Gabriel- I totally agree with you on what you said.
"Daily contact makes change less obvious"-(one day I will learn to quote...lol)
Mostly in the PHYSICAL sense as you stated. Our S's know us pretty much inside and out. They know what to expect from us from being with us for x amount of years.
When you start to change your behavior they can not help but notice that and it can be accomplished seeing them on a daily basis. They don't always acknowlege it at first but they still see it.
I am proof of that. H now does acknowledge the changes I have made and will make comments of how "I saw the change a while back"....hence that they DO notice.
I guess if you had no/very little contact then the physical part would come into play more so.
I do think your W misses you She just doesn't want to admit it right now. And you can bet she sees your changes. Just keep being consistent and make her know that the changes are here to stay!