Welcome to the third installment in my series on healing chronic pain. Today we will dig into what I call Weeding the Energetic Garden. I am constantly battling poison ivy in my yard. If you have ever dealt with poison ivy, you know how tenacious it is. It has the long, deep roots. And no matter how carefully I dig it out, little tendrils of root break off in the soil. Eventually the plant will grows back. I have seen this with my Healing Touch clients. After the energy flows are restored, they feel great. They even look brighter and lighter. But the pain returns after several days. At the beginning of every session I find that the energy has slowed in the same areas of their body. This could be an indication that low vibe beliefs (thoughts we think frequently) are recreating energetic congestion — like tiny poison ivy roots that keep growing back. When I was in my early 40’s I developed pain and stiffness in my shoulder. Before long I was having trouble getting dressed and buckling the seat belt in my car. I had to prop pillows under my elbows so I could reach the computer keyboard. The pain kept me awake at night. Now our shoulder is closest to the Throat Chakra. This energy center relates to finding our voice, speaking up for ourselves. My aging MIL living with us at the time. Our relationship ship was not smooth. It seemed to me that she was always offering ‘helpful’ feedback on how I parented my children, how I prepared meals, even how I dressed for work. I am still working on speaking up for myself. So by the time I tried to set boundaries with my MIL, a lot of pent up energy came out. She cried and said I hurt her feelings. So I learned to bite back my words after that. Healing my frozen shoulder required months of painful physical therapy. But I didn’t understand or address the underlying issue. So about two years later, my other shoulder locked up. I went back to the same physical therapist who prescribed the same exercises. I remember asking my PT WHY this kept happening but she didn’t have an answer. Knowing what I know now, I suspect that choking back my emotions caused energetic congestion in my shoulders eventually causing the joint to freeze up. Weeding the Energetic Garden requires unearthing the low vibe beliefs and emotions causing energetic congestion. So what could be the energetic source of your chronic pain? Solving the mystery may involve some sleuthing. Begin by noticing which major energy centers - or chakras - are in the vicinity of your pain. What are the functions associated with that chakra? In my example, the pain was closest to the Throat Chakra which is associated with speaking our truth. There are so many resources for researching physical ailments associated with a blocked chakra. Anodea Judith is a widely recognized expert in chakras. Her book Eastern Body, Western Mind by describes balance and imbalance in each chakra, the dis-eases that may arise from chronic imbalance, possible causes, and remedies. Pay attention to what is going on in your head and your heart. Listen to what your inner chatter is saying and how it makes you feel. Thoughts and emotions are energy. Energy vibrates at a frequency measured in Hz. Fear, grief, regret, and shame are low-vibe emotions in the 20 - 100 Hz range (as compared to love and serenity in the 500 - 540 Hz range). Look for persistent thoughts or memories that trigger low vibe emotions. Allow me to interrupt myself for a moment to point out that low-vide emotions are a natural part of life. The Buddha taught that emotions are like riding a wheel - sometimes you are up and sometimes you aren’t. Suffering arises when the wheel stops moving. I’m not proposing that you avoid fear, grief, and regret - that is impossible. I’m talking about dwelling in low vibrations. If the timing of your pain coincided with intense loss, you may be in mourning. Healing grief is a process with a personalized time table. Use Energetic First Aid to keep your energy flowing while you heal. I love this book by Louise Hay so much that I gift it to my clients. In the back is a section that lists probable causes for physical ailments and affirmations that we can use to replace old programming with high vibe beliefs. If there’s a book that has been helpful for you, I invite you to post it in the comments. Just as with Energetic First Aid, you may want to hire a contractor to help you weed your garden. Someone who is qualified to help you do some deep digging and get the poison ivy by the roots. Consider finding a therapist with specialized training in energy healing. The Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology has a searchable database on their website. Long standing low-vide beliefs have deep roots. Pulling them out is not quick or easy, which is why it is important to continue practicing Energetic First Aid while we are weeding. Energetic weeds will never disappear completely but with time and intention we can slow their return.

