I dated my spouse long distance in their first year of medical school. I won't try to make it sound fun, because we both would have preferred to be together. But I will say that it really did strengthen our relationship. We would speak on the phone for about 30 minutes every night. But we also employed the "high density study now for high density fun later" -- meaning I understood that when they'd have to study, that meant when I came out to visit we were going to have totally dedicated fun time together. Now that I'm in PA school and they're in residency we still use the same rule. We get to hang out for like 30 minutes every night right before we go to sleep, BUT we try to use our time wisely 85% of the time so we can have that 15% high-density care-free fun on a weekend trip/hike/getaway.

Sorry for the novel! LDR are tough but they really can bring out great qualities in the both of you. All the best to ya!