10 Ways To Deal With A Bad Roommate

Whether you’re traveling or moving in with someone new for a long period of time, you never know when you’ll end up with a roommate from hell. It’s hard to know where you will end up staying when you’re constantly on the move and after a while you will probably end up having to stay with someone who stinks, is a complete mess, or is just a downright asshole.

Here are a few different ways you can deal with a bad roommate situation so you’re not stuck feeling miserable.

1. Talk It Out

The easiest way to deal with someone is to simply talk about your issues with one another. If they are being loud and you’re trying to sleep, instead of getting flustered and yelling at them to be quiet, calmly tell them to quiet down and they will probably listen to you. It’s easy to get upset, but snapping on them will just escalate the situation.

2. Negotiate

If they are a complete mess or you both have a different issue with one another, try to negotiate and come to an agreement. Most people are pretty sensible and will agree to keep their mess in their areas or to not be loud while you’re trying to sleep.

3. Find Some Alone Time

Sometimes all you need is to be by yourself. If you are constantly around your roommate it’s easy to begin getting annoyed at the little things. Spend a day away from them and see how you feel later in the night or even in the morning.

4. Ignore them

If you are only staying together for a night or two, it’s probably best to ignore whatever their bad habits are as long as they’re not too extreme. You’ll be gone soon enough and it’s not worth the confrontation that could escalate a situation.

5. Contact the Staff

If you’re roommate is being rude and you don’t want to talk to them yourself, you can contact the staff and they should be able to help you. Their job isn’t to mediate the situation, but they may be able to upgrade you or kick out your roommate.

6. Find a New Place

It may just be worth it to get a new place and avoid the hassle all together. I’m not a fan of conflict at all, and if your roommate is coming back drunk and belligerent every night while you’re trying to sleep, it’s time to get out of there.

7. Share Your Personality

Show your roommate that you’re a human too, and that you deserve respect. Let them know what you’re interested in and ask them what they like. You may find a common ground even though you seem like completely opposite people. Music, books, and movies have certainly brought together people before.

8. Create a List Of Ground Rules

Setting up a list of rules that everyone agrees upon to is a good way to avoid a bad situation in the first place. You can set rules on things like quiet time, permission to use your belongings, and if eating each other’s food is okay. If they don’t want to follow the rules after agreeing to them it’s time to move.

9. Go Out Together

While you may be seeing them multiple times a day, you may not actually be spending any time with them doing things to figure out who they are. Taking a trip to get some food or going to a museum and increase the bond between roommates and can make living together easier.

10. Be Considerate

Whatever you are feeling about them, they may be feeling about you as well. Living with other people, especially strangers, can be extremely difficult. It’s important to understand that you both need your own space, deserve respect, and time alone.

Have you ever had any bad roommate situations? Let others know in the comments how you dealt with it!