Most of us aren’t going to be blessed with having a roommate we’re best friends with, in fact it’s common to not even like who we’re living with especially if they’re a random person. College can be a hard transition for a lot of us, and having a bad roommate definitely doesn’t help with that situation. It’s hard to share a space with somebody when you have different living habits, different social schedules, or straight up just don’t like each other. A lot of the time you can put up with them, but at a certain point it can become too much. So many people have gone through this experience, including many of my friends, so I’ve listed the things you can and should do when you’re in this situation.
How to put up with your roommate if you can’t get out of your situation:
- Talk to each other about your needs. As someone who doesn’t mind confrontation I know how hard it can be for a lot of people, but you shouldn’t be walking on eggshells when you’re paying to share the living space with them. Discuss with your roommate/roommates the things they do that you don’t like, and listen to them if they have any complaints about you, and figure out a way to work it out and compromise with each other because you’re sharing the place, it is not completely about you or them
- Put up boundaries. If they are taking your stuff without your permission or bringing over people you feel uncomfortable with, be stern about where you draw the line and if they continue to cross it then bring it up to an RA, and worst comes to worst maybe file a complaint if they refuse to stop what they’re doing.
- Find friends on your floor or a place in your building/on campus where you can go so you don’t have to be around your roommate. If you can’t focus on your homework or you just feel uncomfortable with being in your space and they won’t leave, having a safe place can be good for you.
- Find a friend who doesn’t have a roommate and see if you can just stay at their place temporarily so you don’t have to be around your roommate.
If you have done everything in your ability to make it work but you just can’t put up with living with them anymore, it is time to find a new room or building. If you are in a dorm find out if there’s an open spot in your dorm or move to a different dorm. If you are in an apartment see if they have any open spots for your floor plan. For a lot of us we’ve seen how bad it can be to share a living space with someone else so we’re scared to try again with somebody new. However, if the situation is this bad you have no idea if the next available person will be as bad so you have nothing to lose. There’s no guarantee that a new person will be better, but you never know. It is important to feel comfortable where you’re living, and sometimes it won’t always go our way, but you shouldn’t feel the need to stay in a situation that causes you problems.