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Roommates

What Do I Do If My Roommate Steals My Food?

You head to the fridge and notice that your milk is almost gone, that someone ate your chips, or that somehow your entire carton of ice cream has completely disappeared.  If you know it isn’t you, there can really only be one reason why everything is almost/completely gone:  Your roommate.

The first thing to do is assess the situation.  How much are they snagging?  If it’s only a little, maybe you just want to let it slide.  In a lot of ways, it’s not worth confronting your roommate over a few chips.  However, if it is a constant problem, or they are stealing all or almost all of your food, it’s really time to say something.

Like with many other situations with your roommate, it is best to speak with them about any issues rather than not saying anything or just letting things slide.  This is because your roommate won’t know that what they’re doing bothers you, whether you think they should or not, and it will just make you more and more upset as time goes on.

It’s also not a good idea to immediately confront your roommate about any situation like this.  In most cases you will say something you don’t mean, and your roommate may react poorly.  Therefore, it’s best to plan out what you’re going to say before you say it and figure out a good time to sit down to talk with your roommate.

It’s a good idea to keep your talk about the behaviors that your roommate is doing, rather than attributing the problem to personality flaws.  It also best to work on ways that you can both get what you want.  Maybe the problem is that you two should be splitting the grocery bill a little bit more!

Overall, handling your roommate stealing your food, or any other roommate problem, doesn’t have to be terrifying or frustrating.  All it takes is a cool head, a plan, and a workable solution for both you and your roommate.

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Roommates, Student Life

Talking with Your Roommate About Their Significant Other

You love your roommate; you get along well, they share their equal part of the responsibilities, and everything seems to be going great.  However, you start to realize that your roommate’s significant other starts showing up more often.  Whether they are great or not, it can be difficult finding out that you will be rooming with your roommate’s girlfriend or boyfriend, too.  It can be overwhelming for you, especially when they start eating your food, and parking themselves in the common areas.  So what do you do?

Photo from ohmyapt.apartmentratings.com

Well it’s best to say something to your roommate, especially if the situation is really starting to bother you.  However, it certainly isn’t as easy as it sounds, because really:  How do you tell you roommate that you don’t want their significant other around as much, or that the things they do bother you?  Here are some things to keep in mind when you do decide to talk to your roommate about it:

Be aware of their feelings on the issue.  Before you say anything, think about how you would feel if you were in their shoes.  Use that as a basis for how you would want to approach your roommate about their significant other.  You especially don’t want to go in with guns blazing, and end up fighting with your roommate.

Refer to the behaviors that bother you the most.  Talk with your roommate about the behaviors that bother you the most, and specifically how those behaviors make you feel.  Avoid making it about their significant other’s personality; it won’t end well, as your roommate will think you are personally attacking them and their significant other.

Try to come to a solution where all of you can win.  Maybe the things that bother you the most are really just that their boyfriend or girlfriend doesn’t pitch in with buying common foods, that they leave the dishes in the sink, or they leave their belongings in the common areas.  These are things that can certainly be fixed very easily.  By suggesting realistic and logical solutions to the problem, you can ensure that everyone wins.

The key is to keeping it simple, and being mindful of how you would feel if you were in their situation.  It’s always best to strategize first before getting into any discussion with your roommate about their significant other, so that you don’t say something you didn’t mean to say.  Just think ahead about what behaviors bother you the most, what solutions you could take to fix the problem, and what your roommate’s possible reactions might be.

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