diff --git a/shoutbox.py b/shoutbox.py
index d690693..689e12f 100644
--- a/shoutbox.py
+++ b/shoutbox.py
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ import requests as r
 import logging
 import time
 import datetime
+import re
 from functools import wraps
 from threading import Thread
 from irc import IRC
@@ -73,7 +74,7 @@ class Shoutbox(object):
     def normalize(pseudo):
         if pseudo.lower() in [u[0].lower() for u in USERS]:
             return [u[1] for u in USERS if u[0].lower() == pseudo.lower()][0]
-        return pseudo.replace(' ', '_')
+        return re.sub(r'[^.A-Za-z0-9_]', '_', pseudo)
 
     def _handle(self):
         while self.running: