Bernard O'Shea: What is green noise and how does it quiet your mind? 

Green noise: inspired by nature, can quiet your mind, calm your stress, and maybe even send you into a dreamy game show with hummingbirds

Bernard O'Shea: "Green noise is part of a fascinating spectrum of sounds categorised by “colour”: white noise, pink noise, brown noise, and now, green. Who knew noise came with its own palette?". Picture: Moya Nolan.

Imagine this: it’s 2 am. You’ve got a big day tomorrow, and your brain insists on replaying every awkward thing you’ve done since childhood. Suddenly, you remember a drunken conversation you had with your friend when he told you not to slag him off because he told you “I can’t fall asleep anymore without my green noise?”

Green noise? Sounds like DJ set at a festival. Naturally, I Googled it. Turns out, green noise is part of a fascinating spectrum of sounds categorised by “colour”: white noise, pink noise, brown noise, and now, green. Who knew noise came with its own palette?

Green noise lies in the middle of the colour noise spectrum. Each noise colour represents a different energy pattern and frequency range. White noise, for example, spreads evenly across all frequencies, while pink and brown noise lean heavier on the low end.

Green noise, however, is balanced, sitting snugly in the mid-frequency range (500–1,000 hertz). It mimics natural sounds—think waterfalls, ocean waves, or a breeze through the trees. It’s not loud or overwhelming but gently rhythmic, like the heartbeat of the natural world.

In simpler terms? Green noise is your sound equivalent of a weighted blanket.

Why are so many people turning to sound colours for solace? I wondered if it could genuinely help me sleep better?. Could this be the answer to drowning out not only external noise but the internal chaos too? My skepticism softened into curiosity.

Sound therapy dates back centuries. Tibetan monks have long used chanting bowls to foster meditation, while Aboriginal didgeridoo players create hypnotic vibrations thought to promote healing. In Japan, the concept of shinrin-yoku—“forest bathing”—is rooted in immersing oneself in the natural sounds and sights of a woodland setting to de-stress.

Modern green noise owes its popularity to this ancient wisdom married with contemporary science. Now, instead of sitting beside a riverbank, we stream its digital equivalent on Spotify. The irony, of course, is that technology—often the cause of our mental exhaustion—is now repackaged as its solution.

So, is green noise scientifically legit? Green noise’s mid-range frequencies are strikingly similar to the natural sounds our ancestors relied on to signal safety—like the hum of a forest or the rhythm of rainfall. According to a 2019 study in The Journal of Sound Therapy (yes, that’s a thing), listening to these nature-inspired sounds can reduce cortisol levels—the stress hormone that keeps us wired.

Furthermore, these sounds stimulate alpha brain waves, which are linked to relaxation and focus. Essentially, green noise is like a tidy-up playlist for your brain. If your mind is a cluttered attic filled with useless anxieties and random worries, green noise is the sonic broom sweeping it all away.

So, how do you invite this acoustic miracle into your life? It’s simple:

• Apps and Devices: Apps like Calm or YouTube playlists offer endless green noise options. Start with free versions before committing to anything expensive. Your wallet will thank you.

• Headphones or Speakers?: Headphones provide a personal cocoon of sound, perfect for bedtime. My wife loves nothing only to hear the gentle roar of fighting baboons amidst the pounding rain drops (“Turn that f##king noise off”)

• When to Play It: Pair green noise unwinding before bed. It’s also brilliant for focus during work.

• Experiment and Customise: Not all green noise is created equal. Try recordings with different natural settings—rainfall, forests, or ocean waves—to find what works for you.

The first night I tried green noise, I felt ridiculous. Lying in bed, headphones on, listening to what sounded like a distant waterfall. But by night three, something shifted. My brain, usually a runaway train of thoughts, started to slow down. I began falling asleep faster, and even my dreams took a turn for the surreal (ask me sometime about hosting a game show for humming birds). Long and short of it is that it worked for me.

Green noise isn’t a miracle cure. It won’t clean your house, organise your life, or fix your Wi-Fi. But it’s a tool—a simple, effective way to carve out calm in an increasingly noisy world.

Worst case? You’ll spend a few minutes listening to something soothing. Best case? You’ll discover the noise you never knew you needed.

And if it doesn’t work? Well, there’s always the dryer.