Earplugs it is (noise reduction, not cancellation)

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What's your favorite earplugs so you can hear but not be overstimulated? I'm about to buy some "hifi" earplugs.

Last night I played a board game with my young children and I didn't have an outburst ---- I wore earplugs... for the first time. Previously I have tightly controlled myself and been fairly "successful": mild to moderate outbursts (not severe). I kept thinking I could "do it myself": I could control my behavior. Phooey. The earplugs were a far easier "behavioral" fix. I had to take a deep breath due to chaotic physical activity, but avoided an outburst. The standard earplugs muffled all what was going on and I am hoping the concert earplugs muffle just the loud noises.

I should own stock in ear plug companies. I think I've used every kind there is through the years and many different brands of each kind.

Out of all the earplugs I've used, the only ones that were a "game changer" for me were LINK:
Eargasm High Fidelity Transparent Edition They are nearly invisible. They're visible in the picture of the woman on the link, but that's only when viewed from the side. When viewed head on, etc they don't stick out of the ears. I've never had anyone stare at my ears oddly or ask me about them. They don't block out all of the sounds like foam, silicone or molded earplugs do. I can still hear conversations, but loud noises aren't loud!

For the first time in my life I could enjoy conversation with others at my table in a busy restaurant because these earplugs blend other people's conversations into a white noise drone but I can hear my tablemates unless it's really loud. I can hear birds and friendly dogs barking their hellos on my walk, but loud cars, sirens or screeching metal brakes don't hurt! When loud cars, etc go by I say out loud pointing to my ears: "It's Ok, I have earplugs in." It's a very liberating feeling.

Also, they are washable when you pop out the little discs and then pop them back in. I've owned and used the same pair (I have a back up at the ready when I finally need them) for at least a year and the metal case is always with me on my key chain.

I've never thought that earplugs truly changed my life for the better until I bought these.

^ Thank you, Magna. Your recommendation and feedback is important to me. In what circumstances and for how long do you wear the earplugs? Have you tried other brands?

I am relieved and a bit embarrassed by this revelation for myself. When did you start wearing earplugs and why?

Extended use of earplugs can occasionally result in irritation. A drop of two of mineral oil can reduce irritation.

I've just bought Flare Isolate Mini earplugs and am finding them really good. I wear them in shops to help dull the background music/beeping/noise
https://www.flareaudio.com/collections/isolate-mini

Sharon: I take a lunchtime walk on my workdays and I always wear my earplugs then. It blocks out the occasionally loud street noises. Actually, I wear the earplugs in most public places including grocery stores, malls, restaurants, movies (for sure!! !), etc. The Eargasm silicone earplugs are comfortable for me for up to 2.5 hours at the most. Then my ear canals start to ache a bit. I remove the earplugs for about ten minutes if I still need to use them and reinsert and they're comfortable again for another hour or two.

I have tried many other brands and types including the expandable foam plugs which are good for very loud situations such as mowing the lawn, but they block out too much sound otherwise. I've tried the moldable disposable silicone kind that swimmers wear. they're good and comfortable for not very reusable. I also own the Flare isolate mini that tfw7 talks about. They block out a lot of sound but I don't care for them as much because of the metal posts that stick out a bit.

When I'm at home and it gets noisy (e.g. family noises, blender, vacuum, putting away clean dishes) I prefer to put these on. I call them my "cans":

Earplugs aren't enough to dampen my sound sensitivity, I have to use noise cancelling headphones. The brand I use is called Peltor.

@timf, thank you for the tip!

@tfw7, thank for the share. I'll keep my eye out for those as I am reading reviews.

@Magna, thanks again. After (or while) I figure this out for myself, I need to consider my AS-like daughter's situation.

@StarTrekker, how often do you wear the noise cancelling headphones? When can you be comfortable without them?

I can attest that Peltors are excellent. Though I do not need to wear them frequently, I wear them when operating small engines and when shooting--the family gun closet is stocked with large-bore antiques which are quite loud. The solution? Peltors. Always Peltors.

What model do you use?