Sharing a bed can be sweet… until someone starts behaving like they’re the only one in it.
Most couples find a rhythm, but certain habits test even the strongest relationships. If any of these sound familiar, there’s a good chance your bedmate’s quietly plotting to kick you out (or at least nudge you halfway off the mattress). Obviously, you can’t help some of these, but you can be more aware and try to be more considerate where possible.
1. Hogging the duvet like it’s a personal right
It starts innocently—just a little tug here and there. But somehow, you’ve ended up with all the duvet wrapped around your body like a sushi roll, while your bedmate shivers on the edge with half a sheet for warmth. They might put up with it for a few nights, but no one enjoys losing a nightly tug-of-war. If you’re waking up fully cocooned while they’re questioning their life choices, it might be time to reconsider your quilt-sharing technique.
2. Setting multiple alarms but never actually getting up
There’s nothing quite like being jolted awake every ten minutes by someone else’s alarm—especially when they hit snooze over and over and still don’t move. It’s like sleeping next to a badly programmed car horn. You might think it helps you ease into the day, but your partner’s already been awake, annoyed, and fully resenting you for 40 minutes. If you’re not getting up, stop setting alarms like you are.
3. Talking in your sleep about absolute nonsense
Sleep talking might sound harmless—until you’ve been woken up at 2am by someone mumbling about lost train tickets or asking where the cheese has gone. It’s confusing, occasionally creepy, and always disruptive. Your bedmate doesn’t need to join your dream journey. They just want to sleep without hearing half a sentence followed by eerie silence and sudden laughter. Fair enough, really.
4. Using all the pillows and still not being comfortable
They’ve got one pillow. You’ve got three, and you’re still stealing part of theirs in the middle of the night. Somehow, you’ve created a fortress, and they’re lying on what feels like a dishcloth. It’s not about how many pillows you need—it’s about taking more than your share and still flailing around like you’ve been robbed. Sleep equality matters. Pillows should be shared, not stockpiled.
5. Getting into bed freezing cold and expecting cuddles
Source: Unsplash You’ve been walking around barefoot, in shorts, probably left the window open—and now you’re using your partner like a human radiator. They were warm. They were cosy. And now they’re wide awake and mildly traumatised. Nothing says “I love you” like icy feet on warm skin, apparently. If you know you’re freezing, maybe warm up first instead of turning your bedmate into an unwilling heat source.
6. Tossing and turning like you’re in a wrestling match
Some people move in their sleep. And then there are those who perform full gymnastics routines at 3am. One minute they’re curled up, the next they’ve elbowed you in the ribs mid-rollover. It’s not just the movement—it’s the suspense of never knowing when the next flail is coming. Sleep becomes a contact sport, and your partner’s the one getting knocked out.
7. Scrolling on your phone while they’re trying to sleep
You might think you’re being subtle, but that little screen lights up the whole room like a football stadium. And that constant tapping? It’s enough to push even the calmest person over the edge. If your partner’s already drifting off, put the phone down. They don’t need to be kept awake while you scroll through videos of things that won’t matter in the morning anyway.
8. Taking up way more space than you actually need
Somehow you start the night on your side, and wake up diagonally across the bed, limbs everywhere, like a starfish mid-expansion. Meanwhile, your partner’s squashed into the last six inches of mattress like a hostage. Bed sharing is about give and take, not full mattress domination. If you’re spreading out like you own the place, you’re not sleeping together—you’re sleeping over them.
9. Snoring so loudly it sounds personal
They say you can’t help snoring, but when it reaches that next level—like a blocked lawnmower with a grudge—it starts to feel like a choice. Especially when your partner’s wide awake and planning how to gently smother you with a pillow. If you’re regularly rattling the windows with your nostrils, it might be time to look into solutions. Or, at the very least, stop insisting it’s “not that bad.” They’re living with it. They know.
10. Refusing to compromise on bedroom temperature
You want the heating on full blast, they want the window cracked open. So now you’re both sweating and shivering in turn, locked in a silent war over the thermostat that’s lasted since autumn. Temperature clashes are real, and ignoring your partner’s comfort for your own is a fast way to build long-term resentment. The goal is sleep, not winning the indoor climate battle.
11. Falling asleep mid-conversation
Source: Unsplash Your partner’s opening up, sharing something from their day, finally relaxing… and you’re snoring before they finish the sentence. It might not be on purpose, but it feels dismissive all the same. Falling asleep on someone while they’re talking doesn’t make them feel heard—it makes them feel boring. If you’re that tired, let them know. Don’t nod along like you’re still there when you’re mentally already gone.
12. Waking up outrageously early and clattering around
If you’re a morning person, good for you. But your partner shouldn’t be dragged into your sunrise routine by clunky drawers, loud kettle boils, and heavy-footed pacing like you’re on a mission. Tiptoeing isn’t just polite; it’s essential. You might be ready to seize the day, but they’re still trying to survive the night. Let them have their sleep without feeling like they’re in a construction site at 6am.
