A loud 20 or 30hz sound will remind the noisy neighbors that they don't live alone in the building.

Play loud music at 3:00 AM.

Be Sure to wear ear protection.

Good thing it didn't blow up because that would be loud.

Neighbor upstairs walks too loud?!? Neighbor's children make noise?!?

It's called life in the big city kids. Deal with it.

Look, all decisions come with trade-offs. One of the trade-off for living in the city is you have to deal with other people's daily nonsense. For that you get culture, short commutes, and nightlife (among other things).

If you can't deal living in close confines with other people, then move out of the city. Sure your commute will be longer, there will be less culture, and the nightlife will suck, but you won't have to deal with some busybody downstairs who has decided that you walk around your house too loudly or too often for their tastes.

Have a chat with your neighbor now before things get out of hand; chances are he doesn't know he's being that loud. Don't do it in the middle of the night and certainly don't be a jerk about it. And once you've talked to the guy & worked things out do NOT run around to your other neighbors & complain to them about the situation about your upstairs neighbor - that just makes YOU the jerk.

To my embarrassment I was the upstair neighbor making too much noise late one evening by using a Dustbuster which I honestly didn't think was that loud & which I previously had never used that late at night. My downstairs neighbor - who had been consistently rude to me since the day I moved in - knocked on my door at 12:30AM & proceeded to bitch at me for making so much noise. I apologized profusely since I was clearly in the wrong, promised to never do it again & thought that was the end of it. Two days later I came upon her complaining LOUDLY to another neighbor in the lobby about the incident in vivid detail - she didn't even have the decency to look embarrassed & shut up after she saw me standing there, although my other neighbor did. I contacted a realtor that day & made a point of wearing heels in my apartment the rest of the time I lived on top of that nutjob. Perhaps not surprisingly she never complained about my making noise again.

I feel your pain LW, I really do.

I agree with Cary. Don't tell your landlord the truth and/or ask him/her to be more quiet. It won't work. Make up some story. Read your lease carefully and consult a lawyer for advice about terminating a lease in your particular state. You will probably have to negotiate a sum of money, maybe 2-3 months rent or maybe your security deposit + 1 month rent to break the lease. It is worth it to pay this money so that you can amicably part from this landlord and get a good reference for your next apartment, and to prevent damage to your credit. Then leave ASAP.

For 3 years, when I was unable to work, and seldom able to even leave my apartment due to severe illness, I was financially forced to live above a paranoid schizophrenic who blasted music from 8am until 10pm every damn day. He was crazy, but he knew the law about noise complaints. As long as he turned off the music by 10pm, the police did nothing. He had a long term Section 8 lease, meaning the government guaranteed payment of his rent, so the landlord would do nothing either. Those years of constant bombardment by his high decibel torture destroyed my own life long, very great love of music. All I wanted to hear was quiet, the complete absence of any sound. It's been 10 years since I moved and I have regained some ability to enjoy music, but it will never be the same.

Leave fast LW, before you develop a permanent sleep disorder or other health problems due to sleep deprivation and stress.

LW, the weekend is here, so you need to plan a day off. Here's what I would suggest: Plan a full day when you have no work to do, no errands to catch up on, or anything else to distract you, and spend the day in bed. Yes, the whole day. No pressure to get to sleep or to stay asleep -- none of that. Have your favorite healthy foods on hand, your favorite books or CDs or even a movie (but no more than one . . . and no television, the news and commercials are too distracting). Doze off whenever. Wake up the same way. Pay attention to your dreams. Notice, without judging, the daytime and nightime sounds around you. Don't schedule any time to worry, about anything. Give yourself a real vacation.

I have always found that relaxation CDs help immensely. If you've never tried them, you'll be astounded at how helpful they are. There are also ambient noise machines and various mini-biofeedback gadgets that many people swear by. Look them up on the Internet and see what you think. In your position, I think I would try them all.

Another technique that has helped me to handle noise from other people is to say to myself "it's all so far away," over and over. The noise itself would be the cue to immediately start saying that to myself. It has worked pretty well for me.

Before tackling yet another to-do list -- before anything else -- you need an immediate fix. Try this, and see whether all of your problems seem less insurmountable in the morning. The following morning, I mean.

A whole day in bed. No cheating.

i lived in a dorm room for 4 years. i can sleep thru chaos. BUT i can also understand your pain, as i have done a bit of apartment living and the drunks above us were insane. last time i was in a sucky situation at the end of my lease i moved in with my husband to be~ so it was actually a motivator to move on with my own life:) first, can you get ear plugs? white noise maker? fan? secondly, can you hang wall hangings, anything at all that is soft and material-ish, even rug remnants, on your walls and ceiling? this well help insulate a bit. and finally, make a vow to yourself to save every last penny towards a downpayment on a house. don't do anything fancy at all- and watch it start to add up as this year of hell ticks by. so sorry for you, i know it sucks, but thanks goodness it won't be forever (although at 4 am it FEELS like forever i am sure.) good luck.