by Joan Inong

Created on: January 29, 2009

Do you find dishes in the sink although you know you've just done them? Do you find your food mysteriously disappearing from the refrigerator? Are you constantly frustrated when you can't even watch your favorite television shows in your own apartment or house? You may be living with a roommate from hell.

The worst part about choosing a roommate is that you rarely know a person's character without having first lived with them. So, while you can ask seemingly important questions about cleanliness and respect for others' things, you won't know the real answers until you've lived with each another for quite some time.

If you're already living with a roommate from hell, you're probably up to your neck with complaints. She doesn't do the dishes. He has too many wild parties. She's racking up a huge electricity bill. He's just plain lazy. The problem with telling these people off is that you can't, or else you'll look like a crazy irate person. If you don't mind looking that way, however, then your dilemma has just been easily solved. If you can't do that, however, then you might try the most obvious, most possible action that doesn't risk you getting restraining orders: talk to your roommate.

Communication is key to any successful relationship, including relationships with roommates. Since you're going to share some sort of space together, you might as well try getting to know each other a little better. Now, you don't have to be happy-go-lucky friends; you certainly don't have to know each other's favorites and hobbies. But, the least you can do is listen to each other once in a while so that you know when you're getting in each other's "private space." Once you explain the guidelines to living together, you can share your space harmoniously.

If you first thought that you were getting along but then realized that you can't live together without wanting to rip each other's head off, then the best thing that you can do is to separate your ways. This is definitely better than having to put up with each other when you can just as easily find other places to happily live in. If you can, try to reconcile and figure out if your problems are small. If it's about who's not washing dishes or someone's having too many parties, then making amends and sacrifices is necessary. It's ultimately better to have made more friends and to have made as small a number of enemies as possible. A roommate shouldn't become an enemy since you share a space together. Handle your differences in an adult manner, and you'll be happier for it.

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