Sara, 29, and her partner had been together for eight months — and were used to getting together three times a week — when he moved abroad for med school in January, making their relationship long-distance. “We had plans to see each other every other month in 2020 – until the pandemic hit, and we didn’t know when we’d see each other again,” she tells Bustle.
The uncertainty left her questioning whether her relationship would work in the long-term. “I was worried that if I didn’t see him for a whole year, I wouldn’t be able to keep ‘dating’ him through the phone,” she says.
For some couples, the future’s uncertainty has made it tough to maintain a long-distance relationship during the pandemic — and it’s why some, like Sara’s, can experience tension. “Without the relief of seeing one another, [they] have to manage a tremendous amount of longing, without the certainty of comfort, connection, or touch happening anytime soon,” Mollie Eliasof, LCSW, a relationship therapist, tells Bustle.
While Eliasof says many long-distance couples are well-versed in the art of spending time apart, they’ve still had to make changes to their routines, adjust their expectations, and make big decisions, especially as they approach the eighth month of travel restrictions and state-sanctioned quarantines.
Full article here: https://www.bustle.com/wellness/long-distance-relationships-working-pandemic
