SINGAPORE: A netizen took to Reddit to ask what can be done if a woman falls asleep on the MRT and ends up resting her head on your shoulder, explaining that he wants to “minimise as much physical contact with her as possible… to avoid allegations of harassment or what not.”
When this happened to him, he said in a post on r/askSingapore that he “just got up and out of my seat leaving her to suddenly wake up after her head had nothing to rest onto anymore.”
And while he “felt kind of bad to disturb a sleeping person like that“ he added that it “also feels wrong if a female rests her head on your shoulder like that…”
A number of Reddit users, many of whom had the same experience, obliged him with answers, sparking a discussion that was both humorous and helpful.
“End of the day, if you can choose, always choose to be kind,” was one much-upvoted comment, with the Reddit user writing, “while it’s understandable you’d want to avoid any unnecessary issues about harassment and all that, you can just stay still or gently tap her on the shoulder to let her know. Pretty sure she’ll be more embarrassed than you.”
Another netizen who found himself in the same situation said he requested a woman commuter who was awake and sitting nearby to exchange seats with him.
“That way I avoided the potential of being called harassment even though its not my fault. In addition, the lady can sleep peacefully without much disturbance. Thankfully the lady whom I contacted with, willingly helped a bro out,” he added.
One chimed in, “Happened to me before, some student fell asleep onto my shoulder. I made sure to put my hands as far in front of me as possible so nobody can claim I am touching her. Then let her sleep until my stop.”
“I sort of nudged the person until he/she woke up,” wrote another.
Another agreed, writing, “Give her a nudge and say excuse me. You don’t want to be touched, she is touching you. You have every right to stop it.”
“Holdup OP, no one owes another stranger a shoulder pillow. It’s ok if you feel uncomfortable. Take the necessary precautions to keep yourself out of trouble,” wrote yet another individual.
One Reddit user wrote that it also happened to him, but instead of with a woman, it was one of his platoon’s section commanders.
Apparently, people fall asleep on strangers’ shoulders all over the world, and in one case, a woman who fell asleep on a man’s shoulder ended up in a relationship with him.
@osccoeddy20 Me enamoré 😍😰pero no la volveré a verlo🚃#viral #fyp #coincidencia distino o casualidad😥 #melendi #haash #boquitadecaramelo#bus #comparte
/TISG