It’s taken a while, but you’ve found the person of your dreams. Or more to the point, you realized that the person of your dreams was someone you had been dating. Realizing this, you have decided to try to win your ex back, even though it has been six months since he broke up. That’s still possible, right?

Well, yes, but it’s going to be difficult. It’s a tough task to woo a stranger, but adding history with that person can really complicate things. If you are going to reconnect, you will need to follow several steps:

Optimize your personal situation: When you reconnect, you’re going to want to be at your best. Make sure you are in good physical shape, dress well, maybe a new haircut; you want your ex to see you as the best possible fit for him, to make him a great case for you. Ideally, the six months you’ve had since the relationship have been good for you, but even if it’s not, you’ll want to make sure you put on your best face; If it looks like you spent your time apart crying over them into a bowl of ice cream, you’re out of luck.

Get back in touch with your ex: You must have some way to communicate with the person you broke up with, by phone, email, or even a letter. Given the current state of communication, the best method to use is probably a text message. They’re common, personal, but not too intimate, and they allow you and your ex some time between messages to think and reflect, preventing things from getting too heated and old tensions coming up too soon.

start carefully: You don’t want to push too hard when you first reconnect. You will need to start working carefully and slowly towards the actual dates in real life. Depending on your gender and the nature of your previous relationship, you may be the one asking for the first (new) date, or you may want to wait for your ex to make the switch. Which is the best method is something a bit beyond the scope of this article.

Build up momentum slowly: Once you’ve started dating in person, you’ll want things to move as smoothly as possible. The more dates you can go on and the closer you get to your ex, the better your chances of a successful new relationship. Hopefully, you can still connect; It’s complicated with anyone, although you have the advantage of knowing more about your ex than a stranger. Although, with those connections come some difficulties; you need to be sure that you:

Acknowledge past problems: There must be some reason why your relationship ended in the first place; you need to get past that for things to work. When to bring this up is obviously a big question, the answer to which largely depends on what broke the relationship off in the first place. It could take a great deal of effort to find an ideal time to bring things up. Don’t try to hide it though; anything powerful enough to break a relationship is sure to come up at some point. It is better to face things head on than to try to hide them; your ex will think better of you for it.

Expect a rocky start: Things will not be easy at first and it may take a while before your relationship reaches a level of full recovery. Do not lose hope! If you are truly meant to be with this person, you will get through the rough times and end up in an even stronger relationship than you had before.