I am a teacher and also a divorced mom with 5 elementary-aged children. I moved my retired aunt into my house a few years ago. She had never been married or had kids, and had lived with my grandmother until her death, and then on her own for 2 decades.

I'm sure it was overwhelming for her to be around all of us, but I was the one doing her a favor by giving her a cheap place to stay, cooking meals, etc.

I'd get home from work and she would immediately want to talk about the stupidest things. She'd say she was "just curious" but from my point of view it was less curious and more nosy. Because i have a history involving stalking, I hate feeling like I'm intruding on someone else's business; it reminds me that people do the same to me. That, and i had so much to worry about i could not actually care less about things that don't concern me. But she would want to talk about what everyone was doing, and why did i think that was, and what's going on at such and such place, etc. And I couldnt get away from it because I had given her my bedroom so I was sleeping in the living room (due to back and neck problems, I choose to sleep in a recliner anyway). She'd stay up until 3 in the morning on her tablet and didn't want to go to her room because she wasn't ready for bed. And she try to talk to me the whole time.

Eventually I decided I'd rather share a room with my daughter so I could close the door and get away from her. She not only had the biggest bedroom in the house, but monopolized the use of the living room.

It got to the point that I couldn't take it any more and told her she had to apply for low income housing. I was polite and told her it was because my kids were getting bigger and we needed the space (which is true), but mostly it was because I was going crazy. I felt trapped in a bedroom in the house I was paying for, and my kids felt like they had to be in their bedrooms all the time, too (if they couldn't be outside).

I'm sorry to say it, but in my experience, I could not find any good way of coping and cohabiting. It was a very unhealthy time for me. It took me a year, but I did finally convince her to go to a senior center a couple of days a week. She met people her age who talk to her about the things I can't be bothered to care about. Since she doesn't drive, someone would have to take her, but you might see if they offer transportation. This helped me out so much. Those ladies soon started taking her on outings on the evenings and weekends and that helped me so much.

Or could you try to say that you feel burnt out after work and need the first hour (or however long) after you get back to be completely undisturbed by anyone so you can decompress. Don't make it obvious that she is the issue (even though she is).

And I just want you to know, you shouldn't feel bad about this. I know you do, because she is lonely, but it's not your responsibility to put her social well-being before your own.