“Follow your heart”
“Pour your heart out”
“Change of heart”
“After my own heart”
The language of “heart” is deeply embedded in the way we talk, but how often do we stop to think about why?
There’s a reason all these sayings (and more) are about our hearts and not about other parts of ourselves. (Bless your liver? Bless your kneecaps? Bless your skin? Uh, no.)
Not only are our hearts literally central to who we are. They are also special.
The heart actually has a profound intelligence to it.
Many scientists have started referring to the heart as the “little brain” or the “heart brain”. It produces hormones and bioelectrical rhythms that can impact your “big” brain’s stress response, decision making, creativity, mental clarity, and more.
And like that other brain, your heart contains a network of neurons and neurotransmitters that allow it to “think” independently — learning, remembering, feeling, and sensing.
Our hearts are also deeply impacted by the emotional ups and downs of life and, amazingly, the electrical energy they generate can in turn impact those around us.
(This is all measurable, btw. We all know that heart rate and blood pressure change with our emotional states. But did you know that your brain waves can synchronize with another person’s heart rhythm when they are near you? Which means that how you’re feeling can change other people’s brains!)
Finally, your heart can offer an amazing entry point into a deeper relationship with yourself. For me, life started really changing in beautiful ways when I began regularly listening and talking to my heart in my journal.
So it’s time we gave our hearts a big more respect and attention — and bring them a bit more fully into the way we’re living our lives.
And I know that, as we do, we will unearth some amazing gifts together this month.