A teacher says her new downstairs neighbors filled her apartment with weed smoke, putting her career at risk—and now she’s wondering if she went too far by reporting them.
Let’s Break It Down
The Backstory and Early Dynamics
The situation started quietly enough.
The poster lives in a three-floor townhouse, occupying the top two floors, while the new neighbors moved into the ground floor just nine days ago.
Almost immediately, her apartment began to smell strongly of weed.
Not just occasionally—but constantly.
She runs two air purifiers, yet the smell still lingers throughout her home. As a teacher, she says this isn’t just uncomfortable—it’s dangerous. If she ever smelled like weed at work, she could lose both her job and her teaching certification.
Trying to handle it maturely, she went downstairs on day one to talk it out.
The Moment Things Shifted
The neighbor apologized and explained that sometimes his mother-in-law visits and smokes weed for cancer-related reasons.
Wanting to be understanding, the poster didn’t demand a full stop.
She simply asked for two things:
- That they try to mask the smell
- That they give her a heads-up when it might happen
But the agreement didn’t last.
Over the next several days, the smell didn’t improve—it got worse. She never received a warning message. Eventually, she left a written note asking them to stop or find a way to prevent the smoke from traveling upstairs.
Still, nothing changed.
The Final Confrontation
One morning, the smell became overwhelming.
It filled her entire apartment from top to bottom.
At that point, she decided to contact the landlord—especially since the building is explicitly non-smoking.
She later added another key detail: she teaches private music students on her third floor. Having her home smell like weed isn’t just a personal issue—it directly affects her livelihood.
But after sending that message to the landlord, doubt crept in.
Had she escalated too quickly?
The Fallout
Now she’s stuck in limbo, waiting to see how the landlord responds—and wondering how badly this could sour things with neighbors she’s barely had time to know.
On one hand, she tried to communicate.
On the other, reporting someone can feel like crossing a line.
So she turned to Reddit for judgment.
What Reddit Thinks
Most commenters would likely lean NTA (Not the A-hole).
Common themes in the responses:
- A no-smoking lease is a no-smoking lease
- Her career is on the line
- She already tried resolving it privately
Sample reactions:
“NTA. You talked to them first. Multiple times. This is literally why landlords exist.”
“Their medical situation is sad, but it doesn’t override your right to a smoke-free home.”
“If it was once in a while, maybe. But constant weed smell after nine days? Nope.”
A small minority might suggest alternative solutions—like suggesting edibles or vaporizers—but even they admit the responsibility isn’t hers.
A Final Thought
Living in shared spaces means balancing empathy with boundaries—but when someone’s job and reputation are at risk, how much understanding is too much?