Why buy earplugs?
I was diagnosed with ADHD, and one thing I have found is a lot of noise around me when I am concentrating can be very overwhelming/stimulating for me and I can either find myself engaging in conversations when I need to concentrate, or not being able to focus on what I am working on.
I had seen different earplugs advertised, some specifically marketed for ADHD/ASD, others for going to concerts or working in cafes and situations like that. So I decided to order a pair and see if they might help me. I had seen Loop earplugs mentioned a lot on forums and Reddit so I thought I would give them a go.
What did I buy?
The Loop website has a few different earplugs in a lot of different colours/options and I found the website a bit overwhelming trying to choose which earplugs to buy. Their range of earplugs have different levels of noise protection like the Engage2 that allow you to have conversations with people while wearing them, to the Quiet2 that have 24db of noise reduction for almost completely blocking out sounds when you want to sleep or focus.
Having ADHD and feeling the compulsive need to buy every pair available on their website (and of course they have to match!), I stopped when I saw the Switch that have 3 levels of noise protection in one pair of earplugs. Spinning a dial on the plugs you can change from Quiet, Engage and Experience levels. So I decided to buy those instead of needing 3 separate pairs of earplugs. You can find the Loop Switch here, I went for blue which turned out to be a nice but quite light shade of blue. I tend to go for darker blues, but I'm happy with this blue.
Price (at time of review): £54.95 (approx. $70 USD)
What is in the box?
The earplugs arrived quickly, and were well packaged. The protective case that comes with them is nice and small, so would fit in your pocket or bag easily. The box comes with 4 different sizes of tips, and I found the medium size worked well for me.
They fit snugly but not overly tight, and feel good in my ears. At first I found it a little strange having them in my ear and talking, but once I got used to that it is nice being able to have conversations while keeping earplugs in.
Spinning a dial on the plugs you can change from Quiet, Engage and Experience levels
Are they helping?
So far I can say yes, I really like the Quiet mode for when I want to rest or have some time to myself. The engage mode so far has been the mode I have used the most, I use that in cafes and talking to people and I can hear people just fine and have conversations with no problems.
The thing I am enjoying most is they have definitely helped with feeling over stimulated/overwhelmed when I need to concentrate or focus. Up until now I had sometimes used my ear buds on noise cancelling mode without listening to anything, to try and do the same thing but that wasn't very comfortable for long periods. The Loop Switch are small, light and I forget about them being in my ears after about 10 mins or so, and have been able to use them for long sessions of concentrating without them becoming uncomfortable.
The thing I am enjoying most is they have definitely helped with feeling over stimulated/overwhelmed when I need to concentrate or focus
The only negative for me so far in day to day use, is that they are very small and easy to lose. For someone with a tendency to lose/forget everything when I leave something somewhere, I will have to be careful not to lose them! They are also a little difficult to remove from my ear, they slot in so well in the ridge of my ear that my fingers don't fit in to pull them out. The good thing about that is being someone with a tendency to sweat, they don't feel like they will slip out when I am working out or walking like my earbuds do.
The price felt a little high, but they are well made and thought out so overall I think it was worth the cost. Especially when considering that to buy the 3 separate pairs of earplugs that the Switch is able to emulate, would have cost £80 or more (approx $100).
The only negative for me so far in day to day use, is that they are very small and easy to lose
Will I keep using them?
I definitely will keep using earplugs in my day to day routine. They have been awesome for helping with feeling overstimulated and being able to focus on things. The Switch and the idea of having 3 earplugs in one seems to work well, although I would like at some point to compare the individual versions of Loop earplugs with those modes on the Switch to see if the noise protection/filtering works as well as the dedicated plugs.
I plan to try a few other earplugs from other brands and see how they compare to the Loop, but for now I am enjoying using the Switch and they will be going with me wherever I go
