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Welcome to An Opportunity, where every moment is a chance for growth, love, and self-discovery.
Join hosts as they navigate the intricacies of relationships, self-reflection, and the journey towards self-love. In each episode, we explore the transformative power of seizing opportunities for connection, personal healing, and meaningful change. Through candid conversations, personal stories, and expert insights, we invite you to embark on a path of authenticity, vulnerability, and profound growth. Whether you're seeking guidance in relationships, seeking self-acceptance, or simply exploring the depths of your own heart, An Opportunity is here to inspire and empower you.
Tune in and embrace the possibilities that await on your journey to a more fulfilling life.
Hey, everyone. Welcome to An Opportunity, the podcast where we dive into the heart of relationships, self love, and personal growth. I'm Lauren, and I'm thrilled to have you here today. And Diane Randolphs. Whether you're navigating the complexities of a new relationship, striving for self acceptance, or simply looking to improve your communication skills, you're in the right place.
Every week, we'll be exploring meaningful conversations that inspire and empower. So, let's get started on this journey together. Before we jump into today's topic, hit that like and subscribe so you never miss an episode. If you're enjoying what you're hearing, please leave us a review and share the podcast with your friends. The support helps us grow and reach more people who can benefit from these conversations. And if you're craving more, follow us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, threads, and YouTube at an opportunity podcast and join the conversation there.
Feel free to reach out to us. We'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences. Here's our next topic. Long distance relationships. We'll be defining what qualifies as a long distance relationship, discussing the pros and cons, and diving into whether distance truly makes the heart grow fonder. And we'll be exploring factors that contribute to successful long distance relationships and share practical tips and advice for those navigating this unique journey.
Rather you're currently in a long distance relationship, considering 1, or simply curious about how they work, we've got you covered. So what would you qualify as a long distance relationship? I would say relationship that takes place either majoritivly or completely, unphysically. You know? So, like, a long distance relationship could be someone that's just an a half an hour away. But if you don't have that physical side, you know, if you don't see them, then it's a long distance relationship.
I agree. I think, you know, for us, it was an hour. Mhmm. But, I mean, it may as well have been 12 years. Yeah. Because it was still the effort of needing to be separate or, you know, needing to travel to come see each other.
Yeah. That's that's definitely what I would call long distance relationship. I would agree. I would say, like, any sort of separation that you need to do for work or school or something like that would be a contributing factor, but I think you're right. Like, where it's normally completely separate.
I mean, I know that there are benefits, obviously, challenges to being in a long distance relationship. But what would you say would be the most the most beneficial or the most challenging? Well, one of the greatest benefits is, you know, you have that time and, the opportunity to kind of grow as a person with another person before you're together, and you have to learn to grow together because, of course, the individual is important in those situations. Yeah. And as far as the biggest challenge is, I'd say, of course, the more lack of physical nature to it, you know, because when you want to show affection and intimacy, you have to find a way of doing that without any physical contact or anything like that.
And, you know, for a lot of people, it's just a big hurdle. I agree. I think that, to me, the benefit and challenge is the trust. Because obviously, the challenge would be that there are trust issues, having issues of not feeling secure or different things like that. But I think it also gives you the opportunity to build that trust where normally another relationship, you would build it based off of proximity instead of basing it off of the information of who this person is and what they've shown you. And it gives the opportunity to show somebody who you really are and what you really stand for more so than a relationship that starts or in any capacity is at a distance.
Yeah. I would agree. Yeah. You know, every relationship has that aspect of trust, and, you know, it compiles the fact that you can't physically be there. And, you know, that kind of adds a certain, am I involved enough, and what are they doing when you have your own schedule kind of thing. And even though that's in every single relationship, I think that long distance coupled with, you know, those insecurities that most people have, you know, it makes it a special kind of challenge.
Yeah. I completely agree. I I think that the challenges too is that if you're not good at communicating, it really accentuates how bad at communicating that you really are. Yeah. Yeah.
That can be really tough. Yeah. Yeah. Because, you know, if you just text sometimes and it's just a vague kind of blanket text that, oh, yeah. Day was good.
Gonna go do my thing now. You know, that doesn't really spark any kind of affection or anything like that. That could be really tough. I mean, I like, you and I, we had a conversation about that you wanted to be involved in my day because you didn't see what I was doing every day or, you know, you weren't involved in it. So you sort of wanted to know what I was doing, and I sort of didn't wanna give you that information. Not because I was trying to hide something, but it was like, I ate a bowl of cereal, took a nap, I fed the dog, I played with him for a second and it was sort of, is this pertinent information? Yeah. Yeah.
