Music can be relaxing. Sometimes, even helping to put you
to sleep. My wife once jokingly referred to Norah Jones’ music on our stereo as
“Snorah Jones”. Now anytime that I put on a station in the Pittsburgh
market that is known to play that genre of music, my two boys instantly feign
sleep.
When my kids were younger, I used to play them the
Rockabye Baby! series of CDs and
the lullaby renditions of Pearl Jam songs – mostly played on the xylophone
worked its magic. For me, although I do not like to sleep, I am a good sleeper.
I am typically rested with 6 hours per night, but sometimes it is not as simple
as turning off the light and crashing after a full day.
In the summer of 2013, I listened to City & Colour’s “The Hurry and the Harm” on repeat, mostly when I was trying to wind down at the end of the day.
Recently when I was in Charleston, WV, there were maintenance workers drilling
into concrete on I-79 that ran near my hotel room well into the middle of the
night. And at 2:00 AM, listening to music on headphones was the only
thing that I could do to dull out the loud noise outside my window
and put myself to sleep. . That night, I chose the classic U2 song, “One” with Mary J. Blige on
vocals. In high school, when sleep didn't come easy, I chose different
Pink Floyd songs off of albums like "Obscured by Clouds", "The Final Cut" or
"A Momentary Lapse of Reason". It is important to note that
I do not find this music boring, rather comforting and calming.
According to a WebMD.com article by Bob Barnett,
"Reputable studies find that music with a rhythm of about 60 beats a
minute helps people fall asleep. . ." "As you are falling asleep, your
heart rate begins to slow, and starts to move toward that 60-beats-per-minute
range.” In other words, slow music “tunes” your heartbeat toward the sleep
zone. But whether or not you utilize music to sleep, play it in the
background at a party or during a work-out, I continue to be amazed at how
music can be heard throughout everyday life.
These days, I have friends who use the ‘Sleep Sounds’ app
or are knocked out on their couch by the voices of Sam Waterston, Morgan
Freeman, Garrison Keillor or George Plimpton to name a few in Ken Burns’ “The
Civil War”, but for me it will always be music. I am currently
trying to compile my top 5 music to fall asleep to albums, but in the meantime,
since my boys and my wife sleep terribly most nights – maybe they need a new
copy of “Come Away with Me”.
Thanks for reading.