Welcome to the second installment in my series where we explore chronic pain from an energetic perspective. In the first video, we learned that: Our bodies are rivers of constantly flowing energy. Disruptions to the flow of energy impair our body’s ability to rejuvenate eventually resulting in physical damage. Pain is our body’s way of getting our attention so we can minimize the damage to our physical body. Let’s talk about what I like to call Energetic First Aid. First Aid refers to immediate interventions to stabilize a person’s condition until comprehensive care is available. It is critical to get the energy flowing again like the strong current in the middle of a river. This prevents further damage and initiates the healing process. Do-it-Yourself: Energetic First Aid is mostly DIY. The techniques are simple, don't require special equipment, and can be performed in the comfort of your home. One way to restore energy flow is to stimulate points on the meridians by compression or massage. When we release applied pressure, fresh energy pours into the affected area. Think of it as an energetic reset button. Perhaps you have heard of techniques such as acupressure, pressure point therapy, trigger point therapy or reflexology. One of the acupressure resources I use is the book Head-to-Toe Healing from Spring Forest Qigong. Meridian points are also used in tapping. There are so many free tapping videos available online. Check out Dawson Church, or Nick and Jessica Ortner. I have a 7-minute Guided Tapping Sequence video on my YouTube channel that guides you in the Trauma Tapping Technique as taught by the Peaceful Heart Network. Another method is to move our energy using our hands as in Qigong, Reiki or Healing Touch (which is what I am trained in). I have a video on my YouTube channel for the Infinity Technique. Not only does this technique alleviate pain and swelling, it can reduce anxiety and help you sleep. Consistency is critical! Pick a technique and practice it several times a day. Your body wants to heal but it also has a tendency to return to baseline because that feels familiar. It takes time to teach your body a new pain-free normal. Donna Eden has been practicing energy medicine since the 1970’s and has hundreds of free videos online. One of her most popular techniques is the Daily Energy Routine. In 15 minutes, the energy in your body will be raging like a river. Hire a Contractor: If you have been suffering with chronic pain for awhile, your energy may need a jumpstart for DIY techniques to be effective. Consider working with an energy healer such as a practitioner of acupuncture, reflexology, Reiki, or Healing Touch. Again consistency is key! Commit up front to at least 3 sessions. We learned in Healing Touch that it is not until the third session that a client’s body relaxes enough to fully receive the benefits. I know someone who was suffering with chronic wrist pain. After 2 or 3 surgeries, she was still suffering. A friend convinced her to try acupuncture. After only one session, she declared acupuncture ineffective and returned to the surgeon for another operation. Understand -- I believe that western medicine is wonderful and surgery is the best option in many cases…but if you were looking to increase upper body strength you wouldn’t do one rep of weightlifting and expect to see results. I believe that optimal health depends on clearing the river every day. Just as we find the time every day to brush our hair, shower, and clean our teeth - it is imperative that we clear our energy flows. Our lives are filled with opportunities for low-vibe experiences that disrupt the energy flow. Unless the flow is restored dis-ease will arise. Everything we covered in under DIY approach is simple and quick enough to do on a daily basis. If your chronic pain is due to incomplete healing following an injury, Energetic First Aid may be all you need for permanent relief. But if your pain is associated with low-vibe emotions or low-vibe beliefs, first aid is just the first step. Join me for the next installment when we talk about what I call Weeding the Energetic Garden.

Welcome to the first post in my series on about pain. Thank you to the subscriber who requested this topic. I want to offer content that is meaningful to viewers so I appreciate your input so much. If you would like to join the Intention Circle, visit IntendWell.US. A word of warning before we dive in. If this content is new to you, it may seem challenge your perceptions. Sometimes when I hear something new, I have a knee jerk response of “Oh, that can’t be right. That doesn’t make any sense!” But I have learned to tap into curiosity and resist the urge to reject it outright. So, I invite you to explore any resistance that arises. 1. Pain is a Gift. Our bodies speak to us in sensations. Pain is a mechanism to prevent damage to the physical body. We learn as children (at least I did) to immediately withdraw our hand from a hot stove. My mother must have tired of warning me to stay away from the stove because one day she stood by and let me touch it. After that I learned to keep my distance from the stove without constant supervision. Sometimes we have to experience something for ourselves. What does your body say if you put your hand near extreme heat? “Move away from this stove to protect the tissues in your hand.” Otherwise you will get blisters on your fingertips - which is what happened to me. I say pain is a gift because people who have lost the ability to detect pain (such as in the case of advanced diabetes) are at greater risk of physical injury. If you are suffering with chronic pain, your body is trying to get your attention. The challenge is to figure out what the body is saying because the threat may be more subtle than a hot stove. So take a moment now to thank your body for alerting you that something is amiss. Send love to the areas that hurt because they are trying to protect you. 2. We are Rivers of Energy. Imagine a river. Notice the powerful, fast-moving