Intermittent Silence: the self help practice of the year
Practice of intermittent silence can enhance our abilities that we don’t know exist with us. The time spent in stillness can be rejuvenating and refreshing. You journey to the inner source where you find the force, and the force is there in the form of resilience to stay with you. And, once resilience comes from inside you, it’s now a permanent part of you
By | Krishna Bhatta | community.thriveglobal.com
The Self-Help Tip of the Year is “Intermittent Silence”
Silence is the source of ideas, music, and inner strengths in our lives. How do we benefit from this quality of silence? Some go to ten-day silent meditation retreats, while others practice mindfulness at home. I find that a ten-minute practice of intermittent silence a day can do just that and help transform our lives. New doors start opening to our inner self, and a transformative emotional and spiritual journey of learning to trust the Universe and our inner voice starts taking shape. This, I propose to be the self-help practice of the year.
Let’s look at the words of the year: lockdown, quarantine, resilience, and more. I agree with Ariana Huffington that resilience should be the word of the year. However, I also feel that practice of intermittent silence customized to building resilience should be the self-help tip of the year.
The power to build resilience is within us. Just as we can learn other skills through practice, we can teach ourselves to be more resilient. We can train our mind and condition our brain to learn and be resilient, but how do we grow the resiliency from inside us, so that it is no more an imposition on our minds? That is where practice of intermittent silence steps in.
Certainly, it’s not hard to see the urgent need this year for resilience. According to a recent C.D.C. report, 41 percent of Americans have struggled with mental health issues, like anxiety, depression, or substance abuse related to the pandemic. The American Psychological Association’s Stress in America report found that nearly eight in ten adults say the pandemic is a major source of stress, and 60 percent are overwhelmed by the issues currently facing America. And suspected overdoses went up 18 percent in March, 29 percent in April, and 42 percent in May.
