10 Stages of Roommate Withdrawal You Go Through Over Winter Break

Before you know it, it's winter break and you're having roommate withdrawal. Here are the 10 stages of missing your roomie during break!

The countdown to Winter break occupies the mind of every college student. In the final hustle to push through finals, I can’t wait to escape the campus and my tiny cubicle of a dorm room to go home to my own room and my own space. But no matter how different my roommate and I are, I always find myself missing the company of someone who knows me so well, even too well. Here are the 10 stages of roommate withdrawal you experience when leaving your dorm room behind over winter break:

1. At first, you can’t wait to have a room to yourself.

You picture long nights of sleep and can’t wait to play your own music at full blast. An empty room means you don’t have to worry about awkward post-shower encounters or uninvited guests.

2. As you leave your dorm room, you breathe a sigh of relief.

The day has finally come. Your room is clean, and your things are packed. Leaving the last semester behind, the joy of home and solitude excites you, and you triumphantly ignore the nagging voice reminding you that you must say goodbye to your roommate.

3. The minute the door shuts, you begin to reconsider your excitement.

You start to remember all of your inside jokes and nonstop laughter with your roommate. Even though you have friends at home, none of them have experienced your late-night dance breaks while writing essays or your mutual scramble to caffeinate in the mornings.

4. On the journey home, you can’t stop communicating with your roommate.

Your phone constantly pings with texts from your roommate, and you continue to update each other on the progress of your trip. She knows exactly where all the cuties are sitting on your plane and that you are suffering next to a crying baby in the back. Likewise, you hear all about the traffic jam on her way home.

5. Your empty room at home seems a little too lonely.

At some point, you will wake up in the night, frantically searching for your roommate. When you realize the situation, you still cannot shake the feeling of loneliness and responsibility. What if she is lonely or out too late all by herself with nobody to look out for her?

6. Nobody is there to listen to you rant about your relatives and the household chores.

Let’s face it: your parents, siblings, and high school friends do not want to hear your complaints about these so-called trials of Winter break. You find yourself biting your tongue and trying to memorize all your thoughts to tell your roommate as soon as you return.

7. You resort to counting down the days until your roommie reunion.

You cannot quite wrap your head around the workload for next semester, but you can countdown to the moment you step into your dorm again. You set a reminder on your phone every day to remember exactly how much time is left, and you record this process on various forms of social media.

8. Planning for next semester becomes a welcome pastime.

By the end of break, you have an extensive list of roommate adventures perfect for the next semester. You catalogue all the potential dates, including food to try and sights to see.

9. As the end of Winter break approaches, you can’t contain your excitement.

You continuously message your roommate over all forms of social media with updates regarding your return to school. The trip back to school couldn’t last any longer; you can’t wait to return to campus!

10. You realize how grateful you are for your roommate, despite the difficulties.

Once you are back in the cubicle that is your dorm room and you face the struggles of cramped living quarters, the reality of having a roommate sets in. Sleep is not as restful and time alone is scarce, but, in the end, you love being yourself around your roommate. Nobody will understand you in the same way as someone you live, breathe, and study with.