Article: This should take place in person and not via email or social media. Talking face-to-face allows the other person to not only hear what is being said but also see that you are concerned. Try to be careful to label the behavior and not judge your roommate. Since moodiness can sometimes have a very real and physical cause, it's not fair to focus on the roommate being "wrong" or "bad." Say something like "Hey, I've been noticing you're in a bad mood a lot lately. Do you want to talk about it?" Discuss observations of the behavior instead of evaluations of the roommate. You might tell him or her that "You come off as rude to my guests" or "Your attitude makes the living environment tense." Set clear boundaries so that you can be helpful with the process, but you don't want to end up acting as a therapist to your roommate. Approach the issue as you would a friend, with a compassionate tone of voice. Bring up the subject by saying something like "Hey, I've noticed you've been really stressed lately. I get stressed sometimes, too. How about we brainstorm some ways we can both manage or prevent stressful situations?" Work with your roommate to identify what causes the majority of his or her stress and offer to help with possible solutions. Your roommate may become moody around finals because he or she puts off studying. If this is the case, offer study tips or to help with better time management early in the term. You can work with your roommate to let him or her know that a break or chill time is needed. Remember that you do not need to become best friends, but you need to set some sort of ground rules to enable the two of you to live together peacefully. For example you may tell your roommate that he or she is getting upset by telling them you can see that their mind is "working a mile a minute" or another key phrase you agree on. This will trigger them to reflect on what is currently happening and take a break to perform self-care. Having a signal that is not obvious to those around you can be helpful to not call attention to your roommate's moods outside of your room.
What is a summary of what this article is about?
Call out the moody behavior in conversation. Help your roommate learn to manage stress. Come up with a signal.