Last year I went shopping for a new living room chair FOR ME. My. criteria, one I could get out of easily. Amazing how many chairs surround you with delicious but inescapable “Cush”! Found one, the cheapest one on the sales floor.
I was appalled to see that my orthopedic group had replaced its functional arm chairs with trendy long armless couches with distant backs. Have they never taken a good look at their patients?
I was beyond grateful that my late Mom made that decision for herself. She stopped driving on highways at about 77-78 or so, then a year or so later, decided to stop driving on local roads and said she wasn’t going to renew her license. I told her to renew it to have as an ID, which she did, but she sold her car and either she took the elder van to the supermarket (when in elderly housing) or I brought her to medical appts.
Whereas my mom totaled her car in '22 and decided to invest 9000 Euro in the repair, even tho it wasn’t even worth half of that amount.
Dementia sux.
I still have/use the white noise machine I got at Sharper Image back in the early 1990s. I cannot deal with the complete silence. When I sleep away from home, I power up the same free white noise app that you have. It’s a godsend.
We actually dumped the white noise machine we used to own in lieu of the app. Much louder than the machine (if n when necessary), and so much variety.
Though I’m not sure how people sleep through all those water-related noises without several trips to the bathroom. Or loud birds. Or a thunderstorm, crashing thunder & lightning included 
Peeps be weirdt.
Mine can actually be turned up quite loud - I think I keep the setting at about 1/3 the max loudness.
And mine has 6 settings - that’ a big NO on thunderstorms, babbling brooks, and tweeting birdies. I use what I call the “TV white noise” (for us oldies who remember when TV stations went off the air at midnight or 1:00 a.m.)
I’ve started watching videos about how to get up off the floor. In my younger days, they taught you in ballet class how to get up off the floor (i.e the stage) without using your arms. Hint: it takes incredibly strong and flexible legs, which of course I no longer have. But the how to get up vids are very helpful - and weren’t intuitive for me.
When I was in the hospital, with all the usual extraordinary noise and commotion (and i was right next to the nurses’ station to boot) I was glad to have my iPad (and charger) with me - AND the white noise app I had previously installed. I cranked up the volume full blast (no ear buds) and slept away …
ETA. I have the paid version of yours. It’s very good!
Sheng Wang has a great bit on snoring.
I really enjoyed his Netflix show:
I unfortunately have some health conditions that affect my hearing.
I find the white noise machines and apps don’t help me. I can’t fall asleep with that racket. My ski trip roommate on my trip to Hakuba in Japan in Jan 2020 had a white noise machine, and I wore ear plugs to block out her white noise.
Ear plugs help me.
I don’t like things in my ears, and it’s become worse as my condition has worsened. I don’t use headphones, ear buds or earphones. I stopped watching movies on planes about 6 years ago because the headphones were bothering me.
Of course, what works for some people won’t work for others.
I don’t like the feeling of earplugs but it’s tolerable compared to not having them, when there’s loud snorer in the next room .
When I spent the week in Tuscany with the other 7 ladies, one lady snored so loud we could hear her from the living room, when her door was shut. Her roommate for the week ended up sleeping on a sofa on another floor because ear plugs didn’t block the snoring.
I couldn’t sleep my first night at Tremblant on my last ski trip, because I drew a straw that landed me on the sofa bed in the living room of the Residence Inn suite with 1 bedroom, a loft and a sofa bed. The person who ended up in the loft snored. I had left my ear plugs on my kitchen counter in Toronto. I didn’t find out she snored until we were there at Tremblant, and the drug stores had already closed for the night.
Interestingly, the same woman had sent dozens of emails about what to bring to the Residence Inn suite and the potluck, and never thought to mention she was a loud snorer.
On group ski trips that are organized through the travelling ski club (not this particular trip, but the travelling ski club is where I met this individual, who had been on dozens of sleepover trips over 25 years) people mention if they snore (at all, as well as occasionally , constantly, softly or loudly), and if they’re bothered by snoring.
I went down to the front desk at 3 am to see if I could book my own room, but there were no vacancies.
I rested on a booth in the breakfast room for 3 hours, then caught a few zzzs in the room once the snoring lady had gone downstairs for breakfast.
The next night I had a pair of foam earplugs, and I was set. Cured.
That helps; thanks! It’s not that I need solutions, I was looking for additional insights in to why it seems to be a sensitive subject.
Bc we women folk are meant to be dainty, helpless, pretty and, most of all, quiet?
I’ll put this on if I have trouble sleeping (youtube). I can’t do earplugs, they give me an awful migraine.
I think it’s sometimes a sensitive subject because sometimes sleep apnea and snoring are related to obesity, and many people feel shame for their obesity and anything related to it.
Of course, obesity, snoring and sleep apnea are largely out our control, and lifestyle changes are difficult and take a long time to make happen, if it’s even possible to make it happen or maintain long term.
There should not be shame in something one cannot do much about.
Also, as linguafood mentions, the dainty flower thing. Not sneezing too loud, not tooting, not sweating, not burping, not snoring.
Just to chime in on the white noise/background noise while sleeping upthread:
What BF likes to have on while he sleeps (in addition to a white noise machine and a fan):
What I can tolerate falling asleep to (with ear plugs in, because of the white noise machine and fan):
Oh, and BF snores. A lot. Loudly. Eventually will be looked at for apnea and the treatment will likely buy some doc a yacht. It’s been over 20 years; we’re used to the arrangement now. Thank goodness for earplugs!
My hospital stay in Boston came with a set of foam earplugs along with other other necessities. I was grateful for them. Being as sick as I was, not sleeping was as exhausting as the fear and pain.
I just can’t get myself up unless I can crawl to a structure that I can grab onto and push myself up. I have a very sturdy gardening stool, about 40 years old. I use it in and out of the house. DH will get it to aid me. We live with strong, exuberant dogs and they’ve knocked me over. I’ve had bad knees for as long as I can remember.
That is one of the alternatives they mention. Also getting onto your knees and using both arms and your stronger leg to push yourself up.
I don’t go outside to work in the garden if our dogs can get out of the house. We have brick pathways and they are so energetic. I feel lucky if I fall into the mulch.
We’ too old to live with Australian Shepherds. Full speed ahead and damn the consequences.
But they’re looking a you with a lot of love … that’s worth a lot.
