We live in a noisy world. From the alarm clock to the ringing of cell phones. From the banging of pots and pans to lunching in crowded sports grills with blaring televisions. From the horn of the train to the sounds of passing traffic. From the cry of the baby to the barking of the dog. From jet skies to motorcycles. Everywhere we go we are bombarded by sound.

When you add lawn mowers, leaf blowers, jack hammers, jet engines, dentist drills and construction equipment, you have noise overload. Even when you're watching television at a reasonable volume, commercials come on that nearly blow you out of your chair (that's intentional, by the way).
 
It seems that we have reached a cultural acceptance of living in a noisy world. But what is noise doing to us? It may be making us physically and psychologically ill, according to some studies, including some done by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The World Health Organization has declared noise a human health issue that adversely affects the lives of millions of people throughout the world. People continuously exposed to noise experience elevated stress levels, mood swings, hypertension, depression, lost sleep and decreased productivity. In children, it can result in slowed learning and inability to concentrate, according to studies at Cornell University.

Cornell conducted a study to ascertain the impact of noise on employees in an open office area where they were constantly exposed to fax machines, telephones, office chatter, shredding machines and more. The study revealed that workers in this area had high levels of adrenaline in their urine. Adrenaline is a hormone that stimulates the heart rate and dilates blood vessels and air passages in preparation for a "fight or flight" situation. Other workers in quiet, self-contained office spaces did not have the elevated levels of adrenaline and were much more relaxed and less stressed.

Physiological impact of noise	Psychological impact of noise
Loss of hearing	Annoyance
Vegetative dysfunction	Stress, nervousness, tenseness
Cardiovascular problems	Despondency
Increased blood pressure	Disturbance to communication
Reduced depth of sleep	Loss of performance
Headaches	Psychosomatic symptoms

Psychological impact of noise	Economic impact of noise
Hindrance to communication	Increased rent and price of real estate
Negative judgment of other people	Cost of noise protection
Reduced willingness to help	Increased health costs
Aggression	Loss of production
Social segregation (noise ghettos)	Development planning costs

Noise seems to affect focus, productivity and general physical and psychological well being. It increases stress levels which in turn results in increased frustration, anger and strained relationships. For some people, noise has become an addiction where they have to leave the television or radio on all day and all night.
 
Although we have little control over noise in the general environment, we can control the noise in our private environment. 

• Make a conscious effort to experience silence. Appreciate the quiet. You may feel uncomfortable with it at first, but gradually you'll seek it.
• Go for a walk in nature. The silence soothes your spirit.
• When you are home alone, turn off all the noise making appliances. Try it for 15 minutes. Then, work up to 30 minutes.
• When driving to work, turn off the radio.
• Go camping by yourself at a quiet campground.
• Drive to a lake at sunset and paddle a canoe along the shoreline and listen to the gentle sounds of natures as the sun sets.
• In a quiet moment, listen to the sound of your breathing. Pay attention to the rhythm.
• Read a book in silence - no television background noise.
• Before you go to bed at night, go outside and look at the night sky.

Silence is a balm to the weary soul. It refreshes us. Allows our minds to wander and wonder. It is in silence that we can think and feel more deeply. In silence, we can pause and reflect or go deeper, to what Alfred Lord Tennyson described as "the dissolving of the limits of selfhood until the infinite alone seems real."