For many people, love partners are an essential part of a successful marriage. Now, more than ever, social distancing is putting couples under the ultimate stress test on their love partners. They’re under the same roof 24/7, their kids are out of school indefinitely, and there’s growing uncertainty about what the future holds. But what does that mean for your love partner? In this time of social distancing, is it possible to maintain an extramarital love partner that you care about? One you can trust? Can you maintain that same connection with someone who not only fulfills your love’s physical needs but can also be your best friend and keep it a secret? Rather than succumbing to the current uncertainty, take action. If you want to stay sane during your marriage, extramarital love sex, and quarantine, we’ve compiled five tips to help you navigate this transition with care and adjust to your new reality. As with any love, communication is key, and the sooner the better. There’s no denying that a key part of your love has changed: your ability to meet in person. Since romantic love is essentially a parallel to marriage, it’s important to express what this change means for you both and how you want to deal with it. If you want to maintain a romantic love, it will take some effort on both sides to not only keep it going but also to make sure no one finds out about it. Be vigilant! This means changing the ground rules of when and how you can message each other, what tools you use, and how to keep your love and sexual energy up in a fully virtual environment. Learn more about keeping communication channels open with your partner here. You’re likely isolated from your spouse 24/7 right now, so it’s important to create opportunities for personal time. To achieve this, you should extend the same courtesy to your spouse. Love Suggest an hour a day where each of you gets a completely private space in a different part of the house to meditate, read a book, take a bath, watch a show, or whatever. Try this for the first few days and try not to disturb (or be disturbed by!) each other. Once this is an established and welcomed part of the routine, you can have a quiet phone conversation with your virtual love partner, write a love-sexy email, or take a few risqué photos. No one will be knocking on the door or looking over your shoulder during your love-sexy chat. While arranging an in-person date is out of the question right now, perhaps you and your virtual love partner could develop new low-key rituals to indulge in with each other. Of course, being virtual partners is all about physical contact, but at this point, it’s also the escape from reality that you both desperately need. Don’t worry too much about the long-term implications; instead, just relax and provide a fun distraction for your love partner, maybe just once a day. Amid this chaos, even something as small as writing one thing you’re grateful for to each other can go a long way. Sometimes it’s just the smallest gesture that helps us move on and reminds us what we loved about that person in the first place. Right now, people need connection more than ever, even if we can’t be together in person. Don’t give up on this guy or girl you’re with and you’ll thank yourself later. A little goes a long way. Don’t focus all your energy on your virtual love or put unnecessary pressure on yourself to maintain it while social distancing. Cast a wider net if it will reduce your anxiety. This may sound counterintuitive, as you’re probably just barely managing to maintain your marriage and virtual romantic love, but maintaining contact with the outside world is crucial right now. This is especially true when you feel stuck at home arguing with your love partner over whose turn it is to cook dinner for the third day in a row.