Save my husband. Help me drown him out.

[PrizedPickledPopcorn]

I need something to play through ear pods that will gently drown out the noise of DH’s existence, without distracting me. He has hyperfocus and makes so much noise just existing that I want to scream. Think, two radios on at the same time in his office with the door wide open, rushing about in slides that slap the floor with every step.

I have fibro and get overtired, overwhelmed and overstimulated very easily. I can’t listen to talk radio or songs, as they are too distracting. I also get tinnitus. I need to concentrate at work.

Can you recommend something like whale song or elevator music or white noise that isn’t going to be interrupted at intervals by loud adverts?

Bonus points if there’s some magical auditory reprocessing thing that will ticktock away in my ears and leave me calmer and less in need of an extra patio. It would be a shame, after 35 years!

I was particularly tired yesterday after work, and the noise of the radios was driving me potty. I got into a pickle, turned Alexa up so loud trying to drown him out that then she couldn’t hear me trying to turn her down 🫣

TL:DR? AI suggested title is a very tame “Recommendations for calming background audio to block household noise while working”.

Some excellent suggestions here! I have the Headspace app and there are some good long tracks for concentration, white noise etc.

He sounds unbearable. Sorry for you OP.

I have a wheelbarrow and some spare paving slabs…

I have horrible tinnitus.

Youtube has an (12 hour) track called 'Underground Hum.' It helps me when I need to sleep. It sounds like the Startrek noise when they're flying through space - low and rumbly and calming.

Edit to add - here is a link:

You know what's great for fibromyalgia? Living without a selfish inconsiderate arsehole.

I can second this. The peace goes all the way into your soul.

Your DH can do a lot to help mitigate the noise and if he cares about you, he should. He can turn down the radio(s) volume, he can shut the door or put on a self closer, he can draught-proof the door too as that will help with sound (including at the bottom). He can use slippers/sandals instead of sliders. Why won't he?

I can't use loop or earbuds as my ear canals are too narrow and wearing over the ear ones can make my ears sore after a while. If this is the same for you then he really needs to step up or find somewhere else during the day... garden office?

FYI you can get child sized loops, they come with different size rubber bits for small ears. They go small.enough to fit a 7yo so they should cover you.

I am currently having a noise issue from my neighbours, and weirdly I found having the window open so I can hear cars going past masks it very well. (I had tried most of the other suggestions above) I think the key is to identify a sound you don't mind hearing. I am also a bit over sensitive to noise, and menopausal.

No I've tried, anything that gets squished into the ears slowly gets ejected until they fall out including malleable wax earplugs. They are very narrow according to the ENT consultant. But hopefully your post can help others though, thank you

From your first post I thought “Well the radios thing is annoying but just get him to shut the door, you can’t tell him he isn’t allowed to walk round his own house in slides” and then I saw your follow-ups and thought “OK, yes, chuck him in a skip”.

This would drive me nuts.

Mine are pretty narrow too, and it was only choosing the ends for the loops that made me realise. I knew my sinuses are tiddly and wiggly!

I know he’s a pain in the arse, but the level of intervention it takes to sort him out isn’t always available. It takes a long time to get change to be accepted, and then to stick. He’s still not got over me asking him to switch to body wash 20 years ago, only to switch back to bars ten years ago. I keep changing my mind, apparently. So the slippers… it’s a campaign that I’m waiting to initiate.

My own resources are a bit depleted at the moment, but the day will come.

lol this reminds me of my DP. He’s lovely but prone to similar exaggeration. I take no notice.

mind you he isn’t noisy like that. I’d have to kill him if he was!