Close your eyes and imagine a calm, relaxing scene. What can you hear? Maybe the soft patter of rain, the rumble of thunder, the splash of wet mud, the distant gunshots of World War I fighter planes… No, you haven't changed your mix of “good night” to your “zombie outbreak” playlist. Some people actually use the “battlefield environment” to fall asleep.
If “trench warfare” isn't what comes to mind when you hear the word “relaxation,” you'd be as surprised as TikTok user blusoho was when she caught her husband sleeping to the sounds of war. Not even the best mattress could help most of us fall asleep with this kind of background noise. But while this viral video has shocked a corner of the Internet, there is some logic to this unexpected sleep routine.
@blosoho
Like what???? 😭😭
♬ original sound – blusoho
The repetitive noise that defines many of these war environment videos has some similarity to more traditional white noise. Add to that a relaxing sense of familiarity (thanks to a childhood playing video games) and you have one of the most surprisingly popular sleep trends (the 'battlefield vibe' appears on YouTube hit pages). Let's dive into what happens when you turn off the lights and turn on trench warfare…
Why might the battlefield environment help someone sleep?
When it comes to winding down for bed, we tend to choose relaxing, family-friendly activities. Admittedly, for most of us, those terms don't describe the noise of a World War I battle. But they do remind you to curl up with a familiar book and the soft music of your childhood bedtime routine. And although it may sound strange, this is largely what is happening to those who enjoy the atmosphere of the battlefield.
Speaking to Newsweek, Blusoho, creator of the viral TikTok that exposed the trend, explains that her husband played video games when he was a child. War games, specifically. When she starts 'WWI Distant Battle Ambience', she doesn't make him think about war. Instead, she reminds him of the cozy days in her childhood home: a much more relaxing thought.
I could see the logic behind this, but at first I wasn't entirely convinced that any amount of happy associations could make the battlefield atmosphere relaxing. Then I heard it. And to be completely honest, I get it. While I won't be playing this one before bed, the repetitive, booming sounds are more cinematic than scary. It even rained heavily, one of my favorite white noise sounds for sleeping. If I hadn't known that there was a battle atmosphere, I might have thought it was a storm in a busy city.
All kinds of sounds can be relaxing before bed, from persistent rain to sizzling bacon, and what works for one person may not work for another. I can't sleep to birdsong, as I discovered when I tried the Groov-e Serenity Sound Machine, but others find that the endless tweets and chirps can put them to sleep. And although I never liked fighting games as a child, Crash Bandicoot's soundtrack has an unexpected soporific effect. So perhaps it's not so surprising that the boom-bang-explosion of a turn-of-the-century battlefield signals relaxation to some.
Which means the next time you're having trouble sleeping, instead of asking yourself “what's something relaxing you can do?”, think about what feels most familiar to you. You never know, you might find that Dinosaur Forest or Zombie Apocalypse is just what you need to get you snoring again.
