Ear Plugs - Day 3 of 30 - Things That Make My Life Easier

I'm Jaren, a neurodivergent Mom of neurodivergent kids going back to school in my 40's. In this series, I'll be posting about things that make my life easier.

Today's thing that makes my life easier: earplugs.

Today's post rides on the tails of yesterday's in that it has to do with reducing overwhelm. Of course, it has another important benefit - saving my hearing. As a voiceover artist who works with my ears for a living, this is imperative.

Here are three kinds of earplugs I use, depending on my needs. Explained below.

When I was a kid, I went to a lot of loud spaces with my Dad: concerts, ball games, shows, you name it. We never had earplugs, so we would find napkins or toilet paper somewhere in the facility and make our own by rolling the paper, making sure the plugs were long enough to stick out from the ear so we could remove them easily. Now, I use the store-bought kind. I keep a pair in the kitchen, in my purse, in my car, in my bookbag, and next to my bed.

5 Reasons I wear earplugs:

1) Better self-regulation.

They help me self-regulate when those around me (*coughs "my offspring") whine about chores. Whiny frequencies are usually pretty specific, so if I don't hear them as well, it's better for all of us.

2) Better breathing.

Somehow, the sound of my own breathing calms me. In meditation, we focus a lot on the breath. I like to focus on how it sounds from inside my head, which then calms my nervous system, and deepens and slows my breathing.

3) Better vision.

Hear me out. Has your vision ever been affected by loud noise? Happens to me all the time. This is one of the reasons I don't listen to music, especially while driving. WHAT?! I know. My kids hate being in the car with me unless they have their own music and earbuds.

4) Better Sleep.

My kids are allowed to talk to their friends on the phone past my bedtime (I prefer that to texting). But my house is small and everyone can hear everything...ish. My perimenopausal a** doesn't need to make the whole house suffer just because I want to go to bed early every night. A good pair of earplugs = win-win for everyone!

5) Better exam results.

Whaaa? Those of us with sound processing sensitivities know the special type of hell that is the sound of pencil tips dragging across papers during exams in lecture halls. Also, the sound of tapping pens, tapping feet, mouth breathing...I could go on but I'm getting irritated just replaying it all in my head. A good pair of earplugs allows me to focus on the exam at hand and not the noises that distract me and turn me into a monster.

Look at that little pile of earplugs.

Types of earplugs and what I use them for:

1) Professionally molded earplugs (pictured below)

I had these made nearly 15 years ago and I don't go anywhere without them because they are great for loud places (like nightclubs) where I still need to converse (with promoters, club owners, managers, etc.). These earplugs have traveled the world with me. They know me better than I know myself. I've named them Tina and Fey and they always have my back.

RECOMMENDATION:

They're comfortable for longer wear because they're molded to your ear canal, but I would never consider sleeping in them because the material is not a very soft silicone. It's slightly more rigid. They're also very expensive, but if your job depends your ability to hear well, invest.

Holding Tina in my left hand. Fey (not pictured) is being covered by my thumb.

2) Silicone earplugs

There are so many types. I have the mock Loops (not pictured) and several of these pink, alien-looking things. I bought them because they have this loop piece that fixes on the inside of the ear like a hook, holding them in place a little better than my Loops. They look like they might reach inside your head and tickle your brain, but they don't. They've very comfortable and I'm wearing them right now while I type.

RECOMMENDATION:

Great for test-taking. Probably great for sleeping, too, depending on your ear shape, because they can't expand and they're soft. I'll explain more about that below with the foam ones. Also, inexpensive.

These babies look intimidating, but they've very comfortable.

3) Foam earplugs

I have them in pink and orange and blue. I bought them at Home Depot. They're great for working in very loud spaces, but not great for having conversations, in my experience. They are wonderful when they're soft and not dried out (so keep the packaging airtight). I keep a little pill bottle of these (unused) in case someone in my class forgets theirs during an exam. I have given out more than you would imagine.

RECOMMENDATION:

I used to use these for sleeping, but my ear canal would be sore in the morning from the expansion pressure of the foam, so I switched to soft silicone. Also great for test-taking and they're inexpensive for the quantity when you buy them at Home Depot vs. the regular pharmacy. Or at least it's that way here in Canada.

Easy-peasy foam earplugs. Can get them at the pharmacy or hardware store.

So, there you have it. Earplugs make my life much more enjoyable.

What are your favorites? What do you use?

-Jaren

For more tips and tricks, be sure to check out the rest of this 30-day series!

#earplugs #30days #sanitysaver