Feeling overwhelmed? Being mindful can help

Updated August 2024 | 5 min read
Words by Karen Burge

In our noisy, daily lives it can be hard to find a moment of silence. Here we explore the benefits of being more mindful during quiet time.

From workplace chatter and office music to construction noise and the sound of traffic, much of what fills your ears in your daily life can be hard to escape. But what distracts one person may lift another up. Your ability to handle noise, and silence, has a lot to do with your personality.

But regardless of your relationship with noise, mindfulness may help you adjust the volume to a helpful level.

Do you struggle to get away from the noise?

“There are some personalities that find noise really tough,” explains Elisabeth Shaw, a clinical and counselling psychologist and CEO of Relationships Australia NSW.

“Those who require more introspection will suffer more than those who like noise around them. Intrusive noise can also make people feel out of control, because they can’t get away from it. Those feelings of helplessness and overwhelm are very stressful.”

For those people, distracting noise can be hard to tolerate, with many preferring quiet locations to provide a sense of calm and to allow them to concentrate on the task at hand.

Sometimes more favourable noise (like music you enjoy) can be used as a strategy to find quiet time and combat the discomfort of uncontrollable noise. You might put on earphones and your favourite album to help wash away the sound of loud office banter or the whirr of the photocopying machine over your shoulder.

Finding ways to make the best out of the environment you’re in will help you get through the day and maintain your wellbeing.

Are you wired to handle noise and hate the sound of silence?

Then there are personalities that thrive on noise, explains Elizabeth.

“People who are more extroverted can gather energy and positive feelings from being surrounded by others, and being highly engaged with them,” she says. “They can have less need for retreat and for silence.”

If you’ve ever found yourself switching on the radio to fill the void, then you might be someone who finds comfort in having a constant source of noise. These personalities might prefer background noise, the activity of an open-plan office, or studying at a café to perform at their best. When the office dynamic is low, gathering motivation to get the job done can be a greater challenge than for those who work best in quieter environments.

Benefits of practising mindfulness and quiet time

Whatever your personality, there are benefits in finding quiet time to calm the mind, although Elisabeth says silence isn’t necessarily a benchmark for success. Rather, it’s about tuning out.

“So, some might be restored by walking the dog while listening to a podcast; others might really need to retreat into meditation to clear the mind.

“The question is, what are you wanting to clear from your mind? If it’s clearing out work, a good chat with a friend or a trip to a noisy gym might do the trick. If it’s trying to settle anxious ruminations, then a combination of distraction and conscious settling of the mind, such as meditation practice, can assist.”

Meditation, a form of mindfulness, can help you reduce anxiety and depression, as well as improve your focus and enhance relationships. And a 2024 review of 35 studies found that combining mindfulness with exercise may enhance those mental wellbeing benefits further.

“Calming the mind does enable better decision-making, [it] increases emotional intelligence by reducing reactivity and reduces stress,” says Elisabeth.

There are physical health benefits, too. A 2023 review of multiple studies found mindfulness meditation benefits heart health by improving blood flow to the brain, stimulating an anti-inflammatory response and helping the body manage the breathing process better. It’s also proven to be helpful for managing sleep problems and pain.

How to practise mindfulness

Here are some easy ways to practise mindfulness in your day-to-day life.

• Go for a walk and make a point of fully observing what you see and feel. Try concentrating on the sensation of your feet on the ground.
• Avoid multitasking – instead, focus your attention on one task at a time and be present with it. When washing the dishes, for example, focus on the temperature of the water, the feel of the bubbles, and so on.
• Do some gentle stretches, and focus on how your body feels as you go.
• Try a meditation app, such as Smiling Mind, or the This Way Up online program.
• Write about your thoughts and feelings in a journal.

Focusing on your breathing may also help bring your full attention to the moment. Try square breathing (also known as box breathing): breathe in for four seconds, hold for four seconds, breathe out for four seconds then hold for four seconds; repeat three or four times. Putting your hands on your belly will help you keep your focus on the breath.

Chilling out - how to make silence work for you

For some people, becoming comfortable with silence isn’t as easy as it sounds.

“The biggest challenge for quiet time is the negativity that can capture us – the worries of the day, that leftover issue with a partner, [or] planning what to do next,” says Elisabeth.

“Distraction, such as music, can give the mind something else to focus on – a bridge into a different headspace for people whose mind is racing. Sometimes a walking meditation rather than a sitting meditation is good to start with for people who feel they have excess energy or where their body is out of sync with their racing mind.”

The trick, Elisabeth says, is not to use your quiet time to continue to think things over, but to actively work on switching channels to a different kind of thinking.

But there’s no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to chilling out. For some, it will be a structured meditation, yoga, a walk or an exercise class that gets their heads into the right space. For others, finding a quiet space to create arts and crafts, or getting your hands dirty in the garden, is the perfect way to achieve calm and balance.

Then, there are those who need to physically unplug from devices, or who crave a mini-break (like creating your own health retreat at home) or getting out into nature for a long hike for restoration.

Whatever strategies you have, or plan to work on, try to find quiet time to keep your troubles in check and your mind at ease.

Helping you maintain a healthy mind

If you’d like a little support, we've expanded our mental health offering to include a free HCF HealthyMinds Check-in for eligible members^*. This gives you faster, easier access to PSYCH2U psychologists and digital support services to help you take control of your mental wellbeing.