The best podcasts and apps to help you fall asleep

Talia LakritzMay 7, 2020, 20:02 IST

If you're having trouble falling asleep, these podcasts and apps can help.ALDECAstock/Shutterstock

Apps like Calm and Headspace offer guided meditations and mindfulness exercises.
Podcasts such as "Sleep With Me," "Phoebe Reads a Mystery," and "Boring Books for Bedtime" feature sleep-inducing bedtime stories.
The soothing sounds of "The ASMR Podcast" and "Rain, Rain Sleep Sounds" can also lull listeners to sleep.
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Getting enough sleep is crucial anytime, but especially during the coronavirus pandemic. Insufficient sleep has been shown to affect the immune system and increase the chances of getting sick, according to Psychology Today.

Yet, in this highly stressful time, it can be difficult to get a good night's sleep. Lingering worries about the state of the world and health of loved ones, and the uncertainty of when things can return to normal, make it difficult to relax at all. Many are also reporting more vivid dreams since the pandemic started.

If you're having trouble falling asleep, here are 10 podcasts and apps that can help quiet your restless mind through meditation, soothing sounds, and bedtime stories.

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"Rain, Rain Sleep Sounds" allows you to create customized calming noises.

A screenshot from "Rain, Rain Sleep Sounds." Rain, Rain Sleep Sounds

"Rain, Rain Sleep Sounds" contains a library of nature sounds that can be combined and adjusted to suit your exact sleeptime needs.

Rain, Rain Sleep Sounds contains a library of nature sounds that can be combined and adjusted to suit your exact sleeptime needs.

Spotify has a sleep timer that turns any playlist or album into a helpful sleep aid.

Spotify's sleep timer. Spotify

You can set a sleep timer on Spotify to automatically turn off your music after a set amount of time if you want to save your phone's battery. To access the sleep timer, select a song or podcast to play, tap the three dots in the top right corner of the screen, and select "sleep timer" from the menu.

For fans of ASMR, "The ASMR Podcast" features different guest hosts who share their tingle-inducing talents.

"The ASMR Podcast" cover art. Apple Podcasts

ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) is a feeling best described as "brain tingles" that cause a relaxing or sleep-inducing sensation thanks to certain auditory triggers. Common ASMR sounds include tapping, whispering, crinkling, and crunching.

ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) is a feeling best described as brain tingles that cause a relaxing or sleep-inducing sensation thanks to certain auditory triggers. Common ASMR sounds include tapping, whispering, crinkling, and crunching.

The meditation app Headspace also offers sleep music and meditations.

An advertisement for Headspace. Headspace

Headspace's "sleepcasts" help users focus on slowing their breath and clearing their minds — perfect for settling into bed at the end of a long day.

Headspace's sleepcasts help users focus on slowing their breath and clearing their minds — perfect for settling into bed at the end of a long day.

If reading scientific theories or the 1897 Sears catalog sounds dull enough that it would put you to sleep, you might enjoy "Boring Books for Bedtime."

"Boring Books for Bedtime" cover art. Apple Podcasts

With new episodes every week, there's no shortage of mundane readings to quiet your mind.

"Nothing Much Happens" is true to its name.

"Nothing Much Happens" cover art. Apple Podcasts

On "Nothing Much Happens," yoga and meditation teacher Kathryn Nicolai tells short, simple stories to give your brain something else to focus on. Nicolai tells the stories twice, the second time slower than the first.

On Nothing Much Happens, yoga and meditation teacher Kathryn Nicolai tells short, simple stories to give your brain something else to focus on. Nicolai tells the stories twice, the second time slower than the first.

"Sleep Whispers" features poems, Wikipedia articles, and meditations in a relaxing whisper.

"Sleep Whispers" cover art. Apple Podcasts

If you're looking for a combination of bedtime readings and ASMR, the soothing sounds of "Sleep Whispers" provide the perfect blend.

If you're looking for a combination of bedtime readings and ASMR, the soothing sounds of Sleep Whispers provide the perfect blend.

Those who prefer a bedtime story with a linear plot can doze off to "Phoebe Reads a Mystery."

"Phoebe Reads a Mystery" cover art. Apple Podcasts

On the podcast "Phoebe Reads a Mystery," host Phoebe Judge reads classic mystery novels such as Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Hound of the Baskervilles: Another Adventure of Sherlock Holmes" in her famously soothing voice.

On the podcast Phoebe Reads a Mystery, host Phoebe Judge reads classic mystery novels such as Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles: Another Adventure of Sherlock Holmes in her famously soothing voice.

"Sleep With Me" is a podcast in which host Drew Ackerman tells a bedtime story that gets progressively more boring until the listener falls asleep.

Drew Ackerman at Vulture Festival in 2018. Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for New York Magazine

Jokingly referred to as the "world's most boring podcast," "Sleep With Me" puts listeners to sleep by telling them nonsensical bedtime stories. Ackerman himself had insomnia growing up, and would fall asleep by listening to comedy radio.

Jokingly referred to as the world's most boring podcast, Sleep With Me puts listeners to sleep by telling them nonsensical bedtime stories. Ackerman himself had insomnia growing up, and would fall asleep by listening to comedy radio.

Calm is an app that helps users learn the basics of mindfulness and meditation.

Calm. Calm

Calm is a sort of Spotify for meditation and mindfulness exercises. It includes a "Breathe Bubble" to help users take deep breaths guided by animations, a week-long introduction to mindfulness called "7 Days of Calm," informational Masterclasses, and a library of music and ambient sounds.

Calm is a sort of Spotify for meditation and mindfulness exercises. It includes a Breathe Bubble to help users take deep breaths guided by animations, a week-long introduction to mindfulness called 7 Days of Calm, informational Masterclasses, and a library of music and ambient sounds.

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