, but it would be unwise to make the person who is 4,000 miles away from you the object of all your social needs.

Reach out to others around you! Make new connections or maintain the ones you already have. The greatest joys can be found in the memories you make with others. While you may feel sad and lonely without your other half, you can preoccupy yourself with making new memories and having new experiences when you and your partner aren’t spending time “together.”

Check in with each other often

Being in a long distance relationship is hard enough! Don’t isolate yourselves by checking in with each other infrequently. How often you check in with each other really depends on the type of relationship you have and what you both feel most comfortable with, but if you don’t feel connected & secure with your partner at the level you are at currently, it might be time to amp up how involved you are in each others daily lives.

Keeping up with one anothers day-to-day activities will help keep feelings of both extreme loneliness and jealousy at bay. Talk often, share the details of your day or schedule for that week or month. The more connected and involved you both feel in each others lives, the less lonely you will be.

Pamper yourself –Do what makes you happy

It can be easy to get caught up in the daily routines of texting, skyping emailing and whatever else it is we do to stay connected to our other halves. But don’t get so caught up in maintaining your relationship that you forget about yourself!

Remember to take some time away from focusing on the distance to focus on the things that you love to do. Whether it’s hanging out with friends, a cool hobby or just pampering yourself in whatever way you like to be pampered –the goal is to make sure that you can have some enjoyment outside of the relationship. When you fell personally happy and fulfilled, there will be much less room for extreme feelings of loneliness.

Make some plans

All the best relationships that succeed thrive because both partners actively work to make the relationship feel special. This applies to long distance relationships as well.

Whether you make plans to physically visit each other or just arrange the occasional webcam date, arranging things to do together in advance gives you something awesome to look forward to instead of just endless distance.

Talk about what you want to do together, plot out the activities and make it a really big deal. Then you can have something else to focus your mind on instead of the loneliness –that awesome webcam date you’re going to have in 4 days or that plane trip to go visit your partner in 2 months.

Send each other gifts

Nothing brightens your day like receiving a beautiful heartfelt gift in the mail. It can be handmade, pre-ordered or whatever –it could even just be a simple little card. The point is that anything special beats the endless bills and junk mail we all seem to get these days. And when it’s from your partner who you haven’t seen in 80 days? The value of that gift is priceless. Nothing can take away the feeling of loneliness that a big beautiful package of awesome from someone you love.

Our advice to you is to exchange gifts often –for special occasions, anniversaries, as a surprise and just because. You never know when your partner is feeling especially lonely and likewise your partner can send you a wonderful gift that just takes the edge off of that feeling of sadness.