The 6 Amazing Benefits of Silence and Solitude
PHOTO BY LUKASZ SACZEK ON UNSPLASH
Silence, what does that word even mean these days. It is becoming hard for most of us to experience. The world we live in today is filled with many activities that we run to and from, leaving us no room or even the time to remember to sit in silence. So, the question here is, how often do we actually sit and absorb the healing power of silence? Are we even aware of the benefits that silence or solitude can offer us?
“Silence is the sleep that nourishes wisdom.” ~ Francis Bacon
Silence, Solitude, Sound, and Noise
Let’s look at some definitions to begin with. Silence is defined as being the complete absence of sound. Sound is a vibration travels through the air or perhaps with another medium which can be heard when they reach the eardrum. Whereas the word solitude is defined as the state or quality of being alone or remote from others. The words solitude and silence have similarities in the form of reducing the level of noise. If we now have a look at the two words sound and noise, which are usually confused as they give the same meaning, however, there is a distinctive difference. Sound as stated above is a vibration which could come from anything. On the other hand, the term noise comes from the Latin word “nausea”, which is a loud or unpleasant sound, generally speaking, it is something that is unwanted or undesirable.
From the moment, most of us wake up and start the processes of our day, all the way until we are back in bed, we are overfilled with a variety of sound and noise and the impacts of it. The impact and healing powers of silence and solitude go way beyond relaxation. Let’s dive a little deeper into its benefits.
The benefits of silence and solitude: How it impacts us
These days relaxation is something we need more and more of in our everyday lives. Life is full of stress and silence and solitude is possibilities that can be utilized to experience some relaxation. Silence and solitude provide everything you need to slow your body and mind down. Rather than searching for and utilizing some expensive therapies to calm yourself down, you can enjoy the same benefits by sitting in silence or sitting in solitude.
Silence and Solitude offer us the opportunity to:
1.Slow Down ~ sitting in silence is not just about the noise that comes from the external world we live in. The constant chatter in our head, the incessant chit chat we do with ourselves begins to slow down in silence. It gives us the opportunity to slow down the whole thinking process, surrendering and letting go of all the issues which are bothering us. The process of emptying the mind and just simply still offering us the opportunity to experience this.
2.Bring Clarity ~ During these moments, the possibility of clarity can be created. When we have a lot going on in our minds, thoughts are rushing in and out, one thought coming in after another, leaving us with feeling overwhelming and increased stress and perhaps rather anxious. Simply by removing distractions, we can remove the junk out of the way so that we can begin to see things clearly. Unplugging yourself from all the noise and entering the realm of silence helps us to rediscover ourselves and reconnect with who we truly are.
3.Positively Impact Our Brains ~ there have been many research studies which have all found a variety of positive impacts on our brain and its functioning. Research has found that silence, in fact, has the opposite effect of noise on our brains. One particular study*1 which was published in the Heart journal has asserted that two minutes of silence can be a whole lot more relaxing than actually listening to relaxing music.
During this study, they discovered that there were positive changes in blood pressure and blood circulation within the brain during silence as opposed to while the participants were listening to relaxing music. Another study which was conducted in 2013 discovered that silence can boost brain growth simply by creating new cells. This particular study which was published in the journal Brain Structure and Function discovered that when the mice were exposed to at least two hours of silence, they were able to generate new cells in the hippocampus part of the brain.
4.Improve Our Memory ~ A silent activity such as going for a stroll in the park can cause growth in the hippocampus region of the brain. There have been numerous studies which have found that being in nature helps the brain to focus and increase memory fusion. In fact, a research study*2 which was conducted in 2011, published their results in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal, found that individuals who took a stroll in the park for 40 minutes three times a week for an entire year had cell generation in their hippocampus region. The study which was mentioned previously also found new cells growth in the hippocampus region of the brain. This structure is responsible for our ability to learn, remember things and our emotions.
5.Reduce Our Stress Levels ~ As we all know excessive stress has a negative impact on your physical, emotional and mental health. Noise has a noticeable physical effect on the brain. This can result in increased levels of stress hormones being pumped in the body. However, the study*1 mentioned above discovered that silence can release negative tension in the brain and body in just two minutes. A stressed environment, in addition to outside noise, can place an unnecessary burden on your mind and body. In order to be able to function at our optimal level, we need to recharge and reboot ourselves. A great way to be able to do this is to sit in silence and solitude to allow your mind and body to rest and slow down.
6.Impact Our Quality of Sleep ~ Sleep is such a healing process and also a controversial topic. Some people love it, some don’t and others cannot get enough of it. Research has discovered that spending a few minutes a day in silence can actually result in improved sleep quality. This is especially true for those who have difficulty sleeping or falling asleep. A research study*3 focusing on mindfulness meditation, conducted in 2015, which published its results in JAMA Internal Medicine discovered that older adults who faced difficulty sleeping experienced less insomnia, fatigue, and depression after practicing mindfulness meditation. Mindfulness meditation is when the focus is on breathing. During this meditation, there is no thinking about the past or the future. What mindfulness meditation does is help disrupt the cycle of everyday thoughts stimulating a relaxation response. The mind can literally let go and just be present.
Here are some questions for you to think about; Have you been able to sit in silence this week? Was it enough for you? Did you schedule it or was it random? Did you enjoy it? Would you consider practicing sitting in silence more frequently now that you have discovered the benefits of silence?
“Everything that’s created comes out of silence. Thoughts emerge from the nothingness of silence. Words come out of the void. Your very essence emerged from emptiness. All creativity requires some stillness.”
~ Wayne Dyer
*1 HTTPS://WWW.NCBI.NLM.NIH.GOV/PMC/ARTICLES/PMC1860846/
*2 HTTPS://WWW.NCBI.NLM.NIH.GOV/PMC/ARTICLES/PMC3041121/
*3 HTTPS://JAMANETWORK.COM/JOURNALS/JAMAINTERNALMEDICINE/FULLARTICLE/211099