Couples That Reunite After Years Apart Make The Longest Lasting Marriages, Study Finds

There's something romantically bittersweet about an old flame. As if by magic, you met and connected so quickly. It seemed, possibly for the first time, that you shared something indescribably special with this person. Even if you were only together for a short time, it felt like you truly understood each other.

Yet, circumstances sadly got in the way. For whatever reason, the wedge of distance was driven between you and you had to part ways. You couldn't stop thinking about this person for a while, but you eventually had to adjust to life without them. As time went on, you would still think of them, but part of you realizes that your memories of that person are probably colored a little by nostalgia.

However, it doesn't always have to be that way. Old flames can and do reconnect and research has shown that reuniting with these people can lead to a surprisingly strong relationship. Of course, there are a few conditions that we have to address, but it's often pretty smooth sailing once you navigate them.

Please COMMENT and let us know if you've ever found your soulmate.

It's important to remember that some people don't want to reconnect.

In fact, about 70 percent of people surveyed reported they didn't want to reunite. To make matters worse, 71 percent of respondents reported obsessive or compulsive thoughts about their lost love.

So if it doesn't work out, try to recognize what's going on if those feelings start to crop up.

Yet if it does work out, it'll likely stay that way.

Nancy Kalish at California State University found a high success rate among these reconnections.

As she put it, the rate is, "not 100 percent, but very high — because you start out with trust. And typically they're still the same person they used to be."

Also, the changes that did occur tended to be good.

Those who rekindled old relationships reported increased maturity in their partners since they last met. They also often said they re-found their soulmates.

They didn't necessarily have to spend that much time apart either. The average age of participants was 36 and it was found that rekindling romances at least five years after they ended had a 76 percent chance of success.

However, the reason why the breakup happened matters.

About a quarter of participants said their relationship ended because their parents didn't approve of the partner, while others cited moving away, particularly for school. Other than that, the problem was simply that they were too young.

None of the successful participants found the breakup happened because they couldn't get along, and Kalish advised not going for it if you remember your partner being abusive. She said, "personalities don't change."

On the next page, we'll get into a striking example of why it's never too late to reunite if it's in your hearts.

Norwood Thomas and Joyce Morris reconnected after 70 years.

Thomas was an American paratrooper during World War II and met Morris while she was living in London. They fell in love and wrote each other after Thomas had to return to the States but they lost contact after Morris thought Thomas had met someone else.

However, their children helped them track each other down last year and a GoFundMe campaign helped Thomas make the trip to Australia to finally see her again.

While he was there, he was able to replace the gift he gave her.

During the war, Thomas gave her his parachute jump wings pin, but it was stolen from her towards the end of the conflict. When he met her again, he gave her a new one enclosed inside a small music box.

The two were able to spend a special Valentine's Day together.

They toured Australia and spent intimate moments reminiscing. Everywhere they went, people happily called out to them.

Be sure to COMMENT if you've ever reunited with an old flame.