How to escape noise advice please?!

Hi

I am super sensitive to a lot of things, but noise is my biggest problem as it stops me being able to sleep or focus on work - or both. Summer is the worst time as people are always outside making noise and I cannot escape them.  It's the same at work as my office is above a car park so there are always car engines and people shouting and playing their music.  I feel like I have nowhere I can go to escape and it is making me more and more anxious and desperate.  The more sleep-deprived I become, the more terrible everything feels and I do often find myself wondering about what a way out would be.  I cannot move away and live in the wilderness and I have to work to earn money.  All the headphones I try don't really seem very effective at blocking noise - especially low rumbling noises like bass music and car engines and repetitive noises like kids bouncing footballs on concrete.  It's not fair on the people I live and work with since they cannot understand why I am so crazy and grumpy all the time.  I need to find a solution and a way to get some sleep that does not involve medication or anything drastic.  Please can any of you recommend ear plugs or headphones that will block out the low vibrations and noise and let me get some sleep?  

Thank you for any guidance.  

K x

  • I use foam earplugs at night to prevent me from waking to noises. I sleep a lot better with them. They are just the common squishy foam plugs that are used by construction workers, etc. You can buy them in bulk in hardware/DIY stores. They are way better than noise-cancelling headphones, though I use those during the day to "take the edge off".

    The low frequency sounds will probably travel through your skull and you'll still hear them or feel them. The earplugs help a lot, but I can still hear/feel those sounds a bit. Probably the best you can do there is use NC headphones and play music or white noise to drown out the other sounds.