water in the middle of the river. The water is churning, energized. Constantly rejuvenating. See a leaf drift down into the river be swiftly carried away by the current. Now shift your attention to the water along the river bank. This water moves slowly. In some places, it is barely moving at all. This area of the river becomes stagnant, dank, oxygen-deprived. There may be a foul stench. See a leaf settle in this part of the river. It will decay in the water. Viewed through the lens of energy healing, the perplexing nature of physical pain with no discernible underlying physical abnormality becomes crystal clear. Centuries ago practitioners of Traditional Chinese Medicine mapped the primary energy flows in the human body, which we call meridians. The energy should move through our body like the water in the middle of the river - constantly rejuvenating. But sometimes energy slows in a part of our body — like the water at the edge of the river - pooling in areas of energetic congestion. Not only are our bodies made of energy. The emotions we feel are energy. Our beliefs — which are thoughts we think frequently — are energy. Energy vibrates at a frequency that is measured in hertz. Low vibe emotions and beliefs disrupt the flow of energy. The cause of energetic disruption can be physical, emotional, mental or a combination of factors. You have probably experienced all of these. Physical Factors: We are all intimately familiar with pain from physical injury… or what I like to call - Inappropriate contact with something in the environment. Banging your knee on a table. Sudden contact with a floor or pavement due to a fall. A slip of a knife in the kitchen. Inhaling or ingesting a toxic substance - like chemicals or a virus. Western medicine excels at treating these types of energetic disruptions. We ice bruises, bind sprains, disinfect cuts, and pin broken bones. Pharmacological substances may be prescribed. With these interventions, our body usually heals itself. Damaged tissues are replaced. Broken bones reattach. The immune system dispatches viruses. In most situations, energetic flow is restored. Emotional Factors: A friend on mine went to his PCP with pain in his upper chest. The doctor looked at my friend…white man in his 50’s…and concluded the symptoms pointed to coronary heart disease. A stress test and bloodwork ordered. Nitro glycerin was prescribed in case he had a heart attack. All the tests came back clear. The doctor was perplexed but with no angioplasty or bypass to be performed, he was done. If the doctor had asked questions, he may have discovered that my friend’s mother had recently passed. Whether death of a loved one or the end of a romantic relationship — Sorrow HURTS. Undiagnosed pain may have an emotional basis but there are no tests (yet) that measure congestion of emotional energy. And because in Western medicine we tend to mental health is a speciality, medical professionals like my friend’s PCP tend to focus on physical causes. Mental Factors are associated with our beliefs. A belief is anything that we think on a regular basis. I have a friend who is constantly putting herself down. She says things like “My brain is mush” and “I have a mind live a sieve.” Comments like these are dangerous to our health as they impede energy flow. Decades ago my right hip seized up. The hip is a ball and socket joint designed to rotate in all directions. The orthopedist laughed when I told him that I could not rotate my leg to the side. He had me lie on my back and bend my right knee. He grasped my knee and attempted to rotate my leg to the side. Suddenly serious he realized that my hip joint was locked. An MRI scan revealed no deterioration or damage in my hip joint. The doctor was perplexed but with no hip replacement to perform he was done. When he called with the test results he said, “Good news! Your hip joint is fine.” When I informed him that I didn't feel “fine” he offered to increase my pain medication. I wish I had known back then that physical pain may have a mental component. Because our legs move us forward, pain in the legs (hips, knees, feet) that cannot be attributed to a physical abnormality may result from fears about the future. I cannot recall specifically what was happening in my life at the time but there was a lot. My children were around ages 8 - 10. My husband’s aging mother lived with us - she and I did not get on. Because my husband was home caring for her and the children, I was the sole breadwinner - working full time and going to school at night. I had plenty of reasons to feel apprehensive during that period in my life. 3. All Healing is Self-healing. Western medicine offers us so much in the way of treatments but it is up to our body to respond to those treatments and heal. Energetic flow is often restored in the process. Chronic pain may indicate incomplete healing. If a broken bone reconnects, we consider the injury healed even though there is a possibility that energy flow is still disrupted in the affected meridians. As marvelous as Western medicine is, we lack technology to routinely assess energy flow. So if energetic congestion is the source of our pain, the doctor does not have the tools (yet) to find it. Long-term energetic congestion impedes cellular growth and repair eventually leading to physical damage. Consider my grieving friend. If he had been unable to process his emotions around his mother’s death, eventually his heart could have developed abnormalities that WOULD show up in blood work or during a stress test. The medical community recognizes a condition called Broken Heart Syndrome, which may result in sudden death. In my situation, thank goodness the source of my apprehension resolved. My right hip regained full range of motion eventually. Otherwise, eventually stagnant energy in my hip could have led to abnormalities that would be discernible in an MRI scan. In my next post, we will explore interventions to restore the flow of energy in your body so you can live pain-free.

