How I Got Stuck All Night Like a Rookie

I locked myself in my bathroom last night, and it wasn’t until this morning that I finally got out. I still haven’t fully recovered, but let me give you the gist while it’s still fresh.

When the rain started, I got up to close my bathroom window. The wind was so strong that it slammed the door shut. Unfortunately, my bathroom door only has a knob on the outside, not inside. I didn’t even realize what had happened until I finished and tried to open the door.

I’ve lived here for almost a year and I’ve always been extra careful to avoid this situation, but I guess it was bound to happen eventually. While everyone else was asleep, enjoying the sound of the rain, I was stuck in my bathroom, in the dark, without my phone. Of course, the power went out too — because why wouldn’t it?

At first, I panicked. That’s when I confirmed that I really am claustrophobic. The bathroom is actually spacious, but in that moment, it felt like the walls were closing in. I didn’t want to start screaming at midnight, so I told myself to hold on until morning. Honestly, it was the longest night of my life.

When daylight finally came, I turned into a full drama queen: climbed up on the toilet seat, grabbed the window bars, and started yelling “Help! Somebody please help me!” from the top floor of a three-storey building. The embarrassment was unreal. I would shout a little, rest, then shout again until I actually started laughing at myself.

Eventually, a woman in the next compound heard me and came to raise the alarm. The funniest part? I’d been calm all night, but the second I heard my neighbor call my name at my door, I completely broke down. Tears, shaking, everything.

When he asked about my key, I couldn’t even explain that I had double-locked the main door and left the key in the keyhole. They eventually forced the main door open and finally released me from my little prison.

Lesson learned: I’ve now “child-proofed” the door and plan to check it every couple of days. I refuse to ever be caught in that situation again.
Bathroom:1 Me: 0
Please check on me, because I am traumatized.
#THANK YOU ALL FOR READING