Everyone's needs kind of have their own unique tinge to it, unique colors to it. And explaining that and trying to get your partner's side of that is really important because it can be as simple as, hey. I just, you know, wanna know if you're just on the couch on the phone all day. You know, that's fine. I just wanna know. So I feel like I feel like you're a special person that I can relate to and take interest in every day. Even if you are like, yeah.
I just went to work, and, you know, now I'm gonna go to sleep and wake up and talk to you here in a little bit. But still like, oh, okay. Well, you're you're keeping me in their mind on their schedule, and we're still good. And everyone has that kind of want for that connection. I agree. And I think it also is something that's if you can visualize what they're doing, you kinda feel the closeness to them. And it's like, oh, they're sitting on the couch or whatever.
Hey. I've seen that couch. I've been there. Yeah. I know what that's like.
You know, having that sort of involved even when you're not in the vicinity is kind of important. Yeah. Which is why I am a large advocate for, like, screen sharing movies, however you wanna do that, and video timing and calling every day, having that aspect is it it's very important. Yeah. Because I mean, you and I, every day, we talked minimum 2 hours. And it wasn't like you didn't have a job or things that you needed to do. It was just, this is how we wanna spend time, and this is what we wanna do together. And we wanna make sure that we're working together to keep our relationship strong and not sort of backslide into, well, I'm sure that she's doing this or she's potentially doing this instead of, hey, I know that I can trust her.
I know that everything is okay because I know that we've built a space that if something weren't okay, they would come to me. Yeah. I used to work and then get off of work. And while I was doing everything I needed to after work, you know, the dishes, if you had laundry to do, if you had to prep your lunch for the next day, or, you know, if you just had to wash up, I would do everything that I had to do with Lauren on the phone except for take a shower just because, you know, my phone is not he don't like water. But, yeah. You know? Just stuff like that is important, especially to people that really value having someone in their life.
It's not just looking for some extra attention or another person to comfort them. Absolutely. I think that it was something that both of us were really upfront and honest about what we wanted and needed out of each other, especially with it being longer distance and not being able to see each other every day and kind of what do we need to do to stay connected during the week until I can get to you on the weekends. Mhmm. And once we got to the weekend, you know, the communication would be different. And I think that that's one of the big things of how it worked for us because we both were having the conversation of this is what I need.
This is how I feel seen. This is how I feel understood. This is what makes me happy in this, and how do I show up for that? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
That's probably, you know, one of the things that kind of really made me believe that I was putting in the effort that I needed to, you know, because it's one thing to, like, fall in love with you and want a relationship, and it's something else completely to to feel that reciprocation and to really want to dig in and invest and spend whatever free time you have on your relationship and with your son. Absolutely. Like, I don't think that it's something that is, oh, well, I have to talk to this person. I need like, they're gonna think that I don't care about them. They're gonna think this x y and z where this is I want to talk to this person.
I want to spend the time to figure out how I can show up and everything like that where it's given. It's not something where it's like, if I don't do this, he's gonna be upset. If I don't, you know, if I don't call or tell him what's going on, that man, he's gonna be upset. Upset. I'm gonna have to deal with that, where it's more or less like, hey.
I can't wait to talk to this human. I can't wait for this person to get off work. Why does he have to work so much? Why does he have to go to work at home? Why is that necessary? Yeah.
I do that one of the things that really helped us was was watching movies together Mhmm. And finding a way to laugh and have shows that we watched specifically together Mhmm. That even if a show came out on a Wednesday, we weren't watching it until the weekend where we knew that, hey, this is a sense of normalcy, that I'm part of your routine, that you could make the decision to watch the show or do this thing without me, but you're making the decision to stay with me and not watch spoilers and do all those different things that you just sort of zone in and you want to talk and have those moments together. Yeah. But I do think that in order for the relationship to work and work long term, it does make it to where you have to have the conversations upfront instead of waiting for something to happen and then having a heated discussion or wait and have somebody feel not seen or that they're not important, where I think that that's one of the things that really benefited us.
Yeah. I I agree. And, you know, even if you're, like if you don't have the means of doing stuff, I think you can make a long distance relationship work without those things, but you should talk to your partner and see what they need to to feel happy and or at least as happy as, you know, they can be in the circumstance because there's a there's a certain level of commitment that comes with long distance relationships, and, it's a complete commitment without all the things that come with a relationship. So it can be harder, can be more challenging. And, you know, it's the responsibility of both partners to do everything they can, for each other to kind of make it work and make everything go smoothly.
