apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

In the summer, fan or A/C ... in the winter, my air purifier. I also always wait to run my dishwasher until I go to bed ... this probably stems from growing up with a bedroom right next to the laundry room in my house. My mom always did laundry at night and I liked to fall asleep to the sound of the washer and/or dryer. I can't sleep in total silence.

I totally hear you on the cat thing, a purring cat is nature's white noise machine.

I need total silence. I carry earplugs with me at all times.

OMG cuteness alert. I sleep windows open so it is my wind chimes at times and fog horn in the distance. Or my little dog snoring.

This may sound silly, but I fall alseep to Nick-at-Nite or TV Land. The old tv shows reminds me of when I was a kid and went to bed early hearing those tv shows in the living room, on the other side of the wall to my bedroom. Putting the timer on my tv for 90 minutes, puts me out every time.

Lately I've been waking up to the noisy hums of my refrigerator (oh, the frustrations of living in a studio). I like the sound of falling rain or the ocean and even whale songs--all of these would definitely lull me to the land of nod. I don't have a cat, but a purring bedmate would be lovely, too. Maybe I can teach my boyfriend to purr like a cat?

The BBC World Service, at low volume. It reminds me of a boring prof at university, where I always fell asleep in lecture.

I need something. usually it's my cat's running wrestling in the other room, or the chimes of the Wii main menu. I love falling asleep to a movie I really love, turned away from the movie, imagining the scenes in my head while I fall asleep. My go-to movies are Breakin' 2: Electric Boogalo and Sense and Sensibility.

And seriously - That cat is adorable. She can be on a Friskies bag.

A Timex clock that gives the sound of ocean waves all night lulls me to sleep. Along with a fan for comfort. And a snuggly dog.

I'm a big fan of silence, but sometimes I fall asleep to movies. (Old movies are great, as is Almost Famous and Amelie.)
I used to fall asleep to either the Garden State soundtrack, or the Postal Service. If I'm really have trouble, I turn to those two.

A purring cat is relaxing, but a snoring cat is just funny.

I love the sound of rain outside an open window to fall asleep to.

Sadly, the easiest way for me to nod off is to read a book. Made college VERY interesting, believe me!

Aside from that, I agree that cats are the *best* nap-inducers--warm, snuggly, soft, purring... zzzzzzzz.

Mikeinbrooklyn, that makes total sense ... I think a lot of people are like that. I miss the sound of my parents up while I went to sleep as a kid. There's even a song about that ... "Keeping Awake" by the innocence mission that reminds me of that feeling ... hearing the muted TV in the room next door and my parents talking. It's very comforting.

I created some songs in Final Cut Pro using sound effects and music to help me fall asleep. The usual: rain, ocean, distant trains, wind, campfire, etc.; I mixed them in with some quiet songs (Beck, Mason Jennings, Little Wings, the White Buffalo) and exported them to iTunes.

I made a playlist on my iPod/iPhone that's about 30 minutes long and it does the trick.

Oops ... I meant to add: because of that, I usually watch the Andy Griffith show right before I go to sleep. I don't leave it on, but I get ready for bed, crawl under the covers and then watch that on TVLand before going to sleep.

living in the city for many many years, i've found the best thing is a fan. i run it at night year round for the white noise, adjusting the speed depending on the noise level i'm hoping to cover. unfortunately this doesn't much help the bass vibrations thru my bed of the tv that my downstairs neighbor seems to only be able to watch if it's at top volume.

ps. adorable cozy kitty

I prefer silence or music, but my boyfriend wants TV or movies. I forbid moving images in the bedroom (they give me nightmares) so we compromise on AM 1070 on a 90-minute timer. Even the tones that alert you to the fact that a traffic update is coming up are soothing. And I like to think that I'm absorbing some news while I sleep.

I don't have a tv in my bedroom, but usually watching "How It's Made" or a similar show downstairs makes me sleepy.

Also, my great dane loves to jump in bed with me (especially during these cold winter months), so it's hard not to feel snug and cozy when you've got a big, warm dog lying next to you!

I have a sound machine from Sharper Image with like 150 sounds. I've tried a bunch and found I can't sleep to the water ones as it makes me have to use the restroom! I really like the "dryer" because it is almost like white noise of a fan or air purifier but has a little bit of variance. I can't fall asleep to movies or TV usually as I end up focusing on them too much to relax. I absolutely can not fall alseep if there is dialog, especially if it is faint because I find myself straining to hear rather than relaxing. Makes sleeping in hotels difficult.

Fan. On full. Can't sleep without it.
I find silence is loud (is that an oxymoron or what!?)

Definitely music - specifically Zero 7. They're the best for it! They've helped my through many plane rides.

A GUARANTEED Snooze will come by listening to Bob Ross (on PBS) at a nice med-low volume. That's right Bob Ross, the painter with gigo-afro.

His voice is sooo freakin' soothing and relaxing and he speaks in this low even timber that just makes me feel like a kitten in a sock and I swear he just lulls me to sleep every time! It started in college and never fails.

Bob Ross...better than Nyquil.

I prefer silence, but if I cannot sleep, I will sneak out to the living room and watch the History Channel or something similar. Usually puts me to sleep in no time.

i'm most responsive to voices. so far, my favorites are sister wendy, david attenborough, bob ross, and one of my old art history professors from college (it was a miracle i passed her class; you could literally see when my body started to go numb by the quality of my handwriting in my notes.)

i've watched SW and DA sooooo many times, partly because i'm genuinely interested in the content, and partly because i keep falling asleep while trying to listen/learn.

