What is a Sleep Machine?

myharley - My sleep apnea machine literally changed me life. I knew I wasn't getting quality sleep, my snoring was getting worse, and I was tired all the time.

It got so bad that I was afraid to drive more than 30 minutes for fear of falling asleep while on the road.

I put it off for a long time, but am so glad I didn't wait any longer. These machines are different than the sound machines for sleep you can buy in a retail store.

They do drown out some noise, but also give you more oxygen while you are sleeping so you get deep, restful sleep.

We live in the country, so I am not distracted by city sounds, bright lights or noisy neighbors. I have a hard time sleeping when I am away from home.

I bought a sound sleep machine to help me when I am on the road. Any time I sleep in a strange place, especially a hotel room, I can never get to sleep.

I hear every little and big noise that is going on around me. My friend recommended I try a sleep machine. At first I wondered if it would help or not, but the first night I used it, I fell asleep quickly.

Now when I am packing to go somewhere, this is one of the first things I make sure gets packed.

I have been tempted to use it at home once in awhile because my husbands snoring seems to be getting louder all the time.

I have been encouraging him to go for a sleep study, but have not been able to get him to be seen yet. Has anybody had good results with a sleep apnea machine?

I have never bought a sleep machine, but a regular fan works for me as well. This is something I have used for many years - long before sleep machines became popular.

The first time I started using a fan to help me sleep was when I went to college. Living in the dorm is very noisy at any time of the day or night.

Being a light sleeper, I needed to find some way to drown out the noise outside in the hallway. Ever since then, I have relied on a fan to help me get to sleep and stay asleep longer.

The few times I have not had one to help me fall asleep, I really struggle.

@Perdido - You might want to try a good quality box fan. I have one in my room, and though I am also sensitive to frequency alterations, I can’t hear any coming from it.

The fan has three different speeds, and I keep it on the lowest one, which is still pretty powerful. It sounds like a constant ocean breeze, but with no fluctuations.

The fan pivots around two points on the side, so it can rotate in a full circle. In the summer, I point it toward my bed to keep me cool, but in the winter, I point it downward. This way, I still get the lulling effect without the cooling action.

I am very sensitive to sound, and I can hear frequencies that my friends and family cannot pick up. I had hoped I would be able to use a sleep machine, but unfortunately, I could hear every little pitch, and it kept me awake.

Does anyone know of anything I could use to create a soothing atmosphere that doesn’t emit high pitch frequencies or changes in sound? I need something that produces one constant degree of noise, or I will wake up. I even tried listening to a CD of the ocean, but the waves get loud and then quiet when they break, and this change kept me from falling asleep.

@shell4life - A sleep machine saved me from lack of sleep because of household noise, also. My neighbor has roosters and peacocks, both of which are noisy birds. His roosters crow sometimes at 4 a.m., and the peacocks squawk whenever they feel like it.

I was at my wit’s end, and though I didn’t have a lot of faith in it, I tried my friend’s sleep machine. It sounded like a breeze was flowing through the room. To me, there is nothing more comforting than a warm breeze, and since I often fall asleep in a lawn chair on windy days, the sound hypnotized me into dreamland.

I went out and bought one just like it the next day. I can’t hear my neighbors birds anymore, and it is such a joy to be able to sleep past 4 a.m.!

I used to use a ceiling fan to help lull me to sleep, but as the fan got older, it started to creak, and that kept me awake. So, I tried a sleep machine, and it is much more effective.

There is something so comforting about background noise. It creates an environment in my bedroom that totally separates it from the rest of the house.

My dogs sleep in the living room, and sometimes they snore and thump around in the night. With the sleep machine on, I can’t even hear them. They used to wake me up often, but now, they only wake me when they scratch on the door and whine to be let out.

Another option instead of a single-purpose white noise sleep machine is an iPod dock. You can load various white noise tracks onto your iPod (or other mp3 player) and plug it into the dock and it can play as long as you want. Good for babies, grown-ups, or anyone!

White noise machines are great if one person snores, as my husband does; we use the iPod dock to drown out the sound a little bit!

Sleep sound machines are *great* for babies. With my son, we just put a fan in his room - nice low-tech option for white noise that you probably already have around. Different ones sound different.

Another advantage of a fan for newborns is that it can reduce the risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) by creating more airflow in the room. The latest word on SIDS is that it seems to be connected to too much carbon dioxide held near baby's face, and baby is too small and too asleep to turn their head away from it. Even as babies get older, though, the white noise can help minimize household sounds, especially during nap time or if you have a baby and an older child sharing a room.

With my daughter, though, someone gave us this fancy baby noise machine. It plays all different noise options and also lights up. Even in just ten years, seems like the baby stuff has multiplied!