Before telephones were so widely accessible, if you wanted to be in a relationship with someone who lived far away you had to be prepared to wait days/ weeks/ months for their letters to arrive. Now, in the digital age, having a long-distance relationship isn’t as big of a deal as it once was.
Coming from experience, I’ve been in a semi-long-distance relationship since 2022. I live in Dublin, while my boyfriend is in Wexford. Granted, it’s not the biggest gap anyone’s experienced for love. However, watching my brother cycle ten minutes down the road to his girlfriend’s house for dessert can certainly make me feel the distance between my partner and me.
The main challenge I faced in my early teen years was transport. Trying to juggle getting from my house to the bus, the bus to the train, the train station to my destination was not something that came easy. While I was fortunate enough to get a car and license shortly after my 18th birthday, this challenge still applies to many young adults in Ireland. My boyfriend, for example, does not have a car so he must get a 2-hour bus to Dublin, and then jump on a DART for another 30. This doesn’t even include wait times at the bus stop and train station. By the time you’ve done the travelling, a lot of the time you have together is gone.
Another challenge that can be hard to wrap your head around is missing out on doing things with your significant other. Want to call in on Christmas to exchange presents? No
transport is running. Their friend is having a 21st on Friday night? I can’t make the journey in time.
Something that I have found in my experience is that you need to accept that there are things you won’t be able to do together. Some couples are more than happy to do things separately, while others want to be joined at the hip. My main tip is to work around your schedule. Making time to be with your partner is so important, particularly when you can’t see each other as much as ‘normal’ couples. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” as they say, and it’s true.
A long-distance relationship provides you with moments that feel more special and that you can cherish more because they happen less. Trust is vital in every relationship, but particularly in a long-distance relationship. To be able to feel okay when they go out and live life without you, you need to be confident and trusting that they won’t do anything to hurt you. Otherwise, it’ll be a night full of stress and panic for both of you.
The positive of having a long-distance relationship in 2025, is that because of our mobile phones, we can be in almost constant communication with whoever we want. Everyone’s relationship is different, but for me personally one of the best things I do with my partner is an evening call (or three). Every night whenever we’re free we call each other and discuss what happened that day. It could last minutes or hours, sometimes we sit there in silence doing our own things and enjoying each other’s company down the phone. It allows you to live your own lives but still connect at the end of the day to recap.
In the end, a long-distance relationship is a testament to the strength of your connection and commitment to one another. With open communication and intentional effort, the distance becomes a chapter in your story rather than the whole narrative. Love isn’t defined by proximity but by the effort you’re willing to invest.
The idea of long-distance relationships has drastically changed over the years.
Before telephones were so widely accessible, if you wanted to be in a relationship with someone who lived far away you had to be prepared to wait days/ weeks/ months for their letters to arrive. Now, in the digital age, having a long-distance relationship isn’t as big of a deal as it once was.
Coming from experience, I’ve been in a semi-long-distance relationship since 2022. I live in Dublin, while my boyfriend is in Wexford. Granted, it’s not the biggest gap anyone’s experienced for love. However, watching my brother cycle ten minutes down the road to his girlfriend’s house for dessert can certainly make me feel the distance between my partner and me.
The main challenge I faced in my early teen years was transport. Trying to juggle getting from my house to the bus, the bus to the train, the train station to my destination was not something that came easy. While I was fortunate enough to get a car and license shortly after my 18th birthday, this challenge still applies to many young adults in Ireland. My boyfriend, for example, does not have a car so he must get a 2-hour bus to Dublin, and then jump on a DART for another 30. This doesn’t even include wait times at the bus stop and train station. By the time you’ve done the travelling, a lot of the time you have together is gone.
Another challenge that can be hard to wrap your head around is missing out on doing things with your significant other. Want to call in on Christmas to exchange presents? No
transport is running. Their friend is having a 21st on Friday night? I can’t make the journey in time.
Something that I have found in my experience is that you need to accept that there are things you won’t be able to do together. Some couples are more than happy to do things separately, while others want to be joined at the hip. My main tip is to work around your schedule. Making time to be with your partner is so important, particularly when you can’t see each other as much as ‘normal’ couples. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” as they say, and it’s true.
A long-distance relationship provides you with moments that feel more special and that you can cherish more because they happen less. Trust is vital in every relationship, but particularly in a long-distance relationship. To be able to feel okay when they go out and live life without you, you need to be confident and trusting that they won’t do anything to hurt you. Otherwise, it’ll be a night full of stress and panic for both of you.
The positive of having a long-distance relationship in 2025, is that because of our mobile phones, we can be in almost constant communication with whoever we want. Everyone’s relationship is different, but for me personally one of the best things I do with my partner is an evening call (or three). Every night whenever we’re free we call each other and discuss what happened that day. It could last minutes or hours, sometimes we sit there in silence doing our own things and enjoying each other’s company down the phone. It allows you to live your own lives but still connect at the end of the day to recap.
In the end, a long-distance relationship is a testament to the strength of your connection and commitment to one another. With open communication and intentional effort, the distance becomes a chapter in your story rather than the whole narrative. Love isn’t defined by proximity but by the effort you’re willing to invest.