I listened to a very compelling interview tonight that has really changed how I look at emotions. The conversation dealt with the “intelligence of the heart” – a topic I have not given a lot of thought to over my years. Ok, none in fact. Until tonight I had been quite content with knowing that my little ticker was just keeping me alive. Sure I have given some thought to the heart being our “emotional center”. I talk to my 5-year old daughter each day about where my love radiates from – my heart. At the age of 5 she takes my message in the literal sense. She believes that her heart is her emotions. For me however, I have somehow adopted the truth that this was all metaphorical or symbolical. So our heart is just a symbol of our love and emotion.
OK, you may be asking, what does all this have to do with our health? Well apparently it has everything to do with not only our health but also our overall fulfillment and happiness in life. What if the heart played a key role in the generation of our emotional experience? Not from a symbolic perspective but from a measured, scientific perspective.
The ultimate goal is to achieve high heart coherence – where the systems in your body are working in complete harmony…Coherence is a state that is very similar to what athletes experience when they are in “The Zone”
The interview itself was with Howard Martin, who is currently the Executive Vice President of Strategic Development for HeartMath. HeartMath uses cutting edge methods, based on compelling scientific research linking heart function with health, to advance human performance, emotional well-being and intelligence. This was certainly a topic that I found fascinating. Not just because it was very intriguing but also for the potential to impact each and every part of our lives.
Martin discussed the possibilities of activating the heart’s intelligence to produce better health, increase personal focus and reduce stress. These benefits are achieved through a system called heart coherence. The ultimate goal is to achieve high heart coherence – where the systems in your body are working in complete harmony. This is a preventative health measure that also helps to change behaviors and create a competitive edge. Coherence is a state that is very similar to what athletes experience when they are in “The Zone” (Ah, something I personally had a taste of during a basketball game back on a magical winter day in 1996. What a night. note: I can hear my wife laughing now.).
So how do we become healthier from all of this? It seems that our emotions are the key. Until rather recently I subscribed to the belief that emotions are something that just happen to us. This wasn’t really a deliberate belief that I held but more of a consequence of living a somewhat passive life. I was basically letting life happen to me (and my emotions fell into that level of thinking). I eventually changed my thoughts and started to live more intentionally. With this shift in thought came the belief that emotions don’t just happen to us, they are choices made by us. So, in essence, feel what you want to feel when you want to feel it!
Now I only bring this notion up because Martin discussed a similar concept in his interview. He talked about shifting our emotions. So turn negative thoughts into positive ones. He mentioned that this is not a talent that we are born with but it is a skill to be learned. I definitely never looked at shifting my emotions as a skill. But it definitely made sense when I heard it discussed tonight. It seems that it is essential to shift our emotions in order to achieve higher heart coherence. It is also essential if you really want the power of intention and Law of Attraction to work for you (and not against you).
Now at this point in the interview I was asking myself where’s the science in all of this? Sure, we can no doubt all come to the conclusion that better health is certainly linked to happiness. But how do we shift our emotions? How do we achieve high heart coherence? Well it seems HeartMath has developed a technology called emWave® that will help us achieve just that – a higher level of coherence. So heart coherence is actually a scientifically measurable state. It is not just the magic 8 ball telling us what we are feeling. HeartMath offers a product called the emWave® Personal Stress Reliever® (PSR). HeartMath’s website states the following:
Our techniques, concepts and award winning emWave® technology are being used in many well-known hospitals, nationally recognized health care institutions and Fortune 100 companies to help them with important business outcomes such as employee retention, reduction of health care costs, and increasing productivity…The emWave® PSR heart rhythm coherence technology gives instant feedback that shows you whether you are actually in a heart-centered state.
It all sounds very intriguing nonetheless. It’s a very new concept to me but I will definitely look more heavily into it. The benefits sound amazing. If you’ve had any exposure to this technology (or knows someone who has) I would love to hear about it in the comment section below.
Update Nov-01-2008: Be sure to read the follow-up to this article, especially if you’re looking for some very practical ways to reduce stress in your life while increasing your focus, energy and confidence: Strip Away Stress in 60 Seconds or Less.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Your article is very insightful. I especially needed to read the part about how we essentially choose our emotions based on what we believe even if it is chosen unconsciously. How could you have a feeling/emotion if it was not first based on something you thought or believed? Otherwise there would be no reason for any consistent response to anything and thus no possibility of changing anything.
Thanks,
Kenneth
Thanks for the feedback Kenneth. I really appreciate it. I’m glad you found value in the article(s).
Personally, I learn more and more everyday about how what I think creates how I feel. Yes, there are certainly external factors that do cause stress in our lives. But the majority of stress today for us is internal – created by the “internal chatter” that goes on in our heads. The big thing for me was realizing my ANTs (i.e. Automatic Negative Thoughts). Once I realized these consciously, I started working towards turning my ANTs into APTs (or Automatic Positive Thoughts). Both ANTs and APTs reside in the non-conscious, created over the years from our personal experiences. And it’s safe to say that if you have more ANTs vs. APTs then you will no doubt feel negative emotions more of the time.
Cheers!
…Scott