For many, love is a necessary extra ingredient in a successful marriage. Now, more than ever, social distancing is putting couples to the ultimate test of love, with couples living under the same roof with children out of school indefinitely and growing uncertainty about what the future holds. Is it possible to maintain an extramarital love that brings true value in this age of social distancing? A love you can trust? If you want to stay sane through marriage, extramarital affairs, and loneliness, here are five tips to help you navigate this transition with care and adjust to your new reality. As with all relationships, communication is key, and the sooner the better. Since love is essentially a parallel progression to marriage, it is important to not worry too much about the long-term effects and express what this change means for you both and how you want to deal with it. If you want to keep the love alive, both of you will have to put in extra effort not only to maintain the relationship 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 the sexual energy going even in a purely virtual environment. Learn more about how to keep the communication channels open. You are likely now isolated from your spouse 24/7, so it is important to create opportunities for personal time. To do this, you must extend the same courtesy to your spouse. Suggest an hour a day where each of you has a completely private space in a different part of the house where you can meditate, read a book, take a bath, watch a show, or do whatever you want as much as you want. Try this for the first few days and try not to disturb (or be disturbed by!) each other. Once this becomes an established and welcomed part of the routine, you can have quiet phone conversations, write sexy emails, and take racy photos with your virtual romantic partner. No one will be knocking on your door or peering over your shoulder during your sexy chat. While arranging a face-to-face date is out of the question for now, you might be able to create new low-key rituals with your virtual romantic partner to keep you both hooked. Sure, love is mostly about physical contact, but in that moment, it’s also the escape from reality that you both crave. Instead, relax and provide a fun distraction for your partner, maybe just once a day. Amid all this chaos, even something as small as writing each other one thing you’re grateful for can make a big difference. Sometimes it’s just the small gestures that allow us to move on and remind us what we liked about that person in the first place. Right now, people need connection more than ever, even if we can’t meet in person. Don’t give up on the person or the love, and you’ll thank yourself later. A little with this in mind, don’t focus all your energy on virtual love or put unnecessary pressure on yourself to maintain it while social distancing. Cast a wider net if it reduces your anxiety.