I agree. And it kind of is something where if the best way for you to feel seen is to get a good morning text, it should be something where it should be very easy to go to your partner and say, hey. I would really appreciate a good morning text or a good night text. Could you please let me know that you got home safely? Because, obviously, it's something to where when you're in person, you don't need that. I I don't need you to tell me that you're home because I see you.
Mhmm. I don't need you to tell me that you're safe. I don't need to know that you're safe because I see you right there. Where this is an aspect of, hey. If I don't talk to you, if I don't hear from you, I worry. And there were times that might hit traffic or you're running late or something, and I know, hey, it takes you this long to get home.
Like, obviously, you're allowed to do whatever you wanna do. And if you need to stop or whatever, that's your business. I'm not gonna micromanage what you're doing. But, you know, if if it takes you 30 minutes to get home and I haven't heard from you in an hour, I'm probably gonna worry. So it's just a simple, I'm gonna tell you upfront, hey.
I'm I'm on my way home or something so that if that's something does happen, then you sort of understand what's happening instead of wondering and thinking that something bad happened. Yeah. Yeah. That's that's a really good point too. For the for the listeners out there, you might be thinking like, this is stuff that, you know, I kinda know or understand or And, like, you can try this stuff, and you can do And while you can try this stuff and you can do everything in your power to make your significant other comfortable and happy in a long term relationship, you also need to make it clear that it's up to them to communicate those fluctuating needs.
As, you know, as we all know, it's not going to be a day to day kind of thing. Absolutely. Yeah. I think that for us, one of the best things that we did was, 1, acknowledging, like, hey, today has been really hard to be away from you, you know, of taking the time to have a vulnerable moment where normally you wouldn't have to have that where you can say, hey, I'm really missing you today. I need a little extra time.
I really want a little bit of extra effort. Can we make plans to do a video call? Or can we do something where we can connect? Because I think that even for you and I, we were talking on the phone every day. But if you were having a really bad day or if I was, something about seeing your face made it better. And it was sort of, this is way better.
This is actually seeing him and, you know, able to see your cute little face and your smile. And it was just an an automatic, I don't know. I just always felt better. Yeah. Yeah.
And, you know, for me, it was a big thing of kind of hearing your emotions and just giving you a space where you can let it all out. Because if you get offended or if you feel like, well, he's he's just going to be upset anyway or she's just going to say it's not enough, you kinda gotta you kinda gotta stop that thought process and just remember that this is something that both of you are now attempting, and you have to have that, okay. Well, you have a safe space for your emotions, and I can have an emotional reaction to that, but that can also be later taught. Absolutely. Yeah.
I think it's, you know, hey. I'm having feelings. I'm gonna be in a bad mood. I think that that's one of the things that helped us too of saying, hey. I'm just in a foul mood today.
Yeah. Or next week is I'm gonna be a bit weirder next week because of, you know, such and such. Yeah. Absolutely. And I think that that was something that supporting each other and saying, like, hey.
I know that this is hard. We're doing this because of this. Like, reminding each other that we chose we're choosing each other. We're continuing to choose each other. We want to choose each other. And making that every single time of being like, hey.
I'm gonna see you soon. It's just a few more days. And I think that that's why for us, it was something that it made it easier because we're like, okay, if I'm gonna see you if I see you every weekend because we were seeing each other every weekend. Yeah. So it's like if I knew, like, hey.
I'm gonna see you on Friday or worst case Saturday. If I know I'm gonna see you on Friday, then I can get through. If it's Wednesday and I'm having a hard day, like, hey. I've got a couple more days, and I'm gonna see you. Or if you're having a bad day, you know, you would say, you know, hey.
I get to see you later on today. I'm gonna go to work, and then I get to see you. Like, you're gonna be there. You know, you're gonna be at my apartment when I get off work. Yeah.
Yep. It's that stuff is great, and establishing boundaries to kind of help reinforce those things is great too because I'm sure there's a lot of situations out out there where you're in a long distance relationship and your significant other is going to hang out with a girlfriend of his or a guy friend of hers. And usually, it's not a comfortable thing for a lot of people. And having a boundary of, okay. I'm not going to complain that you're doing this, but there's some extra information I need.
Okay. You can do this. Absolutely. But I am probably going to be a bit weird, or this is gonna be some of my insecure area that kind of comes through. Communicating all that is going to be really essential, so there's no restriction in the relationship because a long distance relationship really can't be strangled by restrictions.
