Conquering Sleep and Noise Problems

Sleep and noise can be an impossible combination for many insomniacs. If it seems like you are more sensitized to noise than ever after a bout of insomnia, you are certainly not alone.

Noise, along with irritating vibrations that often accompany it, comes from a wide number of sources, such as...

machinery, construction work, heating and cooling systems, street traffic, stereo and sound systems, freeway and highway traffic, airplanes, sirens, car alarms, loose windows that rattle easily, neighbors, lawnmowers, leaf blowers, other gardening tools, television and other entertainment, barking dogs, chirping crickets, singing birds, fighting cats, wind, rain, foot steps, tree branches squeaking against your window...

Oh, the list just goes on and on. And strangely enough, once we have identified the sound that bothers us the most, it just seems to bother us more and more.

Physically, there are really only three ways to block out the sound that is giving you the sleep and noise insanity.

1. Use earplugs.

2. Use background sound, or "white noise," as it's often called.

3. Use soundproofing methods

Earplugs

If, like me, you have always been sensitive to noise, you may find earplugs a sanity-saver in many situations. I have used ear plugs while I sleep for over a decade now. I can honestly say that they have saved me from many sleep and noise troubles.

There is a downside to using earplugs continuously. You can get "addicted" to them. I am now so conditioned to having this noise protection while I sleep that without them, normal everyday sounds like a central heater going on or someone shutting a door in the next room wakes me right up. I can't leave home without them (at least if I'm on an overnight trip).

The other problem with earplugs is that some people fear not hearing the sounds they need to hear, like their children's cries or the fire alarm going off.

These are valid concerns. I do not have to get up and tend to children in the middle of the night. While I've been fortunate never to be tested by a real fire, I have heard the false alarms through earplugs just fine!

Some people don't like having little sticks of foam stuck into their ears. This discomfort usually goes away after you get used to the sensation. It's far better than the sleep and noise combo driving you crazy!

You must keep the ear plugs clean, and throw them out when they get stiff. (It's important to wash earplugs after every single use. They can be washed and used several times before you have to throw them out.)

White Noise

"White Noise" tapes and CDs do not block irritating sound; they simply cover them up with a different, more pleasant sound.

Some people have great success with white noise for sleep. You can get white noise CDs with nature sounds, such as ocean waves, running water, rain, leaves fluttering in the breeze, birds singing in the distance, and so on.

White noise machines, also called sound therapy machines and "sound conditioners," are more convenient than CDs, as they come with sounds already programmed into them. You can choose from a variety of relaxing nature recordings, such as rain, ocean waves, chirping birds, etc. Most of them also have timers. They come in a wide price range from $25 to hundreds of dollars.

Note: some people are bothered by tinnitus at night, and these sounds can mask the noise inside your ears as well as noise outside.

Music

Another alternative is soothing music, often played with instruments such as harps, electronic keyboards, soft piano, and strings. Some might have singing or chanting. You have to experiment to find out what resonates with you.

Some music might be so pleasant that it stimulates you rather than puts you to sleep. And what some people find soothing you might find irritating and repetitious. This is truly an individual matter. You won't know unless you try your own sleep and noise experiments.

Soundproofing

Real soundproofing, with the use of special materials, can be expensive. However, it is worth every penny if you have a serious environmental noise problem and you cannot move to a different location.

Soundproofing can involve construction remodeling, such as opening up interior walls to apply special insulation, installing pads under new flooring, replacing windows, or adding a thick layer of stucco to the entire exterior of a house. It can also be as simple as hanging sound-blocking drapes at the windows.

The Solution to Your Own Sleep and Noise Problem

If you feel these methods offer solutions for you, why continue to suffer? It is so easy to accept the status quo that we forget how truly empowering it is to take REAL actions and make REAL changes that can immensely improve things. When we finally get around to it, we always wonder why it took so long. Well, it's mainly because our fear of change keeps us captive.

Psychological Factors in Noise

Of course, as you should know if you have come this far, physical and environmental causes of insomnia are only just a part of the picture. The sleep and noise factor can be greatly affected by our mental state.

It is important to understand this, because there will always be times when you cannot block out all external sounds. You might not want to or be able to wear earplugs, listen to white noise, or soundproof your house.

Tuning Out? Another Way of Approaching the Sleep and Noise Problem

Nearly everyone has experienced the phenomenon is often called "tuning out." But some people are better at it than others. This means that when people around you are talking or making noise, you can concentrate on whatever you're thinking or doing, and don't hear a word.

I haven't always been good at tuning out, but I'm pretty good at it now. I can sit in a room full of people talking, and not hear a word anyone says. I have nothing to distract me except my own thoughts.

You can get better at tuning out noise even while you sleep. It is a habit that you develop, just like you developed the habit of hearing everything. But you do have to practice. Deliberate, conscious effort is the only thing that changes long-term habitual responses.

In order to change, you must seek out the very situation that you want to avoid and deal with it in a new way. This means exposing yourself to noises that you dislike while you concentrate on other things.

Read an exciting book, fantasize about your ideal vacation trip, call up a pleasant memory, think about a project that interests you. At first this will be difficult. Eventually, you will become better at it. When you do, you'll find your sleep and noise problems have diminished remarkably.

Anger and Noise Intolerance

Increased sensitivity seems to support the idea that insomnia is a symptom of hyperarousal of the nervous system, which I've discussed in a different article.

As mentioned, emotions can really compound the sleep and noise difficulties.

Anger is probably the most common emotion in noise intolerance. There is that feeling that you just can't get any rest and you're at your wit's end. Meanwhile the dog next door never stops barking, the tree limb never stops rubbing against your window, the trash trucks just keep clanging, the airplanes keep flying, and it all just makes you feel crazy with irritation.

What is really bothering you is more than just the noise itself.

It's the fact that you cannot control your own environment.

You cannot make that dog stop barking. And it seems like the dog and the irresponsible neighbor who owns him are symbols for everything in your life, and the world at large, that is out of control and just not working right!

Mental states intensify many things that start out as purely physical.

This is not to belittle the fact that noise can be extremely disturbing. However, if you find that you have taken real steps to quiet the noise, have spent time, effort and money doing something about it, and the situation has measurably improved... but it still bothers the heck out of you, and you can still hear it even though it's greatly muffled... could be something else is going on.

It really does help to recognize the role of emotions. It helps to change your focus from the external to the internal.