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Health Benefits of Quiet. Tips for Silence Habits
Numerous studies have linked unwanted sound to increased levels of
stress. Even low-level noise has been associated with increased
aggression and other mental health problems, as well as poor sleep,
high blood pressure, and heart disease.
Janet Luhrs, pioneer of the Simplicity Movement, offers the
following tips for increasing moments of silence in your daily life
so that you will feel better and be healthier:
Start your day with silence. Before running headlong into another
day, do something relaxing for twelve minutes when you wake up. That
could be stretching, reading something inspirational, or meditating.
Hormone levels are highest when you first get out of bed. Most
people have coffee and turn on CNN. That’s the worst thing you can
do.
Eat at a table, without TV or reading. Mindful eating helps you
enjoy your food more, prevents overeating because you are tuned in
to your body’s satiety signals, and allows your body to metabolize
food more efficiently.
Try driving in silence. The car is a wonderful place to get in touch
with your thoughts and be with yourself. Silence is rejuvenating.
Create a silence retreat at home. Set aside an evening at home when
you will not talk. Turn the ringer off the phone and don’t answer
it; turn off the TV. Don’t run any extra machines. If you have a
cooperative family, try to do it together, or trade nights with your
spouse taking the kids out to dinner and a movie.
Practice silent exercise. When you exercise, try it without the iPod
and magazines. If possible, exercise outdoors. Silence helps you pay
attention to everything your body is doing—your breathing, your
muscles, your posture. Silence helps you listen to the healthy
signals your body is giving you—to slow down, to go faster, to
straighten up.
About Janet Luhrs
Luhrs is the international best-selling author of The Simple Living
Guide and Simple Loving, hosts a popular website,
www.simpleliving.com, and pens the well-known “Simple Living” newsletter.
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