With all the uncertainty, I ran away from my Hamline Apartment to my parent’s house in Fredericksburg Virginia. With that though, came rooming with my parents.
During the times of Covid-19 can be a bit different than living with them during a normal summer. Trapped with them, unable to leave, with only each other as entertainment, it can feel overwhelming. But it’s best to remember that the rules of etiquette for rooming with anyone can be applied to your parents.
Be respectful of everyone’s space. I’ve found that, yes you can spend too much time with someone. Your room is your own, and so are your parents or roommates. In this time, if someone finds comfort in a messy room, that’s on them, and if someone needs to organize and move everything, then that works too.
It can also be handy to figure out everyone’s schedule. When everyone is on a video call at once, you won’t want to disturb anyone. Make sure that you aren’t bothering anyone as they’re trying to work.
Another thing to keep in mind is that everyone has their own stress level. My stress level seems to go up when I’m watching the news constantly and I’m thinking of things I can’t control. Unfortunately, it seems like my parents always want to talk about Covid-19 and watch the news. Our different needs and stress levels mean that we need to compromise. When the news is on and I feel myself getting overwhelmed, I go to a different room or multitask with cross stitch so I’m not fully listening to the news. After getting my parents hooked on Schitt’s Creek, we’ve set up times at night when we watch it, so all of our minds can shut down and depress for a time before I go to bed.
It’s always good to have a set routine for mental health and sleep schedules. But it’s also good to be spontaneous. Look on Pinterest for some random group craft project or go for a drive. Being stuck with the same people day in and out can be a lot, but it can be even worse if all you do is the same things repeatedly, letting days blend together.
Like most relationships it isn’t good if one person is making all the effort. Make sure if one person from your household makes plans for random fun days, that you every now and then plan something else fun to do. What are you craving to do? Want to make a cake? Go for it. Want to randomly go for a drive. Do it. Invite those around you, or if you all are getting in each other’s hair, take some time to yourself.
And it’s okay too if you don’t want to be productive. Productivity isn’t fun or relaxing. And looking back from it, anything fun I remember doing with my parents in the past wasn’t productive. Random days of painting, or just sitting on the porch drinking tea, are what I remember the most. And I’m pretty sure from these days of isolation with my family, what I will remember isn’t the horrible times or us getting annoyed, but us doing random things together that had nothing to do with nothing.
Living with roommates or parents in these times of Covid-19 means making boundaries while also accounting for that we all need someone during this time to not fully go insane in our own minds. As long as everyone is respectful, we might just make it through this without killing each other.