Sleeping with the sound on: Battling insomnia
I’ll try anything for my sleep. Recently my habits have improved because of new pillows and melatonin, sleep patches and not burning the candle at both ends so much. But there are still those moments when my brain is focusing on things that I want it to not focus on (‘switch off you crazy brain’!), so how can I prevent this from happening?
They say that soothing music before bedtime can help you to relax, ‘let go’ and ultimately, sleep more easily. Researchers have recently begun to explore what role music may play in helping people sleep. Several have even conducted meta-analyses to examine what research studies collectively say about music’s effectiveness as a sleep aid [info courtesy of Pittsburgh Symphony website]. So I thought I’d give this a try.
I used an eye mask by 1 Voice that you can plug into your phone to listen to soothing sounds for better rest while blocking out any distracting noise – that means snoring, dear husband. The mask blurb tells me that I will ‘fall asleep in a flash’. I hope it also blocks out the trash collectors at 5.55am who wake me every Monday, if the battery on my Ipod lasts long enough!
It plugs in well and is comfy, but no sooner than I am about to drift off, my husband asks for a turn, which, I tell him, defeats the object in two ways: 1, he has just interrupted my sleeping process and 2, he has no trouble sleeping and I need the mask and headphones to block out his snoring. But he insists, and continues to plug it in to his laptop. And here lies my problem with this. It was so frigging noisy! I could hear his music even at a low volume. Well, this isn’t going to work if you don’t want to disturb your partner or if you’re on a crowded airplane because the sound does come through.
Despite this issue, I take the mask back and plug in my Bach and this time I drift off.
The 1 Voice Sleep Headphones Eye Mask was created to help you get a comfortable night’s sleep so that you can wake up feeling rejuvenated and well-rested, and I did feel that in the morning, but my battery had worn out on my Ipod! Sigh!
It’s very comfy since the eye mask is made out of memory foam and finished with a soft velvet covering to block out light while still offering superior comfort. It certainly does not let light in, and that’s another biggie in the sleep department. And, it stayed on all night and the sound disks have an extra layering of memory foam built over them so they cannot be felt, even when you are sleeping on your side.
While the built-in over-the-ear headphones block out ambient noise to create a more peaceful environment to rest I am worried about the noise that it won’t keep in. I don’t want my other half using it as I’ll NEVER get to sleep.
Other pluses are that the 1 Voice Sleep Headphone Eye Mask is compatible with any phone/MP3 player and does not need a battery. Good job it is machine washable because I dribbled slightly in my sleep, which equals deep sleep.
Finally, the eye mask is fastened by an adjustable Velcro clasp so one size fits all.
If you are someone who can listen to music to fall asleep, or if you haven’t tried it yet, have a go: you might be in for a good night’s sleep after all.
Claire Bolden McGill is a British expat who lived in Maryland for three years and moved back to the UK in August 2015. Claire wrote about her life as a British expat on the East Coast and now works in travel and hospitality PR in the UK. She still finds time to blog about her repatriation and the reverse culture shock that ensued – and she still hasn’t finished that novel, but she’s working on it. You can contact Claire via twitter on @clairebmcgill or via her blog From America to England.