White noise is the next step on this journey

 

Welcome to the fourth stop on your magical slumber-y tour hoping to take you away to peaceful sleep.   From the previous challenges, you should also be maintaining your sleep routine and keeping your room dark and cool.   This time you're going to focus on quiet, or at least ways to cancel out noise. That, plus some extra bits of sleep trivia, another relevant quote and more.   OK, don't buckle up, because it's going to be a soft, gentle ride. hello silence, my old friend Adobe Stock For your fourth challenge, you're going to pretend that you're in that horror movie "A Quiet Place" as you get tucked in. If it gets too loud, the sleep-gobbling monsters will attack.   Here's a fun fact: We share a common trait with birds in that our brain doesn't fully shut out sounds. You could call us bird brains, but it's actually an evolutionary advantage because we can be semi-alert to threats while we sleep. And it allows us to respond to our alarm clock or crying baby.   But our subconscious awareness of sound while sleeping also means we can be easily awoken by a passing truck or a talkative bird in the tree outside.   Your assignment is, before bedtime, to try to identify and quell any controllable sounds: smartphone pings, open windows, automatic coffee maker alarms, even wind chimes.   As for the noises you can't control -- the barking dog, your snoring partner, the irritating noisy neighbor, and that (bleeping) bird that's still chattering -- there are ways you can mask those, including earplugs (which come in various types), noise-canceling earphones and white noise machines.   White, pink and brown noise machines and apps are popular because they absorb the sound waves of little creaks and cracks that don't quite fully wake you but may still disturb sleep. There isn't much actual science behind how, why -- or even if – sound machines truly work, but experts say they don't seem to be harmful -- unless you have an existing hearing issue.   You can't get rid of all sound -- cue stupid bird -- but the more noise you can muffle or stop in its tracks, the less opportunity there is to pull you out of that lovely dream -- you know the one...   For more on the importance of dreaming, check out this episode of the Chasing Life podcast, in which CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta spoke with neuroscientist and dream expert Sidarta Ribeiro. sleepy facts If you fall asleep as soon as your head hits the pillow, you're probably sleep-deprived. Falling asleep should typically take between 10 and 15 minutes, but not more than 20 to 30 minutes, experts say.   did you know? The loudest snores ever recorded drowned out a jackhammer.   healthy hint Even a minor loss of sleep can impair your body's immune function. According to one 2009 study in which people were given nasal drops with the cold virus, those who slept less than seven hours were nearly three times more likely to catch the cold than those who slept eight hours or more. quote of the day "Laugh and the world laughs with you, snore and you sleep alone." -- Anthony Burgess quirky sleep solution The website and app Radio Garden streams thousands of live radio stations around the world. And some are 24-hour stations of ambient sleepy sounds, including Ambi Nature Radio in Zurich, Birdsong Radio in London, Sleep Radio in Te Aroha, New Zealand, and Ambient Sleeping Pill out of South Plainfield, New Jersey. Check it out. lullabuy Amazon Our partners at CNN Underscored, a product reviews and recommendations guide owned by CNN, have a roundup of items that help you wind down at night, including Amazon Basics blackout window curtains in a triple-weave fabric that keeps your neighbors' lights out of your bedroom. nighty night OK, OK, settle down now. Hush. Enjoy the silence, and until next time, as Doris Day sang, "Dream a little dream of me..."