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For some with ADHD, the low rumble of brown noise quiets the brain

washingtonpost.com

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Re: For some with ADHD, the low rumble of brown noise quiets the brain

#2

Post by Ilasky »

That’s super interesting! I’ve noticed that I really enjoy the background sounds iPhone has when mixed with music. Helps me focus on house chores like those in the article.

I wonder if this is the reason lofi music has taken off in a big way with the static in the background - (something we’re experimenting with at Double https://doubleapp.xyz)

Edit: also remembered about the Kia instrument that popped up - it’s based on making music with pink noise https://www.kia.com/us/en/movement/our-instrument

Re: For some with ADHD, the low rumble of brown noise quiets the brain

#3

Post by marginalien »

Ilasky wrote: post #2

That’s super interesting! I’ve noticed that I really enjoy the background sounds iPhone has when mixed with music. Helps me focus on house chores like those in the article. I wonder if this is the reason lofi music has taken off in a big way with the static in the background - (something we’re experimenting with at Double https://doubleapp.xyz ) Edit: also remembered about the Kia instrument that popped up - it’s bas…

You’re on to something! The idea behind Double addresses a problem I‘ve been struggling with for a long time. The question is how to get it to take off - it needs scale and reach, network effects to really work well I believe. Maybe piggy back on existing communities?

Re: For some with ADHD, the low rumble of brown noise quiets the brain

#4

Post by polartx »

Tangential to the article—I didn’t receive an ADHD diagnosis until ~25 when I was at the beginning of my career and struggling much more than my coworkers (ranging from missing important info in long meetings to self starting projects).

For meetings, I fell back on tricks I discovered in elementary school—I found that when I drew pictures or doodled, I could pay attention better to what was being said; a partial distraction (say 10% of my attention) allowed me to focus the rest of my attention on what was being taught. However if I attempted to focus solely on the lecture, my mind would inadvertently wander to daydreaming and I would capture nothing at all.

Re: For some with ADHD, the low rumble of brown noise quiets the brain

#7

Post by Ilasky »

marginalien wrote: post #3
Ilasky wrote: post #2

That’s super interesting! I’ve noticed that I really enjoy the background sounds iPhone has when mixed with music. Helps me focus on house chores like those in the article. I wonder if this is the reason lofi music has taken off in a big way with the static in the background - (something we’re experimenting with at Double https://doubleapp.xyz ) Edit: also remembered about the Kia instrument that popped up - it’s bas…

You’re on to something! The idea behind Double addresses a problem I‘ve been struggling with for a long time. The question is how to get it to take off - it needs scale and reach, network effects to really work well I believe. Maybe piggy back on existing communities?

Thanks! And stoked to hear the idea of Double can address that problem for you.

Totally agreed on the network effects point - that’s why we made the Double Communities and are focusing on growing those!

Re: For some with ADHD, the low rumble of brown noise quiets the brain

#8

Post by kortex »

I have ADHD and I straight-up don't do silence. Between restless brain and tinnitus, actual silence, or anything with a noise floor below ~15dB, just doesn't sit right with me. 20-30dB is about ideal. Especially when trying to sleep. I have some sort of fan/filter in just about every room. When I'm working, I'm almost always listening to music (unless I'm way over stimulated).

It probably started when I was much younger with much worse asthma and always had a HEPA filter running in the background. Eventually this turned into basically always having some kind of fan in my primary locations. Right now I dig the Coway air filters on low or medium.

Even beyond the alleged "noise floor dopamine boost", I find some kind of background whoosh really nice for masking otherwise variable sounds, such as cars, airplanes, and the wind, which are far more distracting.

10/10 would recommend running some sort of air filter all the time. Plus, cleaner air (air pollution has all kinds of bad effects).

Re: For some with ADHD, the low rumble of brown noise quiets the brain

#9

Post by sph »

dboreham wrote: post #6

Music works for me, as long as it has no complex lyrics and I don't spent too much time searching for the perfect music to listen for the task at hand.

My coding juice is psytrance music. If my brain is a CPU, psy is a GHz clock, and it's technical and intricate enough to keep me stimulated but not distracted.

I am a fan of Infected Mushroom, Talpa, Grouch and the 296h "Psytrance Collection - Full-On, Offbeat & Progressive" playlist on Spotify.

But for me music is only for menial tasks. For deep thinking, it's silence and frantically pacing around the house with pen and paper. Can't think if I'm still, one of the reasons a regular cubicle job would annihilate my creativity.

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