Society teaches us to be kind and accommodating to others, which can make it difficult to learn how to stand up for yourself, even while already standing up in your own apartment situated beneath unbearably noisy upstairs neighbors. Here’s how you can stop people from walking all over you, in spite of the fact that your upstairs neighbors aren’t going anywhere, and will continue to literally walk all over you until the day you inevitably move out.
Set healthy boundaries.
Whether it be physical or emotional, setting boundaries is an essential way to stop others from taking advantage of you. Even though physical boundaries (ceiling and walls) do nothing to stop your upstairs neighbors from clanking around every waking minute, emotional boundaries can be a great way to not let their carpet-avoidant ways get to you. Communicate your annoyance by banging on your ceiling with a broom like they do in 90s sitcoms. If that doesn’t work, maybe try meditating?
Learn how to say “no”.
The word “no” is a powerful communication tool that many people are afraid to use. Saying “no” to going out when you don’t want to, saying “no” to picking up a shift, and saying “no” to going home for the holidays are all excellent ways to advocate for yourself and get people to stop walking all over you, except for your upstairs neighbors, that is. No matter what you do or say, they will still spend 18-22 hours per day walking endless laps directly above you. Take this opportunity to work on muttering, “No, no, no,” as you slowly descend into madness.
Take responsibility for your own life.
You control how you spend your time and energy. You don’t have to be a victim of other people’s actions or decisions. Instead of saying that you had to wash your roommate’s dirty dishes, acknowledge that it was your choice to do them instead of asking her to do them herself. Instead of insisting that your upstairs neighbors kept you up until 3 a.m. playing what sounded like a contentious game of indoor bocce ball, acknowledge that it was your choice to not break your lease, find an entirely new place to live, pack up all of your earthly possessions, and move away in the dead of night.
In the end, the most important thing to remember is that you are the creator of your own destiny. However, no amount of boundaries you set or no’s you utter will stop your upstairs neighbors from adopting a Quarter Horse or practicing hopscotch at 1 a.m. or whatever the fuck they do that makes it impossible for you to enter REM sleep.
