My high school boyfriend and I had been dating for two and a half years by the time we were expected to make our big college decisions. As you can probably guess, we did not have the same school in mind as our top choice, and neither one of us wanted to ask the other to make a sacrifice.

So, at the end of the summer after graduation, sadness and fear loomed in the air as I watched him drive off from my house for the last time in a couple months. It was hard to accept that long distance would be pretty much our norm for the next four or five years, and I was so afraid of the uncertainty of it all, endlessly worrying that we wouldn't be able to survive.

I'm sure there are many other couples in my situation who feel exactly how I felt. And even though we are not still together, I wouldn't take back my decision, and I will explain why so that maybe others can take comfort from or relate to my reflection. Take it for what it's worth.

If I had caved and decided to attend his university with him, I would have likely spent years wondering what I'd missed out on at UC. And I would be drowning in twice the tuition expenses than what I have now. There very well could have been grudges that would potentially last a long time. And I am sure the same thing could have been true if the situation were reversed. There simply was not any room to risk animosity between us down the road.

As much loneliness and conflict as the distance between us caused, it also made us stronger. We were able to survive our first two years making it work, and we thought that nothing could touch us at that point. While that turned out to be untrue, we valued the time we did have together much more than we likely would have otherwise. Our plans were much more thought out, as we wanted to make them extra special. We were forced to practice better communication because that's all we had for weeks or months at a time. And we took pride in beating the odds as long as we did.

But most importantly, it gave us the opportunity to grow independently of each other. I didn't rely on the comfort of our mutual friends; I took advantage of all the new people on my campus by making my own by myself. I had my own life. I didn't have to worry about weekend plans being restricted to only people we both liked because we were always together. I was able to have a freshman year college experience similar in a lot ways to single people, minus the obvious of being free to hook up or start a new relationship.

I watched the both of us change with the freedom and new experiences, but instead of letting it tear us apart, we let it bring us closer together. We liked the people we were becoming. We were able to have both our own college lives and our life together. And although the two were literally separate from each other, I'd never felt more sure of and attached to him.

So, if you are in a long distance relationship similar to this or if you are about to be, don't worry too much. It is possible to make it out together.