I love her with all of my heart. She’s probably the closest thing I have to a child and the only thing that tugs at my maternal instincts in my 30s.

But you know what? She also has this incessant meow that goes on and on and on, in the middle of the night.

She was waking me up at 4am consistently with her whining for food. My sleep was interrupted and it made me really grumpy and grouchy. My work was also suffering. The pain was real.

I looked online at some suggested advice on how you can get your cat to sleep during the night and some suggestions were really ridiculous. Things like… ignore your cat (this is not possible really), feed your cat (have you seen her size?!) or leave out toys (she doesn’t even play with toys normally) were not working out for me.

So other than training the cat, the alternative is train yourself…. to be a deeper sleeper. So I entered the world of ear plugs.

Foam earplugs

If you’re new to earplugs, this is probably the most entry-level earplugs that you can find in any pharmacies, supermarkets or convenience stores. Some even claim to block up to 30dB and there are specialised ones like snore blockers. It takes a while to learn to insert these. You need to roll it like a tight cylinder before stuffing into your ear canals. Typically each pair is good for one-time use due to foam expansion. Plenty of YouTube tutorials online.

These did nothing for me. A pin drops and I could still hear it. (OK I am exaggerating but you get my point).

Silicone putty earplugs

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These are soft sticky silicone putty that can be moulded to cover the outer opening of your ear The putty is soft so that it can be moulded and sticky so they stick to your ears.

They’re really easy to use but each set can be used for limited number of times… because they’re sticky and yucks, ear wax issues are real. Each set usually works out to 5 nights’ usage for me. You can probably get these abt S$12 for a box of 6. Some go as low as S$2 if you ship from China.

I didn’t like how unsustainable these were and I had to keep buying. Plus, the icky factor.

Eco-friendly sustainable earplugs

Happy Ears came up in my research pretty often. More importantly, it’s reusable. It’s certified to block 25dB.

The ‘head’ blocks your ear canal and the stem is soft. There are also three sizes so you can find your best fit. There’s no learning curve here. You just… plug it in. The challenge here is you don’t really know which size fits you.

I bought the discovery pack which was S$40 (as of 2020) for three sizes. Size L fitted me best. To be honest, I had no major issues with this in terms of fit but… I was still being woken up damn it.

Customised Earplugs

By the time I got to this option, I must have spent about S$80 just trying out all the different options.

These are divine. My babies block up to 33 dB. I find that of all earplugs these are the most effective, especially in blocking out the low hums of air conditioning. When I pop these in and I’m in deep sleep, I am dead to the world. I seldom get woken up anymore when I have these in. I can still hear my phone alarm perfectly because that’s quite loud and constant until the alarm is turned off.

It’s actually a relatively simple process to get these customised. I got them at Faith Hearing Centre at S$120 (as of 2020) which is regulated pricing in Singapore. You book an appointment, the audiologist will examine your ears to assess your suitability. You get an impression done with medical-grade putty that hardens in a few minutes then the impression is sent to a factory for your earplugs to be made. You can choose from a range of colours. I wanted different colours so it’s easily recognisable The whole fitting process took about an hour. My first appointment was on a Saturday then the collection was next Saturday. Pretty smooth and fuss-free. Can’t recommend it enough.

In the process, I found out that my left ear canal was significantly smaller than my right. The blue earplug is for my left ear.

There are all sorts of customised earplugs available and even ones that are for Air Pods for improved audio clarity. If you’re someone who deals with loud noises all the time, especially in entertainment or church worship there are options for that too.

I’d imagine my customised earplugs being helpful when travelling becomes a thing again. Meanwhile, these are essential for my sleep, for now.

S$120 to block out the meowing? Take my money please!!

Meanwhile, she seems to have stopped whining at 4am these days thankfully but I’m not taking any chances with my sleep.