Being In A Part-Time Relationship Is Awesome

Are you in a part-time relationship? I’m not talking about friends with benefits or someone that you’re kinda sorta dating but haven’t really established any exclusivity with. I’m talking about a committed relationship where you only get to see each other 2 or 3 days out of the week because they’re over there and you’re over here. Are you worried that this distance is putting a strain on your relationship? From one part-time participant to another, let me show you the bright side!

Distance isn’t always such a bad thing. You need a healthy amount of distance to maintain happiness in any relationship. While going over half the week without seeing your lover might be a little more distance than needed, it can really make those couple of days you have with them so much more fulfilling. It’s like forcing yourself to eat salad the whole week so you can eat an entire plate of cheese fries on Saturday. You suffered for those fries! And they taste so much better because of it. I guess what I’m trying to say is that there can definitely be an upside to missing someone. It kind of makes everything feel new again. You’re much more motivated to make the most of your time together and to keep things exciting. And speaking of keeping things exciting, I’m pretty bashful when it comes to talking about sex on the Internet, so I’ll just say this. When that weekend finally rolls around after a long, stressful work week with no physical solace to come home to, well…bow chicka bow wow. (I just cringed at myself.)

Here’s another thing. Since you can’t spend all of your free time wrapped up in your significant other, your single friends will hate you a little less!  You won’t have to constantly decline their invitations to the bar, even though you don’t really enjoy going to the bar anymore without your boyfriend unless there’s dancing. Lots of dancing. So dance, and eat and drink and be merry with your friends because they deserve your attention too.

You know who else deserves your attention? You. Being alone is beautiful, and it doesn’t matter if you’re in a relationship or single or married or divorced. You’re an individual. It’s nice to not have to stand alone, but you have to be able to, either way. And it’s much easier if you learn to love it. Stop dwelling on how much you miss your boyfriend or girlfriend and take advantage of your alone time. You don’t have to be single to be independent, and it’s okay to enjoy your life without your partner. You should want that for each other. You know that movie you were gonna drag them to even though they couldn’t care less about it? Go see it alone. It’s a movie theater. It’s dark. No one’s looking at you weird. Just pray you don’t know the person you’re buying that lonesome ticket from or they’ll think you’re a freak.

Totally kidding. Thought Catalog Logo Mark

More From Thought Catalog