November 5, 2026 at 4:55 pm

She Can’t Sleep in Silence, So She Keeps the TV on Low at Night. Her Landlord Says It Has to Be Off by 9 PM

by Jayne Elliott

woman in bed at night holding a remote control

Shutterstock

Imagine being woken up by a neighbor angrily knocking on your door and asking you to be quiet so his child can sleep. What would you do?

In this story, one woman was in this situation, and even though she was asleep, she understands why the neighbor complained about noise. She likes to sleep with the TV on since she has trouble sleeping in complete silence.

She tried to be accommodating, but the neighbor kept complaining.

Now, the landlord’s involved, and she’s really upset.

Keep reading for the whole story.

AITA for telling my neighbour i don’t care about his kid sleep?

I’m a 24y.o female living in flat in apartment. 2 weeks ago new neighbours moved into the flat above mine

Few things worth mentioning before i get to the point.I live in Ukraine, and yall know we at the war. Air-raid alerts and explosions happen every day in city where i live.

Usually i fall asleep with something playing in the background, on my phone or TV and i know not everyone wants to hear someone YT at 2 am so I keep the volume around 30–35% and noone ever said it bothered them or made them uncomfortable in any way.

Here’s some more context about her sleep struggles and her job.

I have PTSD and struggle to sleep in silence and trying to do so made me extremely anxious and i had several panic attacks, so background noise helps me feel safe enough to rest.

Sleeping in headphones isn’t really an option as it’s uncomfortable for me as hell.

I also work 24-hour shifts at a local hotel. Although I can sometimes sleep during night, I have to check on guests and take them to the shelter when necessary, so I usually get around 3-4h of sleep max, so after shift I’m exhausted.

A new neighbor complained.

About 2 weeks ago, a man knocked on my door at 1 a.m. He said he’s new upstairs neighbour and demanded that I turn off my TV because his child was sleeping.

Half-asleep and not wanting to argue, I switched TV off but turned my phone on.

The next day, after I’d gone to work and returned the next day around 10am same man rang again with the same stuff to complain.

She wasn’t even home!

I explained that I even wasn’t home that night and turned everything off before going out so wasn’t sure what he wanted from me.

He decided that my neighbour across was the one so he focused on him instead .

A few days later, on the night before another shift, I was trying to get as much rest as possible when he knocked again at 2 am.

I’d barely opened the door before he berated me: “Tonight is the only night that’s been quiet, without attacks or air alerts. Can’t you have some common sense and turn the TV off so my kid can sleep?”

She was really sick of his complaints.

I answered kinda sharply but i was mad at him already so I asked whether I was supposed to wait for an air-raid alert or something worse to be allowed watch TV, and pointed that if his child could sleep through attacks but not to quieter noises then he should look for other place to live.

Other neighbours have young children as well and have never complained about me once in all time i lived there.

I told him his child’s sleep isn’t my concern and not my responsibility so i don’t care if his kid sleeps or no then closed the door.

Now, the landlord is involved.

Yesterday while I was at work my landlord messaged me saying that TV has to be turned off by 9 pm.

Apparently, man had found her contact, caller her and complained that i was being loud and ruining his child’s sleep.

So today, as I’m now going back home, i was thinking to pay that man a visit and say few probably not so nice words about how what he’s done is not fair to me, and getting my landlord involved – is too much and he should care about his kid and not my TV been on.

AITA?

Fine, she has to turn the TV off. Maybe she could turn something else on, like her phone, or get a white noise machine so it’s not complete silence so she can sleep.

Let’s see how Reddit responded.

Here’s some advice.

2026 11 04 at 9.21.17 AM She Can’t Sleep in Silence, So She Keeps the TV on Low at Night. Her Landlord Says It Has to Be Off by 9 PM

Another person thinks she should turn the TV off.

2026 11 04 at 9.21.32 AM She Can’t Sleep in Silence, So She Keeps the TV on Low at Night. Her Landlord Says It Has to Be Off by 9 PM

This person thinks her TV is too loud.

2026 11 04 at 9.21.47 AM She Can’t Sleep in Silence, So She Keeps the TV on Low at Night. Her Landlord Says It Has to Be Off by 9 PM

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a neighbor who takes advantage of an inexhaustive HOA-approved plant list.

Another person suggests getting a second opinion.

2026 11 04 at 9.22.06 AM She Can’t Sleep in Silence, So She Keeps the TV on Low at Night. Her Landlord Says It Has to Be Off by 9 PM

Turning the TV off at 9pm seems a little ridiculous, but a white noise machine might solve the problem. It’s reasonable to not want to sleep in complete silence, but it’s also unreasonable to insist on having the TV on all night. Although, it sounds like she’s not the only noisy neighbor.

Living in an apartment comes with a certain level of noise. She’s going to have to keep it down.

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Jayne Elliott | Contributing Writer, Life & Drama

Jayne Elliott is a contributing writer and editor for TwistedSifter specializing in human interest stories, internet culture, and family dynamics. With over 12 years of editorial experience in digital publishing, Jayne excels at analyzing complex online communities and transforming viral social debates into thoughtful, highly engaging narratives.

Rather than simply aggregating internet drama, Jayne brings a sharp, empathetic editorial eye to everyday dilemmas. She has a unique talent for unpacking the nuances of pop culture and online conflicts, providing readers with relatable, well-researched commentary.

Based in California, Jayne spends her free time outside the newsroom exploring theme parks with her family or beach-combing along the coast.

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