Comments on: Sounds to Soothe You

By: Sean Johnson

Sean Johnson — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 13:25:29 +0000

I love the sounds of the city. My brother lives in central London in a basement flat. Two streets away is the tube (underground) and you can hear the trains at night echoing into the flat. I love this noise, it’s really soothing. I suppose its to do with the repetive noise they make but its also not loud. You can also hear the planes passing over but they are still high in the air at that point so you dont hear the noises they make when they reduce speed and put the flaps into motion.

Im currently studying architecture and for my final project I am desiging a centre for people with mental health problems. I am looking at noise as a healing process whether it is to do with the sounds of the city or eliminating it to create a quiet space or even using the sounds of nature such as rain on the roof or the sound of water etc. This is just part of the project but think it’s an interesting theme I would like to explore.
If anyone knows of any concrete research on noise and mental health in a positive sense, I would be really grateful for tips.

By: Cheryl

Cheryl — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:47:32 +0000

Another sound that soothes me is the whistling tea kettle. I just made myself a cup of tea and smiled as I let the kettle linger on the burner…just so I could hear it whistle a little longer. I knew I had to come back and share this. To me..it’s just not tea unless the kettle whistles.

By: Steven Hill

Steven Hill — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 09:41:11 +0000

The and only thing that sooths me, is the sound of a beautiful piano song. The way each note is distinct to each other just brings joy to me. Of course, I do not play piano, but it sooths me so much. And, it’s a good source for me, when I write my book. Ah, how I love it. But, when I have a headache, it doesn’t work; some notes are louder than others. But yeah, that’s my soothing sound.

By: Cheryl @ Mandala Oasis

Cheryl @ Mandala Oasis — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 04:08:50 +0000

Hi Leah,
Oh..sounds that are soul-soothing to me are sounds from my childhood, some of which are: the buzzing of the cycadas..takes me right back to playing hopscotch with neighborhood kids; the sound of my dad’s saw – he worked in his woodshop nearly every Saturday (and made lots of stuff for the house, flower boxes, adirondack chairs, picnic table). Connected with this is the smell of sawdust – takes me back in an instant; hearing my dad whistle for minutes on end – it was a natural art for him; and a sound you don’t hear much anymore is the way the telephone used to ring – that old fashioned “ring” from my childhood takes me right back there; as well as a spring or fall rain on the roof – and we’d have the screen door open so the breeze would blow through the house while we would all putter around. Beautiful memories. Thank you. Oh.. and thank you for introducing me to the flower, ranunculus. I looked it up on bing.com “images” – wow.. its is simply gor-geous!

By: Kerry

Kerry — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 06:39:16 +0000

I love the sound of laughter – particularly my husband’s beautiful, hearty laugh and the gentle tinkle of my grand-daughter’s laugh.

There are so many sounds I love, I could end up with a long list! Thank you Leah for stimulating my mind and making me more aware of the sounds I love.

These are off the top of my head, I’ll think of a million more as I ponder your question:
Distant trains
Rain
Waves hitting the shore
Creeks
Nature
Continuous background music on my mp3

By: Kathy

Kathy — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 03:35:18 +0000

Soothing: the sound of a train in the distance, ocean waves and children laughing at shores edge while I sleep in the sun on the sand. Being able to hear only birds and my footsteps while hiking. Reiki Whale Song music. Silence….
Not so soothing, but I happen to love thunder, fireworks and the loud clashes and clangs of Bejeweled blitz…something about it is exciting

By: Tyanne

Tyanne — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 02:29:18 +0000

Waves lapping against the shore.
Rain on the trailer roof
Jingling dog tags.

By: Eileen

Eileen — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:55:42 +0000

Oooh1 The sound of my dog sleeping, yep. He’s snoring away as I write this. Total relaxation and rhythmic contentment

And I love what you said about your husband’s car beep. Because, objectively? That beepy car noise? Totally annoying. But it’s all about the associations, right? Mmmm, love.

By: Jul

Jul — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:26:38 +0000

I love the sound of rain, too, especially thunderstorms (strange, I know, but I might even call thunder “soothing”). We’ve been having non-stop rain this past week in Munich, and although I’m starting to feel a little water-logged, I’m still happy to have the rain stick around for a while longer.

By: Sloane

Sloane — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 22:00:01 +0000

Hands down…my favorite sound is cicadas. They are in full chorus now that it is summer. Though not as much as I’d like in my neighborhood.
Growing up my stepmom had a house in Corolla, NC…way before it was built up as it is today. Her house was nestled in the woods and I loved laying on the porch, reading and listening to them sing. Whenever I hear them it takes me straight to her cottage..hot, sandy beds, rusty water and all….it was heaven on earth.

Also glad to see that I am not the only ones who enjoy the sound of dogs sleeping. The little lip smacks, snoring and a yip or two during a dream…Sadie even wags her tail when she dreams so it thumps against the floor.