Hi!
I’d like to ask, does anyone have an experience of using any earbuds/headphones for improving sleep? Is it worth it? I’ve checked a few resources that recommend several models (here, for example), but not sure whether to try it, or maybe it’s just better to follow some basic rules like “no eating before falling asleep”, “keep the room dark” and so on 
Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
I used to need to have the radio or TV on to fall asleep. Later, I’d sometimes use earbuds to sleep, especially when I was stressed about something. A few years ago, I started not being able to fully fall asleep with any noise. Fortunately, the place I’m in now is dead quiet, can’t even hear the rain. I do the A/C and fans running though, mainly because I probably suffer from sleep apnea (I wake up immediately if the fans stop blowing on my face), but because of the white noise.
At my place prior to where I’m at now, I’d sometimes have to wear foam earplugs because of the noise. It helped me to get to sleep, but I’d have to remove them after a few hours because it would start to irritate my ears.
So, I’ve tried it all. My $0.02, white noise either from a fan or a noise generator is best.
Edit: I think I’ve gotten to the point where I can basically hypnotize myself. Even if I’m stressed and something is bugging me mentally, I’m now able to blank my mind, not think about something else, but think about nothing at all.
Yes, I’m a light sleeper (doesn’t take much stimulus to wake me up, usually, be it light, noise, or having to pee). I often didn’t get enough sleep — I only did so around 30% of the time. I started using earbuds almost every night about 10 years ago, and it made a big difference for me. Since then, I get enough sleep about 60% of the time. I still wake up too early sometimes, but no longer due to noise.
Your mileage may vary.
My daughter in college uses a model like that, because her dorm roommate is basically nocturnal. She hooks it up to her iPhone on a white noise app. She swears by it.
Sorry — I use earPLUGS, not earBUDS. (I’m old, so for me, anything that conveys music or other sounds to your ears must be “headphones”).
I use Sony earbuds and listen to one of the audiobooks I’m very familiar with already, at a barely audible volume. I think it calms me down and keeps my mind from wandering. Also at this point, it’s a routine that signals my brain that it’s time to sleep. I set the timer on my iPod so it stops after half an hour.
If you don’t want to go to ear buds except as a last resort, you may want to try this method first.
[Moderating]
I’m not sure if this is spam or not, but I’ll give the OP the benefit of the doubt. Just in case, though, I’ve removed the link.
Also, a request for recommendations will work better in our IMHO forum than in General Questions. Moving.
I use my “sleep phones.” These look like a sweatband you’d use for working out, but have tiny flat speakers embedded in them right where they will fall over your ears, and a wire to plug into your radio or smartphone (I think they make wireless ones, too). The beauty is that they are so flat you can even lay on your side. I listen to a boring talk radio station to lull myself to sleep.
Noise cancelling earphones are worth a treat to people with wind/pressure/weather sensitive vertigo. Have to sleep on your back though. They work far better than earplugs. Have not yet tried noise cancelling earbuds. I never got any sleep/vertigo help from plain old earplugs, but the sound cancelling plugs don’t cover the outer ear anyway.Conduction through there, and the Eustachian tubes might be a problem, might not.
They definitely work, but not as good as cheap foam ear plugs.
I go on a fishing trip with friends and we draw for rooms. Two years ago, I got the friend that is a chainsaw loud snorer (he cuts about 10 cords of maple every night :eek:). He now has a CPAP.
I usually use foam earplugs, but forgot to pack them. In desperation, I used my Bose noise-cancelling ear buds that I’d flown with. They worked OK and I slept decently all week.
There are two problems:
They can be very uncomfortable - if you’re a side sleeper (like me), there is some fidgeting to get them so they don’t press uncomfortably into your ear when your ear is on the pillow. It took a little bit until I found a way to scrunch the pillow just right. Even then, when I moved my head at night, I’d get ear pain.
They don’t work nearly as well as the cheap foam ear plugs I get at Walmart or Home Depot. BTW - I’m saying foam plugs because I’ve tried different styles and found the foam type to be the most comfortable and effective.
Noise cancelling ear phones of any type don’t actually cancel all noise, they only soften it so you can hear your music or movies better. When I fly with them (which I always do) I can still very clearly hear the baby crying behind me, but the buds take the harsh edge off it. They also work best if there’s constant noise, like the jet engine versus intermittent noise like a baby crying.
If noise is an issue for you, I definitely would not recommend noise cancelling ear buds over foam plugs.
I have tried everything from ear plugs to various headphones. For sleep, what works best for me are the sleep buds that Bose makes. They are not cheap, but my husband can snore, the dog next door can bark, and my tinnitus can whine, and it’s all blocked out, or managed (tinnitus).
Try being more active during the day. It will help you fall asleep at bed time.
I thought there was some risk of ear damage in using ear buds consistently for long periods of time like that? Am i mistaken? Is it more a matter of how high the volume is?
I’ve seen those advertised and always thought the price point - for something that can ONLY be used for that purpose (i.e. you can’t use them for music etc. as well) was a bit absurd. Being Bose, I’m sure they do a very good job of it though.
For me, simply blocking out the outside noise won’t do it. I mean, if someone is cutting down a forest 2 feet away from you, or practicing drums in the next room, yeah, that’ll disturb me, but my biggest thing is that I need something to listen to to keep my brain from hyperfocusing.
It could be something on the TV (though the light is a problem) or playing on a stereo, but since that would disturb my husband, I go with listening to something using a headphone.
I truly hate the in-canal earbuds but there aren’t many other choices that work for sleeping; I go to sleep on my side, and put the earbud in the “upper” ear (not both as GMANCANADA describes).
I’ve heard of the flat headphones that Tim R Mortiss describes. They sound good, but since I use a CPAP and chin strap, it’d be one more piece of stuff wrapped around my head :D.
I don’t think the OP has been back in since he started the thread so it may be a drive-by, but in case it isn’t:
Basically, whether earbuds / earplugs help you depends on why you have trouble sleeping. If it’s just noise, earplugs will do the deed nicely and are dirt cheap. If it’s a “mind racing” thing, then playing some audio through inexpensive earbus might well help.