You might be worried that using a white noise machine will make you miss your alarm of worse yet, a fire alarm. I've been in many hotels when the fire alarms went off at night while I was using my white noise machine at full volume. Don't worry; you can still hear a fire alarm.

As an airline pilot, I often have to get up very early. I can't afford to be late for work.

My white noise machine has never prevented me from hearing my alarm or wake up call. Your mind still detects these.

White noise machines are also great for your home or for creating privacy in your office.

My wife used to work as a Family Therapist. Their offices were not soundproof, but privacy and confidentiality were extremely important. They used white noise machines to create this privacy.

I have a friend who could not sleep through her husband's snoring. It was becoming a stressful issue for them. They learned about white noise machines and got one. It did the trick. Now she can sleep and their marriage is much better because of it.

We have an additional white noise sound machine at home. My travel one is so important to me that I never unpack it or use it at home. I would hate to leave it home and lose the sleep protection it provides during my trips.

When you first get a white noise machine, you have to train yourself to use it. That basically entails gradually increasing its volume each night. It takes about a week to get used to sleeping at the maximum volume. You'll be surprised how you won't even notice it then.

Some white noise machines make "nature sounds" like frogs, birds, or whales. You can even buy recordings of nature sounds to play to help you fall asleep.

While listening to Shamu, the killer whale, may be relaxing for some people, I don't think they make very effective white noise.