Silence is golden

It’s not just sirens challenging our zen. ‘In an age of digital distraction and its continual tide of stimuli, the human capacity to apply concentration to a chosen subject is being challenged,’ says Smith.

But how to escape our decibel hell? Slipping off to a cave in the Hebrides simply isn’t feasible. But think small. A recent study into the effect of music on heart rate and breathing found that pressing pause on the world for just 120 seconds every day had a real and profound impact. Hurrah for that (we whisper).

‘Silence is our baseline. Try to stay in conscious contact with it and you can right-size your listening, becoming able to appreciate quiet sounds again, while being more attuned to the loud, unhealthy sounds that many of us have become desensitised to,’ says Julian Treasure, chairman of The Sound Agency, five-time TED speaker and author of How To Be Heard: Secrets For Powerful Speaking And Listening. Treasure describes silence as being a bit like an aural sorbet: once your listening palate is refreshed and cleansed, your sensitivity is renewed and you develop a taste for it.

Keen to give it a go? On 12 December Mandarin Oriental Hotels will hold Silent Night retreats at their 24 spas globally, with social media deactivated and a ban on noise after 5pm. It’s part of a plan ‘to remind guests to experience stillness and quiet contemplation as a respite from technology’. We like the sound of that…