When one of your Facebook friends becomes more than a friend in real life, navigating the social media space as a couple can pose challenges. When do you update your relationship status? Should you friend all of your new boyfriend’s friends? (Hint: no.) And how often should you comment on his wall posts? The following tips will help you establish healthy boundaries both on and offline.
Friend These Habits...
Update your relationship status with caution.
Before you tell all of Facebook, “Wooo! I have a boyfriend! Woooo!” consider the pros and cons of doing so. Yes it feels good, and yes, it’s important to let other people know that you’re off the market, but it also really, really sucks to have to change that status back to “single.” If your relationship is a fairly recent development, maybe wait a while to update, because a public announcement often means an equally public breakup. It’s not like Facebook makes a great relationship any more real.
Understand the terms of your own relationship.
All couples have different ways of interacting with each other, and the same goes for their interaction through social media. Some love to leave little messages on each other’s walls, and comment on each other’s posts frequently, whereas others prefer to let each other have his or her own space on Facebook. Take silent note of how active or inactive your partner is on Facebook and don’t, for example, bombard his wall with posts if he’s only in the habit of checking it once a week.
Spend virtual time together.
Maintaining a relationship is very hard, especially when the two of you have crazy schedules that keep you away from each other. Facebook is your friend in this endeavor, making it possible for couples to be involved with each other even when they can’t actually be together. Keep in mind, though, that it’s easy to overdo this. You wouldn’t call your boyfriend every five minutes all day long, right? Constantly posting on his Facebook is no more acceptable, nor is getting upset if he doesn’t respond to you right away.
