Living with anyone is always going to be an adjustment, but an introvert living with an extrovert is the adjustment of a lifetime. Unfortunately, no matter how awesome your friendship is, happily co-existing with another human being is one of the toughest experience you'll go through; here are 5 struggles every introvert living with an extrovert will know to be true:
1. The pity
If your roommate is an extrovert then you know the struggle of being pitied for not wanting to be social. Please do not pity me when I tell you I do not want to go out; nobody is forcing me to stay home with my cat. I am choosing to do this. Trust me, I would much rather binge watch "Prison Break" while eating jalapeño chips than go out and socialize. I understand you have FOMO, (a catchy acronym used only by extroverts to explain their fear of missing out of a social event) But FOMO is not something I experience, so thank you for your concern but there is really no need to pity me.
2. Constantly hearing the phrase: "Come on! It'll be fun!"
If you live with an extrovert, chances are you've heard the phrase "Just come with us! It'll be fun!" When you know very well it will not be fun. And if you do end up giving in to the persuasion, you know you'll regret it as soon as you leave.
3. Talking, so much talking
My extroverted roommate feels the need to tell everyone about her bad day while I, on the other hand, would rather just take a nap or read a book. I definitely do not want to talk about my day. As an introvert, I simply do not understand how she has so much to say. It is honestly impressive at how much my extrovert roommate has to say about any given topic. I don't understand.
4. Being forced to follow through with plans
Following through with plans is something I hardcore struggle with. I often find myself making plans to be social early on in the week and by the time the weekend arrives I'm secretly hoping the plans fall through. However, the lovely extroverted roommate never forgets that I promised to be social.
5. Having to schedule when to hang out
Between work, classes, homework, and studying, it’s hard to maintain a balanced life. “Spend time with roommate” gets pushed to the bottom of the to-do list. Spending quality roommate time together can be challenging when the two of you are so different. I need my alone time while my roommate needs to be around others. As a result of this, she will often over-schedule herself to ensure she’ll be kept busy. While we both have demanding majors and other friends, it's crucial to maintain our friendship by making time for each other, even if it's as simple as making dinner and watching a movie at the apartment.
Despite your personality differences, if you can find a good balance that suits both your needs, you may just have a friendship that will last a lifetime.
Love you long time, roomie.