That's going to cause a lot of problems in that long distance relationship. Absolutely. I think it was one of the things that I really appreciated about you because you acknowledged, like, hey, you have your life and I have mine, and we're finding the balance between both of us to be happy to do what we wanna do. But that doesn't mean that you can't be respectful communicative of something where it's like, hey, maybe you don't need to say that much. Maybe you don't need to talk that much.
Maybe you don't need to tell each other that. Maybe you don't need to say that much. Maybe you don't need to talk that much. Maybe you don't need to tell each other that much. But it becomes a thing where it's like, I don't need to worry about how you're feeling because I know that you're gonna come to me. So even if you're feeling weird about something, I know that you're gonna come to me. And I have my own issues of feeling like it's my job to fix it, not because of you, but just life experience where I try to fix how you're feeling.
If you don't tell me what's going on, then I I need to think that, hey, this is a you issue. And if it's a us issue or something that you think that I can can help you with, then you can bring it to my attention. And if you don't, then that's not my responsibility. Yeah. Yeah.
Absolutely. And this is even something that Lauren and I went through in the beginning is that I wasn't communicating in fact. And I was, you know, single for 3 years before being with you. And alone time is great, and it gives you some time to really discover yourself. But in that time, you're also kind of losing touch with that communication aspect and being the best partner that you can be. So we talked about that, and you set a boundary on what you expect for communication, and that kind of boundary is to be taken serious.
All boundaries are to be taken seriously. When it comes to communication, that is something you can be effective with every single day, and showing up for that is extremely important. Absolutely. I think that that is one of the reasons why we were so successful because I was able to say, hey, I can't have you shut shut down. I can't have you not telling me what's going on.
I need you to tell me. I need to be able to be here for you and understand so that I can show up for you the right way. And you've dealt with this your whole life by yourself. You've been by yourself for 3 years. You understand how to take care of yourself.
I'm not saying that you can't take care of yourself because I know that you can. It's just that there are issues and things that happen that you don't need to deal with by yourself. And I think that that was a distinction that I needed to make to you in order for you to kind of get like, okay, she's not trying to, like, take over my life and not let me have feelings or not deal with things by myself. It was more like we're a team and we should be acting like 1. Yeah. Yeah.
Absolutely. No. You're probably going to encounter some soft spots with your partner, rather it's a point of pride or ego or just insecurity, and that They're not just worked. They're not just addressed and worked through and you find maybe you find a fix for it, maybe you don't, and then it's just kind of moved past. You can always work on not letting your ego or pride interfere with communication and really opening up being vulnerable.
Yeah. I think it's small tweaks over time to perfect how to show up right and how to be there for the person and not the quick fixes aren't usually long lasting. They're not useful. Useful. They might be a nice band aid, but they don't fix things. And most people aren't like us where we have a conversation that is 2 hours long that could have been 15 minutes.
Mhmm. But I would rather make sure that each other understands, get everything out, figure out a solution, have all of those things in place. And then if this were to happen again, we know how to handle it. Or if something similar happens, we know how to go from here. We don't have to be like, oh, I have no idea how he's gonna react.
I don't know if I should say anything. I don't know what I should do. It's Like, no. We've been through something similar. This is how he responded, especially for me with having abandonment issues.
It's very reassuring to have those conversations and have a partner that isn't getting frustrated at me because I'm needing more. Yeah. Yeah. For the men listening, let me tell you this. If you want your partner to be able to completely open up and be honest with you, create a safe space for her to do so.
You can't be reactive even though it might be frustrating or hard to hard to hear what she's telling you. You cannot be reactive in those instances because that's gonna set a precedent of some fear or anxiety when something needs to be communicated with you. And, of course, I'm sure we could all understand that is not a good feeling coming into a conversation. So yeah. I mean, yeah.
I agree. I mean, even the ladies, it should be something where you expect and not just expect, but communicate appropriately that, hey, I'm feeling feelings. I wanna get this out to you. I'm trusting you with this information. I want you to understand me better.
I want you to understand how I feel and why I feel that way so that you know how to show up for me. Because I know that I can't think of an instance right now. Maybe you can. But I know there have been many, many, many times that you learn something and it's a small tweak that you are happy to make that can be a world of difference for me. Where it's like, yeah, you feel a certain way and or you've done something that's small and you can make that change. And it makes me feel like you heard me and that you understand and that you care about how I feel. You know what I mean? Yeah.
