Silence : the psychology and the craft for emotional wellbeing / Olga V. Lehmann.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Lehmann, Olga V., author.

Series:

Oxford scholarship online.

Oxford scholarship online

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Well-being.

Silence (Philosophy).

Interpersonal relations.

Psychology, Applied.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (337 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2025]

Summary:

In 'Silence', the author - a psychotherapist, university professor, educator and researcher - takes the reader into a thought-provoking and heartfelt journey. She offers original perspectives and vulnerable stories from her clients, students and personal life. Drawing on, among others, ethnographic and autoethnographic accounts, Lehmann serves the reader with psychological insights, offering a timely, critical and thorough viewpoint to contrast with an overload of misinformation about what silence is and how people should feel when quiet.

Contents:

Cover

Additional Praise for Silence

Title page

Copyright page

Dedication page

Contents

Acknowledgments

Foreword

Let's Check In Before We Start

Introduction

My Story

PART I: THIS IS NOT SILENCE

1 What Silence Is Not

Silence Is Not (Just) an Absence

Silence Is Not One Singular Experience

Silence Is Not Always Meditation

Conclusion: In Favor of Curiosity

2 Silence Is Not Linear

Neither Is the Mind

Silence Is Not a Pause

It Is a Container

Silence Is Not in One Place Only

Silence Is Not to Blame

Conclusion: In Favor of Openness to Uncertainty

PART II: A MAP FOR YOUR JOURNEY INTO THE QUIET

3 Silence: On Interconnectedness, Depth, and Beauty

Poetic Instants, Peak and Plateau Experiences, and Flow

Seizing the Instant

Is Silence Golden, or Green?

Aspiring for Silence Instead of Aiming to Control It

Conclusion: In Favor of Appreciating Beauty

4 Silences and the Flow of Social Interactions

Silence and the Art of Conversation

Conversational and Thematic Silences

Conclusion: In Favor of Courage

5 Self-Interruption and Silencing as an Obstacle for Inner and Outer Dialogues

Interrupting the Flow of Conversation: Self-Silencing

Why Do We Shut Down in Conversation? Flooding and Amygdala Hijack

Power Is the Tip of the Iceberg

Conclusion: In Favor of Self-Compassion and Compassion

6 Silencing Others: Power Dynamics and Human (Dis)connection

Cherishing or Repelling What Is Different? The Perils of Cooperation

Once Upon a Time, I Became an Outcast

From Powerlessness to Empowerment

Vulnerability and Disclosure

Conclusion: In Favor of Justice

PART III: ON THE LIMITS OF LANGUAGE

7 Our Emotional World in a Nutshell

Questioning Assumptions Around Emotions

Primary, Secondary, and Instrumental Emotions.

The Path From Feelings to Words and Silence

Being in Touch With Our Emotions Is Half of the Homework

Conclusion: In Favor of Humility

8 Silence and Our Emotional World

The Intensity of Some Feelings Surpasses Language

Words Can Tell Us About Silence

Poetry Can Reveal It for Us

We Have Diverse Emotional Rhythms

Putting Feelings Into Words Is Not Necessarily Faithful to Experience and Existence

The Meanings We Give to Our Emotions Change Over Time

Conclusion: In Favor of Patience

PART IV: WHERE SILENCE CAN TAKE US

9 Where Silence Can Take Us: Silence and Attention

Attention Is Silence's Superpower!

Meditation as a Practice of Attention

Journaling and Self-Exploration

Attention as a Compass for Presence

Silence and Regret: On the Courage of Presence

Silence as Dialogue

Conclusion: In Favor of Awareness

10 Where Silence Can Take Us: Creativity, Imagination, and Appreciation

From External to Internal Landscapes

Anxiety Is the Mother of Creativity

In Solitude I Trust

Silence as a Playground for Imagination

Beauty Hunting: Silence and Appreciation

Conclusion: In Favor of Gratitude

PART V: SILENCE AS A THRESHOLD

11 Silence as a Boundary: Demarcating Transitions

A Day of Silence

Landing in Spirit: On Mindful Transitions

Minding the Gap: The Importance of Routines and Rituals

The Solitude We Envision and the Solitude We Embody

Conclusion: In Favor of Devotion

12 What Are Boundaries in the Context of Relationships?

Good Fences Make Good Neighbors

Culture and the Negotiation of Boundaries

Attachment Styles as Gates to Understand Our Needs

Identity and Personality Dimensions of Experiencing the Quiet

Conclusion: In Favor of Tolerance

PART VI: HEADING INWARD, ONWARD, AND HOMEWARD.

13 The Dark Night Hits Harder Up North: Walking "the Talk" of Silence

You Do Not Need to Do It Alone

Recovering from the Meditator's Guilt

Conclusion: In Favor of Perseverance

14 Silence as Self-Exploration and World Exploration

Silence and Discernment

Befriending Fragility as an Art

Silence and Playfulness

Stillness

Practice the Human Way

Conclusion: In Favor of Flexibility of Intention

Epilogue: On Writing About Others and Ourselves in Psychology: A Methodological Reflexivity

Writing About Myself

Writing With Others and About Others

Check Out-Before We Go

Notes

Index.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on online resource and publisher information; title from PDF title page (viewed on September 5, 2025).

ISBN:

0-19-780276-1

0-19-780277-X

0-19-780275-3

9780197802755

OCLC:

1549666495