Fasting and Mental Clarity

FROM MENTAL CLARITY TO LASTING CHANGE

Fasting – A Much Needed Pause for the Mind

We live in a time where our attention is constantly pulled apart by notifications, deadlines and the quiet pressure to always perform. Mental health has become not just a concern but a necessity. We have lost the culture of pauses which are much needed moments of peace to take care of yourself. What if more is actually less? Fasting, when done in a safe and caring environment, offers exactly that: a deliberate interruption of habits that frees the body and the mind.

At Buchinger Wilhelmi, patients often describe a kind of mental clearing, as if a weight had lifted after a few days of fasting. Sleep improves, stress fades, thoughts become lighter.

Florence Servan-Schreiber, writer and specialist in positive psychology who regularly comes to give seminars at our clinics, describes fasting as a moment of “liberation from oneself.”

Without the constant thoughts about what, when and how to eat, the mind stops spinning around food and suddenly has space for something else: peace, new ideas, and sometimes unexpected clarity.

Florence Servan-Schreiber lives and works as an author in Paris. She organises workshops and lectures on positive psychology and the science of happiness.

A Window of Opportunity : When the Mask of Habit Falls

From childhood, the need to eat has structured our days, our emotions, even our way of being with others. Food is not just nutrition, it is reward, comfort, distraction, sometimes even a way to silence what we feel. Over time, this conditioning becomes so integrated that we no longer see it. We eat because it is noon, because we are stressed, because everyone else does. It becomes automatic, almost invisible.

Fasting gently interrupts this mechanism. By removing the most basic and culturally reinforced reflex, eating at every signal, the body and mind are momentarily freed from this deep conditioning. In this gap, something subtle happens: we meet ourselves without the usual buffer of food.

Without suppression or reward, our emotions appear more clearly. Not in a dramatic way, but with a certain honesty.

From Mental Clarity to Lasting Change

Fasting on its own is a spark. To turn it into light that lasts, it must be followed by simple, daily acts: sleep that restores, movement that oxygenates or food that nourishes among other activities that you can do by yourself for yourself.

At Buchinger Wilhelmi, everything is designed to support this integration: silence, nature, walks, painting workshops, writing sessions, gentle movement, psychological guidance. We offer:

Expert Coaching and Psychological Counselling
Tailored one-on-one sessions with specialists (e.g., psychologists, life coaches) focus on essential practical skills like building resilience, improving communication, and practicing mindfulness for long-term stress management.

 

Mind-Body Event Programme

Activities designed to cultivate the mind-body connection achieved during the fast. Offerings include:

• Mindfulness & Movement: Weeks dedicated to meditation and Yoga retreats using movement and breathwork for emotional balance.
• Creative Workshops: Art Weeks and therapeutic writing sessions that provide non-verbal channels for self-expression and emotional processing.
• Specialised Seminars: Events focused on Positive Psychology and self-discovery, with themes like “Letting Go, Aligning, and Progressing.”
• Physical Activities: Gentle exercises such as guided walking tours in the nature and gymnastics are offered in a peaceful environment, encouraging movement in the fresh air, as well as providing opportunities for deep relaxation.

In short: fasting is not only a metabolic shift. It is a mental reset, a chance to let the mind exhale. And when this experience is held with care and intention, it plants the seeds of a more stable, resilient, and joyful mental life.