Meditation music • relaxing music

Your bedroom environment should promote restful sleep. Outside noises can easily startle people awake and make it difficult to fall back asleep. But for many sleepers, a completely quiet bedroom can be hard to come by.

Even when it doesn't fully wake you up, environmental noise at night (1) can trigger your stress response, increase your heart rate, and affect your sleep quality. Nighttime noise may leave you feeling irritable and tired, and noise that interferes with sleep may contribute to chronic health problems.

Studies show that the type of sound (2) and the sudden change (3) in noise levels tend to interrupt sleep more than the sheer volume of a noise. If you're struggling to sleep through outside noise, a sound machine or smartphone app might be the solution. By providing a steady background hum, these soothing sounds can help mask outside sounds, helping you relax and drift asleep.