Is it ok for small children to wear earplugs at night?

[KateLNB]

I have two boys aged 4 and 4 months. Currently I’m whipping out a boob for the youngest in the night at every first cry so as not to wake the older one, but we plan to put little one in his own room and sleep train shortly. With thin walls I’m sure DS4 will wake and wondered about trying him with ear plugs, but struggling to find out whether this is medically ‘safe’ for growing ears? If so, any recommendations on brands? TIA.

Not much chance of them staying in.
Plus my ears are often painful after earplugs.

Is try background noise

Does he put stuff in his mouth?

I wouldn't, could be a real choking hazard.

How about a sound machine?
we have a white noise machine for my son. Doesn’t block all noise obviously but we find it takes the edge off of the general household noise so we’re not creeping around

My son has ASD he’s older now but at that age he slept in ear muffs and had a sound machine on. The ear muffs were his go to for years. His comfort blanket if you like. They were kids soft paddd ones.

Will the 4 year old actually wake up? My oldest was never woken by the baby, he's 3 now and still has his moments in the night and she never stirs.

Try Howard Leight Max Lite. Very soft, no pain! They are fabulous.

Get a Yoto box - you can have white noise or stories or music on them. They’re brilliant.
feel free to pm me for a discount code if you buy one.

I have two that share a room and didn’t put our youngest in there until she was sleeping through at around 1 years old.

I think actual in ear earplugs are probably not a goer because they create a warm moist environment which is going to breed bacteria in young kids. When I’ve had to use earplugs medium term I’ve always ended up with horrible boils/ otitis externa etc.

Your 4yo may well just sleep through it all, and even if not sleep training is usually done with pretty quickly - a week of pain all round. 4 months is pretty little mind you. Personally I might consider whipping the boob out for a bit longer unless you’re all on your knees with exhaustion in which case it’s completely understandable and I salute you for tackling the issue!

Thanks everyone for the suggestions! White noise sounds like a good idea as a first try… unfortunately baby is VERY shouty and 4 year old a light sleeper!