Music, definitely, oh and also my humidifier lately.

Best :
Brian Eno - Music for Airports
The Album Leaf - The Enchanted Hill

I used to wake up with Hunted By A Freak by Mogwai, it was the perfect wake up song, it starts so low and progressively gets louder but still slow.

I downloaded a white noise MP3 from Amazon and burned it to CD to play by my bed. It is 60 minutes long and completely drowns out the sound of the woman downstairs hacking up a lunch every 10 minutes. (You'd think she'd be out of lungs....) To me it sounds like a rainstorm if I get the volume just right. It is very soothing.

I usually need earplugs but I've found that I can fall asleep on dreary rainy afternoons without them because I love the sound of cars driving through the puddles on the street outside my building.

I no longer have a TV in my room, but when I did I would listen to the TV guide channel.

That thunderstorm CD sounds amazing. Exactly what you need for a bad mood.

That is just the cutest picture!!!
I need my air purifier and in winter, also, the humidifier so I have no choice but I need to calm down before trying to sleep so I listen to a CD of the Dalai Lama chanting every evening.

Cute pink nose alert!

I used to keep my laptop by my bed before I was married and would listen to a music playlist of tracks from my favorite movie scores. Now I usually fall asleep to a movie on the TV. But it has to be a movie I've seen a million times before, or I'll want to stay up and watch it!

The Miramac Sound Screen makes beautiful white noise that blocks out annoying sounds and always lulls me to sleep. Purring cats? Also good.

Kitty!

I never had a problem before I moved to this apartment (trading a quiet tree-filled backyard for a noisy thoroughfare outside the bedroom windows). Now I keep a fan running on high year round (facing away from me during the winter).

My cat sleeps on my feet, so she's no use. However, if they make a white noise machine with purring cat sounds, I will buy it instantly.

Great post, but "as a freshmen, we"?

air conditioner--cold air in the summer and on the fan function in the winter. it is the perfect amount of white noise.

I fall asleep to the semi-distant sound of traffic whooshing up the West Side Highway, below my apartment overlooking the Hudson River. When the northbound side was closed for a couple days of emergency work several years ago, when a portion of the retaining wall just above 181st Street fell, I woke up in the middle of the first night with a start ... realizing I didn't hear that sound!

Boston terrier snores. It is so comforting. If I'm at home during the day and he's sleeping on the couch, I can't resist napping with him.

Minnin, my kitty purr pillow. I want to clone her, trademark her and sell my purr pillow nased on Minnin! nothing gets me to sleep faster she sighs when she stops purring and falls asleep signaling it's time for me to fall asleep.

A purring cat definitely helps me. Whenever my husband would leave town I would feel very anxious sleeping alone in bed and I'm easily stressed and prone to some anxiety attacks. I found that when the cat starts purring the vibration against my arm and the sound really lulls me to sleep. Rain & thunderstorm CDs are great too! I wish I could find more that had just thunderstorms & rain instead of music. Music tends to keep me awake.

KITTENS!!!!

Thanks for listening to my words,
Melissa with YOURFURITURELINK and MORYI & TENON

Just wanted to say kudos on the name Garbo for the kitty! I thought about naming my bunny Greta or Garbo for the longest time.

Ceiling fan iPod. Always.

That cat is my kitty's identical twin. Seriously, it's spooky.

I second the Bob Ross fan. YEAH! As a kid, I'd be half-asleep on the living room floor on a big cushion on a cold snowy Sunday afternoon. After some ants on a log, Bob Ross would come on, and I'd always get lulled into a warm, peanut butter and bib overalls kind of sleep.

I need to figure out a way to put some of his shows on the iPod.

i felt silly that i fall asleep to a thunderstorm cd, and am reassured to know that i'm not alone ;)

other favorite noises to fall asleep to:
1) the railroad noises of my grandpa's place in louisiana instantly put me at ease...cha-chunk, cha-chunk, cha-chunk...
2) the pitter-pat of a light shower on the roof...it's like an audio massage!
3) the crackle of rain on the windshield that i remember from falling asleep in the back of the car as a small girl on roadtrips
4) the noise of really strong, haunty wuthering heights-type winds outside my bedroom window

i guess there's a theme to my comfort :)

I totally agree with those who fall asleep to Bob Ross. Working 3rd shift I able to come home in the a.m., eat a light dinner, put on wonderful ol' Bob and just drift into a nice sleep. I also love falling asleep to my dog snoring and rain. Happy little thoughts.......

Sex or the sound of a narrator, like the guy from "City Confidential"

I like putting on one of the music channels from DISH Network.

I've been listening to Karmacosmic - Music for Tantra and Meditation when I cannot sleep.
It's amazing
http://isohunt.com/torrent_details/17698479/karmacosmic?tab=summary

The sounds of Brooklyn backyards at night. Plains going to JFK, barking dogs including my own, cop cars going by.

BUT the best sleep ever, rainiy day with the window open. The wet air is better then any pill. Always wake up refreshed.

A white noise machine and my dog.

When I was in college i made a playlist in itunes titled "relax mix," and I basically just forced myself to listen to it before I went to bed. But now, no matter what time it is, as soon as I hear those songs I want to fall asleep!

Beth - this is really strange - your cat and my cat are look-alikes! and I think I have those same baskets as well. Odd!