Absolutely. There's been circumstances like that. Yeah. It's like, well, I think we've both kind of made little tweaks to what we do or how we say things or what happens so that we can show up appropriately. Yeah. Yeah.
We have. Yeah. We did that when we were in that long distance kind of spot that we were in. And it was it was very helpful for building a good strong foundation so that when we did move to the next step of our relationship, we already kind of of had that premise, and we just continued it. And it really helps make things work.
Absolutely. I think it's been the difference in making sure that we both are seen. Yeah. Yeah. I agree.
You're both cute. Oh, I do think that if you're in a situation where the distance or the time is is different I know that in terms of long distance relationships, we were very privileged in being able to see each other every weekend. So we knew that that was something to look forward to. I think that all of the tips that we've said thus far are even more important if you don't know when you're gonna see your partner next. If you don't know any of that information or if you do know and it's like this long it's a long way away of finding those little goals and the setting up dates and showing up that way to make sure that you're not not saying anything. And then when you see each other, you end up having a big blow up because you didn't communicate how you were really feeling. And then maybe they're not as happy to see you or they're having a bad day or that day when you see them and you think, oh, like, they must not care about me.
They must not love me when it could have been communicated that whole time of having different milestones that you can still have, like, if you don't see each other for 6 months or longer or even a month. I mean, I know us. I think there was a weekend that we all I only got to see for a day or something, and it was like, oh, this sucks. Like, this is this is horrible. Like, I don't wanna do this.
Yeah. So I can imagine that if somebody were in a situation where it's even longer, how important it is to to be involved in your day to day. But being involved in the day to day, showing up for dates, having surprises, I know that a lot of people will do care packages of something of one thing that you gave me and I gave you. You gave me your cologne. I gave you my spray perfume or whatever.
Mhmm. And it was just something that was, I was missing you. I could at least have some sort of a sense of you even though I couldn't have your physical presence or a hug or anything like that. I could spray your cologne on me and smell that, and it was like you were there for a second. Yeah. Yeah.
I mean, those things always help. And by all means, depending on your partner, go on social media, with you and your partner. Tell your friends about your partner. Make sure your partner knows that you're friends and you have been talking about that. And, you know, you do these things so that there is an anchor that someone can say, oh, okay.
Well, she's already investing other people in this relationship, and it's not just something that's for us. And I have to kind of always wonder if anyone else really sees it or others are happy for her or happy for you. And those things are are really important as well, I think. I agree. I also think that it's something where you can create memories and have experiences with your person regardless of how far away you are.
There's many times that you I mean, you can go to someone, especially if you know their friends. If you know their friends, then you can go to them and say, hey. I wanna surprise Randolph. Like, I want to do this or this. And they can kind of be the physical person that kind of sets this up and creates a moment where even if it's, hey, I wanna surprise her with a nice romantic dinner, and it is a video call, but having somebody surprise her with having the computer set up, having a nice little spread of food, having a little picnic or something to where it's like, Hey, I'm showing up for you and I'm putting in the extra effort to make sure that you feel seen and heard and loved. Even if I can't physically be there, I'm gonna do everything to be as close to you as I possibly can, even if that involves somebody else.
Yeah. Yeah. Those are really great ideas. I agree. I think exposure and having seeing little appreciation posts, I think people are like, oh, that's dumb.
Like, a display of, like, how you feel is so cheesy. But I think that in a long distance situation, it's like, hey. This person is taking time out of their day. I know they're busy. Here are all the reasons that they wouldn't or couldn't, but they still showed up and, you know, took the time to write a nice little post and you get the the post of I'm so happy for you.
This is great. You deserve this. And you're getting that kind of the positive endorphins and everything happening from being acknowledged and seeing that, you know, everything is the way that it should be. Yeah. Yeah. And it's also just that extra involvement.
A long distance relationship is hard by nature, but having your partner go that extra step and say, okay. Well, I am going to involve my partner with my friends and with with whoever else. That way, they know that I'm considering that and everything. Absolutely. I mean, very early in our relationship, you were on PlayStation, and you just took the headphones off.
You're like, hey. I'm gonna go get a drink of water. I'm gonna go wherever. Like, here, take this headset. Like, talk to my friends.
Yeah. Where you intentionally were were involving me and making sure that I knew that I wasn't just a fixture in your life. Like, I wasn't just like a lamp for your life. Yeah. That I was in involved and important outside of just our relationship.
