Alison Weihe, a 60-year-old South African woman, was the co-founder of a design and manufacturing company and was busy working day and night for her career. During the day, she is a company representative, dealing with endless pressure and deadlines in a male-dominated industry; at night, she is the mother of two teenagers, juggling family and career, with guilt and exhaustion becoming her daily routine.
After the death of her mother, grief and responsibility weighed on her shoulders at the same time. She said that she "never really stopped" during that time, and her body and mind were telling her: "It's time to slow down."
{99 9}It wasn’t until the end of 2018, when she was seriously ill with herpes zoster for three months, that she realized her body was crying for help. Her daughter suggested that she participate in a "Ten Days of Silence Camp" where she would not talk, exercise or use mobile phones at all, and just focus on inner awareness. Wei He initially resisted, fearing that silence would open wounds from the past.
But in order to establish a connection with her daughter, she signed up for the "Vipassana" retreat center, which is about an hour and a half away from home.
Ten Days of Silence: Facing the Noisiest SelfOn the first day she arrived at the camp, she handed over her mobile phone and only took her clothes with her. She used to rely on exercise and writing to relieve stress, but this time she can't do anything. She can't read, write, chat, and even eye contact is prohibited.
"At the beginning, I was in terrible pain. I couldn't sit still or sleep. My mind was full of unfinished things." She recalled that she felt like she was going through withdrawal in the past few days. It wasn't until the sixth day that she could finally sit still for three hours, just watching the curtains outside the window being blown by the wind.
When her thoughts gradually calmed down, she found that she could "see" the flow of emotions and was no longer swallowed by them. At the end of the ten days, Wei He said, "For the first time, I truly felt that my body and mind were at peace."
She understood that her mission in life was no longer to be busy or pursue, but to learn to share experiences and use stories to heal others.
Medical perspective: Six major benefits of silence for the body and mindBritish psychologist Dr. Kirstie Fleetwood-Meade pointed out that silent practice is not a religious ritual, but a process of "psychological restructuring." She analyzed the six major health benefits of silence:
1. Reduce stress and anxiety: Staying away from daily message bombardment can reduce cortisol concentration and put the nervous system into a relaxed state.
2. Improve self-awareness: Silence allows people to see their own behavior and thinking patterns and understand the source of their emotions.
3. Emotional healing: Staying away from external stimulation allows the suppressed emotions deep inside to emerge and be released.
4. Return to the present moment: Continuous silence allows people to focus on the present moment and cultivate stable awareness.
5. Reconnect spiritual energy: Silence often makes people rethink the meaning of life and recall inner strength.
6. Improve sleep and creativity: Reduce external interference, help restore circadian rhythm, and also promote thinking and creativity.
From "speaking" to "quietness": a lesson for modern peopleWei He said that these ten days changed the rhythm of her life. She no longer pursues "doing everything well" but learns to "let everything happen naturally." "In silence, I find my truest self," she said. In this era of information overload, perhaps we should all give ourselves a chance to put down our mobile phones, put down our language, return to the quietest inner world, and listen to the voice of our hearts.