Something to listen to to help me sleep

[ItsMeHiImTheProblem]

I really struggle to go to sleep, my mind won't switch off. I'd like to listen to something that will send me to sleep, but no lyrics, or guided meditation or podcast, I concentrate too much then. Ideally some music without lyrics on Spotify. There's plenty on there, but it's all classical.

I don't even know what I'm looking for. I just need to sleep more than I am doing! If I listen to audio books I get the annoying thing where I spell the words in my head, same with lyrics and guided meditation just makes me anxious.

Any suggestions would be great 😊

I use a YouTube video 'Rain sound on window with thunder sounds' to drop off since my DF died recently.

I use the rain playlist on Spotify, on a low volume when im feeling too anxious to sleep. Really helps

For me, I have to find things that are interesting enough to stop me thinking about my own life, but not so interesting that it keeps me awake. Rain sounds and similar don't really help me, because they don't distract me from dwelling on whatever is on my mind.

With this in mind, I love podcasts and documentaries about history, astronomy and art. I also like listening to classic audiobooks of old books; I'm listening to Middlemarch at the moment.

Podcast recommendations:
In Our Time
History Hit
Not Just The Tudors
Let's Find Out ASMR
A Good Read
The Prime Ministers with Iain Dale
In the Psychiatrist's Chair

If I want to watch something, there is tons of stuff on BBC4 including The Sky At Night, anything with the amazing Lucy Worsely and Mary Beard, Dig For Britain etc.

‘Nothing Much Happens’ podcast. Didn’t think it would work for me and I always fall asleep

I know you've tried nature sounds but have you tried waves? I have terrible tinnitus and since I had Covid keep waking up having panic attacks. Waves on my Alexa are the only thing that really help me tune out my brain. Rain is quite nice too but since we had a roof leak I've gone off it a bit!

I listen The British History Podcast - kind of interesting enough to distract me from my thoughts, but there's a lot of very similarly named anglo saxons and such - all seem to be aethel-something! So my brain gives up and drifts off.

On Spotify "sleep music" is a thing. Literally type in sleep music, whales for sleep etc and find a playlist of sounds engineered for this.

I find it much better than either brown noise or actual music or speech. There's no chorus or tune so my brain doesn't focus in on it.

Def not those story ones that go on and on and on..... I felt myself going then my brain switched on wanting to know the end of the story, which was just about going to sleep..... 😂 I find my better sleeps are after a hot bath with lavender.

I watch documentaries that hold my attention enough for me to be distracted but also that have a lot of talking and calming voices so I just nod off. So things like Brian Cox about space, Blue Planet, history documentaries etc.

Op, you sound very much like me, I tend to incorporate audiobooks into my sleep (American Psycho was a fun night).

I found a YouTube channel called Nemos dreamscapes and it's absolutely delightful. They have tonnes of playlists with really lovely themes such as "oldies playing in another room, and it's raining" with muted music from the 40's and 50's some with thunder, some with rain, on a train, in an old coffee shop, by a fire etc.

I just love snuggling down in bed with the dog on my feet with their cozy playlists.

I tried listening to audio books, but found it difficult because I'd fall asleep before the end of the track and would miss a chapter or two, didn't know how far to rewind the next night.

Do any of you listen on ear pods? I'll try the speaker quieter tonight, but suspect the cats will still hear it.

I use ear pods. I also have a small flat speaker that goes under my pillow and plugs into the headphone jack on a phone. I only switched to ear pods as Samsung now don't have headphone Jack's in their phones.

'Sleep' by Max Richter. It's an 8 hour piece of classical music and totally soporific.

What do you currently do as sleep routine. I think it's a skill that not all of us learn. My DH falls asleep just like that and I've only just sorted out my sleep at a grand old age.

@ItsMeHiImTheProblem i deliberately listen to things i'm not really interested in so it doesn't matter if I miss bits. I then just rewind back to where I roughly think I remember.

I'd never listen to a book I really had plans to read properly or that I thought might be exciting. That's why, for me, I quite like the Victorian stuff as it's a bit dense for my tired brain and it just sort of washes over me.

This podcast is fab. Classic books read in a soothing voice and the best bit is she recaps the last episode at the beginning of the next one. Scroll back through old episodes, might be a book you like podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-sleepy-bookshelf/id1573623902

Yoga Nidra always sends me to sleep

I play apple calm playlist on Alexa and set a timer for 30 minutes. I've been using it for months now and still haven't heard the full 30 mins!

I'm using one on my alexa called Space Deck by SleepJar.

Its a good brown noise and works much better than the waterfall and rain ones that make me want to pee 😳

DS likes the distant train/rain on a tent.

Can you ask your device to list available sleep sounds?

This may sound a bit crazy, but if you’re a non welsh speaker try listening to welsh singers singing welsh folk songs
Cerys Matthews’ album Tir lulls me to sleep most nights. I listen to it on Spotify
cerysmatthews.co.uk/product/tir/

Michael Sealey on YouTube. Put a timer on so it doesn’t run onto the next item.