Anyone have experience with long distance relationships?

Ive had like 4 online relationships, ive only met one of them and that relationship just.. it didnt go well. It was horrible. But also, the guy i was with in that relationship really pushed me into meeting him. I wasnt ready at all. Right now though.. im in love. With this wonderful guy online. We've been "dating" or whatever, for many many months now. He's really amazing. and unlike with all other guys ive dated online, i really reslly want to meet him. Im not scared of it at all. Yes, im nervous, but not scared. The problem is, i live in sweden and he lives in argentina. Its almost impossible for us to meet. But we keep talking. Id never leave him just cause we cant meet. We'll fix it somehow. And in the meantime, we have looots of time to take these important steps. If we lived close to eachother we mightve just met already. But now we can get to know eachother, and we can learn to trust eachother. Ive recently showed him pictures of me, something im usually really scared to do. I think he's the one for me, and i hope he feels the same even though im sad a lot

Long-distance is not for everyone. It's tough, it's challenging, it makes you feel bad at times and is sooooo demanding. First of all, you have to be sure that you are with the right person - there are those little signs. If the person wants this to work he will do his best to preserve it - he will show creativity, imagination, its easily noticeable when someone is passionate about something and is putting some efforts in something. Another important thing - compromises. You both have to learn to cope with that and I am pretty sure there will be lots of compromises you'll have to make. Third thing on the list - appreciation for what the other is doing for you: you have to really show him that you are aware of what your partner is doing for you and you are thankful for it, but not just feel it, show it. Express yourself, share a lot, talk about everything that bothers you, absolutely forget about jealousy - if you are with the right person you have nothing to worry about and that thing can only push him away, show trust, show interest in his activities, give him access to your life and interests, spend time communicating but don't spend your whole time talking to each other, you both have lives outside this relationship and you have to understand it and accept it. Oh yea, last and pretty important one - don't change yourself to fit in your partner's standards and ideals, be yourself.

I've had a couple and while they are a great way to really get to know people, the downside is that you can never truly trust the person on the other end of the computer or webcam. In a couple instances I've set up meetings with people only to have the person back out at the last minute and end the relationship because they weren't ready, or because they were hiding something, like a marriage and children. If you have other options, like real life, then it's probably best to look locally, unless at some point you wanted to move to America or he wanted to move to Ireland. Because after all, what is the point of a relationship? It's to have exclusivity with a person you've gotten to know and enjoy being with, and build a future life together. If you don't see a future with the person, then you just date them, but you don't commit to them. So as you get to know people online, the lines often get blurred and you end up in a relationship when you have no desire to uproot your life and make this permanent. Unless relocation is something that one of you would definitely consider in the future, I would strongly recommend not using the internet as a way to meet boyfriends, unless they live in your local area. And you may think, well hey, I'm only 16 now so I don't have to think about relocating for many more years, but the reality is, you're with that person each day and your feelings get stronger and you get connected and you're both making sacrifices to be together online, and missing out on physical relationship in real life and if you wait a couple years and decide you can't move forward, then you can really cause a lot of pain for the other person. This happens in real life relationships too obviously, but with online you really have to think about the future before you get involved with anyone. You have to think about where they live, and where you live, and how big each of your families are and whether or not you could leave them, and which one of you has the better job or house, which person would be more suited to moving and lots of things like that. Would it be easier for an American to find employment in Ireland, or an Irish person to find work in America? And then there is the whole immigration thing too. I would say that if your word or education was going to lead you to the other country for good, then there's no harm in this. But if it's just temporary or not at all, then you might want to save yourself some stress.

Thank you for your help!