Dear Abby: Clingy girlfriend = smothering wife?

Dear Abby I am a -year-old male who is days from being divorced For the past three months I have been dating a woman I ve known for years We love each other and plan to be married We have great times when we are together but struggle on the phone or with texting I m not sure why this is but she says it s because we need to be together all the time We generally see one another on weekends She says she has a tough time and cries a lot when I m not around My question is is this normal If I don t see her for two days she gushes that she missed me so much whereas I miss her but it s not a big deal to me We aren t married now so I m not in that frame of mind until we are What can we do Navigating Love in Florida Dear Navigating What your lady friend is telling you may seem like a protestation of devotion but it could instead be a red flag Her discomfort at being apart could eventually become smothering She s obviously emotionally needy Although you have discussed marriage PLEASE be sure the two of you have premarital counseling before proposing anything more than a warm friendship Dear Abby I have been a little sad lately The reason is that my best friend is acting weird It makes me wonder if our friendship is slowly going away Throughout our friendship we have consistently jokingly made fun of each other Lately it seems that anything I say makes it awkward and she hasn t been wanting to talk to me as often or acting the same way she did before I m afraid we are not going to be friends much longer which scares me How do I fix our friendship without asking for it upfront and without being weird Her Bestie in California Dear Bestie You may be scared but the only way you may be able to repair your friendship is to tell her how you are feeling Because you sense she is distancing herself you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by being honest A way to start the conversation would be to ask if you may have offended her in certain way with your jokes because if you did they weren t intended to be hurtful Dear Abby How does one overcome a fear of heights I have had it from the time I was a little girl There was a bridge I had to cross walking home from school I had to look down at my feet to cross it I of late purchased a condominium on the th floor in a high-rise building I love the view but I m too afraid to walk out on my balcony How do I overcome this Up High in Georgia Dear Up High You are far from the only person who has a fear of heights Consider installing certain waist-high plants in front of the patio railing This may allow you to enjoy your view without your knees wobbling If you try this DO NOT LOOK DIRECTLY DOWN I speak from experience Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren also known as Jeanne Phillips and was founded by her mother Pauline Phillips Contact Dear Abby at www DearAbby com or P O Box Los Angeles CA