Yeah. That is extremely important to do in life. Let's say most people have that insecurity of, am I just gonna be another piece of her life, or or am I going to be such a large portion that I can see her entire life and be a part and all. And for a relationship to really work, you you have to invest in your partner every aspect of life, Even if it's more private things, history, friendships, goals, what you're passionate about. I mean, all those things are cumulative to something that's healthy and happy and something that feels like a legitimate partnership and not just person that you have emotions with.
Absolutely. I agree. And I think that for a lot of people, especially I just remembered this, but I think that one of the things I know that we've talked about doing video calls and it can be sporadic. Like, hey, I wanna see you. I wanna talk to you. But I think especially if you're both balancing very busy lifestyles, that it's something where, hey, I know that you're gonna be off work at 2 PM on Thursday.
Let's do a video call. Let's schedule it in so that it makes sure both of you are making the time to do that. So it doesn't get lost in translation or doesn't get to the point where you're like, man, I haven't talked to this person in 12 years. You know, I haven't talked to this person in so long. I miss them. And I I think that what it boils down to is you're naturally going to miss somebody, especially with the distance.
You're going to miss them. That's going to be a part that doesn't have to be acknowledged all the time, but I think that it needs to be respected all the time. Yeah. I agree. I think that an important distinction is the difference between a positive missing someone and a negative missing someone.
I think that there's a huge difference between, hey, I'm really missing you and I'm so excited to see you and I'm ready for that versus I'm missing you because I don't know where you've been. You we've barely talked. We have we're not connecting. We're not spending time together. We're not seeing each other.
All of these aspects. Like, I feel like there's a big difference between the 2. So are you talking about a difference in the emotion behind the motivation for missing someone? Yes. Oh, you know, there's different motivations to miss them.
You'd be motivated by just the inaccessibility to meet with someone or to have that physical contact or can have the emotion of, well, I don't really have anyone else, and I just kind of need my person. Yeah. Yeah. I agree that there's differences in the motivation of the emotion to miss someone. Yeah.
Because, I mean, I think that there's one that, like, neither of them feels good, but one of them is more I'm missing you in anticipation of seeing you, and I'm missing you because I love you so much and I want to spend time with you versus I'm missing you and here are the reasons why I'm missing you in a negative way because you're not showing up appropriately and my needs aren't being met. And that's why for me, having the conversation of how you want to be seen, how you get your needs met is so important. Well, I think that's just the thing. I think if that's the case, then you're not actually missing some. Your needs are just not being met.
You know, I don't think the 2 should be completed. You don't think so? Think so. Because, I mean, I could miss you all day, but when I you know, the point where I feel like, well, she just hasn't communicated with me, then that's a whole different thing. That's a whole different animal, you know, because that's something to talk about and to find a resolution missing someone particularly as I well.
I get what you mean. Yeah. But I think that that's a distinction that a lot of people could make, though. Right? Yeah.
Sure. I think so. Yeah. There is a distinction between the 2. However, I just, it would be hard for me to get behind the idea that there's a bad way to miss someone.
There's just a bad way to communicate that you miss. I agree. But, I mean, I think that that's the reason why we're doing this is to where even like, we wanna make sure that everybody is seen and heard and that that is a thought process that you're having, like, what it is to move forward. To summarize, long distance relationships are a particular challenge that have to be met with particular intentions and maybe even compromises. And it starts by establishing a baseline of fluctuating needs, insecurities, and what your partner needs from you. And I think that it's something where there is no good or bad way to do it.
There's not one way of seeing did it this way, so this is the way that I need to do it. This is the only way that it'll work. I've you know, you don't need to see specifically how things work. Maybe there's circumstances that are different that don't fit the the metric how we've described it in this episode. That doesn't mean that you're doing it wrong or that things are bad.
I think that as long as your needs are being met, you're communicating effectively, you're communicating openly and honestly, and you're trying to do the best thing for yourself, for your person, and for you as a couple. I think that that's the most important thing to do. There's a lot of things. There's all the tips of care packages and dates and showing up for your partner in that way. But if you don't have solid communication, you don't have trust, you don't have honesty, then nothing is gonna work, and there's always gonna be an issue.
Yeah. Yeah. I agree. As we wrap up today's episode, we hope that you found our conversation of long distance relationships in sightful and helpful. And remember, while long distance relationships can be a challenge, it can also strengthen your bond and foster deep emotional connections.
If you have any thoughts or experiences you'd like to share, we'd love to hear from you on our social media or email. Don't forget to subscribe to an Opportunity podcast and tune in next Friday at 8 PM Eastern Standard Time for another episode. Until then, take care and keep growing. Thanks for listening. Thank you.