Through the Uncertainties of Life, One’s Relationships with People Have Immensely Changed, Especially When it Comes to Relationships with Lovers. Does the Stigma of Long Distance Relationship Continue to Occur?

By: Huma Ahmad

This photograph depicts a woman having dinner with her significant other, virtually, through a video call. Credit: theatlantic.com

From the beginning of the COVID-19 virus spreading in December of 2019, the aspect of quarantining started to arise in countries all over the world. It was a strenuous time that caused many people to lose their jobs, daily routines, and the joy of life. One thing that has changed tremendously were relationships between couples. 

With unprecedented changes that quarantine has brought in all peoples’ lives, new norms started to habitually rise. Before couples who live in separate households, used to normally go out on dates together, such as going out to eat in different restaurants, going to the movie theaters, visiting theme parks, going out to special events, and the list goes on. 

However, couples are now forced to stay indoors and not meet due to safety precautions of not causing the virus to spread increasingly and out of hand.

Nowadays, couples are strained to figuring out new ideas to keep their relationship exciting even if they aren’t allowed to do the things they’ve always used to do. Some of the activities that are now commonly done are: having a movie night through FaceTime, sending pics, playing online games together, cooking/baking together through Zoom, sending gifts through the mail, and many more. 

Do any of these activities sound familiar? Yes! These are all activities that are done with couples going through long-distance relationships.

For a very long time, long-distance relationships have always been looked down upon. Many people have always had a doubt about how someone could have so much love, trust, and commitment to someone that lives hundreds of miles away from them.

 Nonetheless, in today’s world, things have changed drastically and people are now forced into the notions of long-distance relationships that they have always argued against about. 

Long-distance relationships in today’s world are quite common; this is especially caused by the popular use of social media. Many people believe that most long-distance relationships are people who meet online, however, that is a common misconception. 

Many people that are in a long-distance relationship are forced to be in one because of many reasons such as work, college, and family dilemmas. There are millions of people that are in long relationships, but because of quarantine measures that the entire world is taking into consideration, long-distance relationships have tripled. 

With coronavirus, couples that live 10 miles away face the same problems as couples that live 5,000 miles away from each other. Therefore, the stigmas behind long-distance relationships might change exceedingly once people go back to living their normal lives without the disruption of quarantine. 

It has been noticed that couples that are not used to the distance have had problems communicating and keeping the relationship alive. With of lack of sex and the unavailability of traveling to places, many people have lost one of the best charms of being in a relationship. 

Yet, there have been many positive aspects that have risen such as couples understanding each other on a different level. Communication is the key to all relationships, but it is an important element when it comes to distanced relationships. 

With communication in hand, people are able to form a more meaningful conversation, which can bring up the question of if the person is even compatible or not. 

Like many ironies in life, many things are looked down upon, because of different beliefs and ideologies, but with time many things get normalized with the conditions faced by society. Even though coronavirus has brought another obstacle to relationships, it has opened doors to forming another level of connection with one’s partner. 

And remember, if you are currently in a long-distance relationship, don’t forget to text them how much you love them because it can go a long way, much longer than your distance between them.