Is it just a phase?...

 Personal relationships take effort to make them successful, with each individual needing to put in equal amounts of work. However, not all relationships are meant to last...

According to the Knapp's Relationship Model, the differentiating phase occurs when a couple begins to think individually, rather than with their partner. 

In my personal relationship, this differentiating phase began when I took a trip to New Zealand with my daughter to visit my sister. I considered the possibility of us moving there and shared this with my partner early in our relationship. It hurt him that I was contemplating a life without him, which I understood. However, the well-being of my daughter and myself was my top priority and he felt left out. We began drifting apart because the topic of moving away was uncomfortable to bring up...though the possibility brought me a bright outlook on a possible new future, he was left to feel abandoned. I became detached because I did not want to invest in something that could, at any time, come to an end.

Online communication has impacted my personal relationships because this type of communication is often followed with the expectation of instant responses, such as to a text or an email. Lapses in response time often lead to insecurities that the recipient is upset, ignoring you, or busy communicating with someone else. Though online communication provides a gateway of socialization for those of us who are less extroverted than others, it also may induce distrust and stress, increasing the feeling of urgency.