Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning,
Speaker 1: This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's
Speaker 1: tip is a reminder to be ready to block out
Speaker 1: the world when we are out and about. We can't
Speaker 1: always control the noises that other people make, but you
Speaker 1: can often control your own sound environment, and that can
Speaker 1: make a huge difference in your ability to focus, relax,
Speaker 1: or sleep. I was recently on a flight where someone's
Speaker 1: headphones either weren't working or they weren't using them. I'm
Speaker 1: not quite sure what, but they were playing some sort
Speaker 1: of electronic game that made annoying and sporadic clicking sounds.
Speaker 1: The noise would have made it quite hard to concentrate
Speaker 1: if I hadn't had headphones, but fortunately I did, as
Speaker 1: did most of the people around me. As a result,
Speaker 1: no one exploded over the situation. I listened to some
Speaker 1: relaxing music and got my work done just as planned. Similarly,
Speaker 1: that night, at my hotel, I wound up being put
Speaker 1: in a room right across from the elevator and the
Speaker 1: ice maker. There were quite a few loud conversations right
Speaker 1: outside my door about hey, do you think this ice
Speaker 1: maker works? Before people bid goodbye to each other at
Speaker 1: the elevators. This wouldn't have boded well for my sleep,
Speaker 1: but I have a lovely white noise app on my phone,
Speaker 1: and I travel with Ma's pillow soft earplugs. Between the two,
Speaker 1: I heard almost nothing. I slept quite well despite the elevator,
Speaker 1: the ice maker, and the fact that my room was
Speaker 1: right over a busy road. It was a good reminder
Speaker 1: to me of why I am equipped to block out
Speaker 1: the world whenever I am out in the world, and
Speaker 1: why you should remember to do so too. If you
Speaker 1: bring a backpack or a purse around, it's quite easy
Speaker 1: to stick some earplugs in there, and then you won't
Speaker 1: be caught without them. I know a lot of people
Speaker 1: already travel with their headphones or earbuds, but if you don't,
Speaker 1: get a pair and stick them in, and consider trying
Speaker 1: out some of the white noise apps too, for when
Speaker 1: you travel. Yes, you can find free YouTube videos of
Speaker 1: white noise, but you always risk that you will get
Speaker 1: interrupted by an ad or something like that that might
Speaker 1: be even worse than the ice maker. I've even occasionally
Speaker 1: had to use all of this at my own house.
Speaker 1: Sometimes when there is a storm, the wind will make
Speaker 1: branches hit against my window, and this sporadic sound can
Speaker 1: make it as hard to sleep as an elevator constantly
Speaker 1: opening and shutting. So I turn on the white noise,
Speaker 1: put in the ear plugs, and block it all out.
Speaker 1: Some people sleep soundly, Some people can work even with
Speaker 1: annoying ambient noise. I am not one of those people,
Speaker 1: but it's okay. When you bring your own sound and
Speaker 1: an ability to block out the world, you can sleep
Speaker 1: a little better or work a little better, and that
Speaker 1: makes life feel a lot better in the meantime. This
Speaker 1: is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the
Speaker 1: most of our time. Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast.
Speaker 1: If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback, you can reach
Speaker 1: me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast
Speaker 1: is a production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts from iHeartMedia,
Speaker 1: please visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you
Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows.