Sheryl Lee Ralph Reveals She and Her Husband of 20 Years Have Never Lived Together

Sheryl Lee Ralph and her husband, Vincent Hughes, are going on nearly two decades living apart, and there’s a good reason. Ralph, 69, married the Pennsylvania state senator in July 2005 and despite them being on opposite sides of the country, they are making it work even after all these years. “You fall in love with somebody, and you realize he’s not leaving his career,” the Abbott Elementary star told PEOPLE. “He’s not leaving Philadelphia. I’m not leaving Hollywood. When you have children, it’s very difficult.”

Ralph shares two kids with her first husband, Eric Maurice, whom she divorced in 2001. Despite living so far away from each other, they found a solution that works, as Ralph explained, “Every two weeks we saw each other, and it has continued to work out well. When I go to see him, I love to see him. When it’s time to leave, ‘Bye-bye. See you soon.’ I’m telling you, life is good. He has his own life. I have my own life. He has his own real career., I have my own real career. He has his light to stand in. I have my own light to stand in. He is not looking at me thinking about status or this or that. He’s doing his thing. I get to do my thing.”

It’s certainly refreshing to see how strong Ralph and Hughes are together and apart, showing that any relationship can make it no matter the distance. The couple will be celebrating their 20^th anniversary in July and Ralph knows how special that is, noting, “some people can’t even get through two. So it’s all good. It is all good.”

Having a healthy long-distance relationship is not all that is the key to a successful relationship. “I’ve evolved into [saying], ‘Let’s talk about it,’” Sheryl Lee Ralph explained. “If you sit in problems, you get anxious, depressed, and all the juiciness in life starts to dry up. I can’t have that, because all of that will mess with my good looks!”

Even though some people may think it’s a bit odd that Ralph and her husband have never lived together, they are both doing pretty well with keeping their relationship alive and are thriving in their respective careers. And they don’t seem to be going down so easily.