Spring. When you think of it, you think of flowers, newborn animals, and warm rainy days. In the back of your mind, though, you know that's not all it's known for. Spring means graduation, spring means summer is coming, spring means everyone moving away.
Spring means breakup season.
But here's the secret: It doesn't have to.
It's possible to survive the season of breakups with your relationship intact and thriving. Believe it or not, your love life doesn't have to cease to exist once the weather starts getting warmer. If you follow these tips for surviving breakup season, you'll be soaking up the summer sun with your bae in no time.
1. Vocalize your intentions for the relationship's future.
Don't let your S.O. think this is just a college fling. If you're wanting to be in your relationship for the long run, you need to make sure your partner knows that. If you don't tell them that you see a future with them and want to be with them well past when finals hit, they could think that you're not taking the relationship as seriously as they are. You want to know that your partner sees your relationship with the same seriousness as you do, too. When you vocalize your intentions and your love for each other, you can both go into summertime with nothing to worry about.
2. Understand that long distance is OK.
If they're going home for the summer, you don't have to panic and end the relationship. Summer is only two and a half months or so, right? So why would you throw away a relationship you've put so much time into when you'll be back in the same place come August? You shouldn't. Long distance is never easy, but if you understand that summer is just a short time period in the grand scheme of your relationship, you can absolutely head into it with a strong relationship. It's all going to be worth it when you're finally back together.
3. Understand you can still have fun while in a relationship.
Having a boyfriend or girlfriend shouldn't make you a stick in the mud. You don't have to break up with your S.O. right before summer so that you can "make the most of it" and have a good time. You can still go to festivals, vacation with your girls, and take sexy swim pics while being in a relationship. You're your own individual person, their love is just complementing everything that you are. Go get drunk on the beach with your friends. Go get crazy and have a good time. You should know you can Facetime your S.O. on your drunk walk home and they'll love you all the more for it.
4. Don't get caught up in everyone else cutting ties.
It doesn't matter if all of your friends are breaking up with their partners. Their relationships aren't yours. If you're focused on what everyone else is doing, you won't be able to give your relationship all the attention and love it deserves. You're not going to be spending the rest of your life with everyone you know now, and it would be a little weird if you were to marry all of them. So why would you base your love life, something that you're potentially going to be in for the long run, off of everyone else's college flings? Don't. You're an adult now, so you need to think for yourself. Be mature enough to know that the only people involved in making decisions about your relationship are you and your partner.
5. Let your partner know how grateful you are for them.
If you love them, let them know. There's honestly nothing worse than feeling like your partner doesn't really appreciate you and all you do for them anymore. It can make everything feel like a waste of time, including the relationship. Don't ever let your partner think these things. Do everything you can to make sure they know how much you appreciate them, their love, and everything they do for you. After all, everything they do, they do out of love for you. Vocalize your appreciation and feelings, say thank you, and always remind them of how much you care. Doing this helps them feel important, needed, and wanted.
They call this breakup season for a reason. With finals, graduation, summer, and moving home all happening during this time, a relationship can struggle to fit in the balance.
But it is possible to survive breakup season as a couple.
If you don't let what everyone else is doing impact you and instead focus on your love and commitment to making your relationship work despite distance or a busy schedule, your relationship can emerge from breakup season even stronger than it was before it. You entered the relationship you're in for a reason, and odds are, it wasn't just to waste a few months of your time just to breakup and go home.
If you love them, let them know. Work for what you want, and if that's the relationship you're in, you'll be perfectly fine.
