If you have trouble falling asleep at night, you might want to try using a sound machine. Sound machines produce noises that can help calm and soothe the listener by blocking out disruptive and unwanted sounds (via Verywell Health). This can make it easier for you to fall asleep and stay asleep at night, especially if you live in a city or a busy neighborhood or have noisy neighbors. While white noise and rainfall are the most common noises produced by sound machines, many devices contain a wide variety of calming sounds to choose from.
“If you are in an environment where intermittent sounds (e.g., siren[s], loud talking) often wake you up at night, then trying a sound machine to create a low level of background noise to attenuate the impact of such noises on your sleep is a great idea,” Dr. Rebecca Robbins, an instructor at Harvard Medical School and sleep scientist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, told Verywell Health. “Having a sound that you are accustomed to falling asleep to can be a positive element of your bedtime routine.”
What to look for in a sound machine
If you’re looking to buy a sound machine to help improve your sleeping habits, there are a few things you might want to keep in mind to help narrow down your search. To find a sound machine that caters to your specific needs, you must first decide which devices and sound effects work best for you. According to experts at Mindbodygreen, there are two types of sound machines: electro-mechanical and solid-state. Electro-mechanical sound machines are fan-based devices that move air around to make noises, while solid-state sound machines act as stereos and emit noises electronically.
Additionally, you should look for a sound machine that plays the right sounds for you. Whether you prefer white noise or ambient sounds, figuring out which noises make you feel soothed and relaxed can help you sleep better at night. It’s also important to look for sound machines that come equipped with essential features like customizable volume control and a “clean loop,” which plays sounds on a continuous loop without any audio signals that mark the start or end of a given noise (via Mindbodygreen). This can help prevent you from waking up in the middle of the night.
