noise sensitive -in apartment; studying in the library

Otis_taylor2

Hi all,

I need your advice regarding 2 issues -

1. I live in an apartment complex that has wooden flooring and my apartment is right next to the main door (so i can clearly hear the sound of the doors opening/closing). The soundproofing in the apartment is very poor and to add to that I am quite sensitive to sound around. for e.g. - I lose my attention on what im working on and find myself getting a bit irritated with the sound of the door opening/closing or if the neighbor upstairs walks around in their heel shoes. And using ear plugs or headphones do not muffle the sound and they tend to hurt my ears after a while.

I have few exams to sit in a week and i cannot study in the library throughout the day (i go in the evenings).

I understand these noises are part of living in an apartment complex esp with wooden flooring. but i would like any advice on whats the best way to deal with the noise?

if you are someone who lives in an apartment, what do you think when you hear these noises? does it bother you? how do you deal with it?


2. how does one thoroughly concentrate and study in the library without getting distracted?

homemadecider

Why can't you study in the library? What is distracting you?

dee_mc

Can you book a quiet study room/area in the college library?
I always found the best way to get myself focussed was to set targets/learning outcomes for each hour of study, and reward myself with a short break. I also had to be a total b1tch and ask people not to talk to me when I was studying
The other option, which I only used once in total desperation, was to ask a friend whose house was empty during the day if I could use his living room. Much quieter area, much more focussed study
I also had to buy a watch and leave my phone switched off otherwise I was 'checking the time' every 5 minutes
I know exactly how you feel 're doors banging and the 'elephants in stilettos chorus line' but sadly there's nothing you can really do about that,
Hope you get sorted and all the best with the exams!

Diziet

Get a nice pair of headphones that go over your ears, and use simplynoise.com to generate white noise. This is like the sound of rain and is very effective in masking these irritating sounds. I find it vastly improves my concentration.

Otis_taylor2

homemadecider wrote: »

Why can't you study in the library? What is distracting you?

i tend to get a bit too anxious of people around. after concentrating for 5 mins my mind wanders into different thoughts, worrying about different things. i will be reading the same paragraph again and again and after 30-40 mins i realize how much time i have wasted.

There is also very less drive/motivation at some times, which i can't figure out how to improve.

Otis_taylor2

Thanks for all the suggestions guys ill try them out.