This is the 4th installment in a guide to transformational change. In the first three parts we talked about: The proven power of intention to make seeds sprout faster. How to assess your readiness to change. Tapping into mental imagery to actualize your intention. In this final step we reflect on the experience of putting our intention into action. How did last week go for you? What went well? What will you do differently next week? You should be very proud of yourself for making it this far! I hope you remembered that: Transformational change is a journey filled with peaks, valleys, and detours. Perfection is an illusion. No one and no thing is perfect. Be kind to yourself. Whatever happened last week is behind you. What part of your transformation do you want to focus on in the week ahead? You can choose to repeat the same intention or you can choose to set a new one. It all depends on your desired outcome and how you have decided to chunk it into week-long intentions. The rest of the process is the same. Consider your why, when’s, and who’s. Decide what you will sacrifice to make time to practice. Mentally envision yourself successful. Imagine how you will feel at the end of the week. After practicing your intention for the week, reflect on what you learned. Then set your next intention. If you have any questions, email me at IntendWellLLC@gmail.com. Remember - I’m rooting for you! You got this!

This is the second installment in my guide to making transformational change in your life. In the first part we talked about the power of intention. In this section we will cover how you know when you are ready for change. Many a resolution is forgotten by February because excitement about the New Year is mistaken as readiness for change. Here are some ways that you know you are ready. Know your SACRIFICES Gym memberships typically soar in January. Buying a gym membership is simple. But then we need to create space in our routine to drive to the gym, change clothes, work out, and shower. If we decide to go to the gym before work, an earlier rising requires an earlier bedtime. Unless we give up our existing evening routine, the snooze button will be getting the workout instead of our body. You will need to create space in your schedule to plan, practice, and learn from the intention you drafted last week. Assuming you don’t have oodles of free time in your schedule (pretty safe assumption for most of us), you will need to sacrifice an existing activity. What are you willing to sacrifice to create space for change? How much time will that free up? Know your WHYS Change happens when the perceived pain of staying the same outweighs the perceived pain of change. Why are you considering change? Is it because someone else — like your doctor or a loved one— suggested it? Perhaps it is because you know some changes would be good for your health. Knowing that change is good for us may not be enough to sustain us when inevitable setbacks occur. Odds of success are highest when we have a burning heartfelt desire to change. What are your whys? Are they heavy enough to outweigh the pain of change? Are your whys realistic? Sometimes we make the mistake of assuming that a new job, a new body, a new whatever is going to infuse our lives with joy. Happiness is a choice that does not require anything to change except your perspective. Know your WHEN Timing is everything. Are you ready to start today? If not, do you know when you will be ready? What would need to change for you to feel ready? Know your WHOS The people in your life will be impacted by your change. For example, if you decide to stop playing video games you may spend less time with your gamer friends. If you want to eliminate a certain food from your diet, you may want family members’ support keeping that food out of the house. A friend or romantic partner may interfere out of fear worry you are growing away from them. Who can enable or hinder your change journey? How can you encourage their support? It’s ok if now is not a good time to commit to change…yet. Come back to this book when you are ready to take action. Anything we undertake with half-hearted whys will yield half-hearted results (and full-blown disappointment). For a limited time receive a free copy of my "Quick to Calm Guide" at IntendWell.US. Every Friday I will send you a link to my video of the week plus BONUS content available only to email subscribers.

This is the third installment in my guide to transformational change. In the first two sections we talked about the power of intention and assessing your readiness to change. This sections covers putting your intention into action. Before we dive in, let’s talk about the power of imagination. Studies have shown that we can improve our physical performance through mental imagery. Olympians and professional athletes use imagery to gain competitive edge. Take a moment to close your eyes and create a mental picture of yourself successfully achieving your intention. How do you feel? How are you celebrating your success? Make the image as vivid as you can. Where are you? What are you wearing? What time of day is it? What do you hear? Pause the video, set a time for 2 minutes, and picture the scene. Look at your intention. Is there anything you want to change? Is it specific enough? When will you practice your intention this week? Consider whether you can link the practice of your intention to an existing habit. For example, when I started a daily yoga practice I decided to roll out my mat after I finished in the bathroom and before I got dressed. When I decided to drink more water, I decided to drink a full mug of water before my first mug of coffee in the morning. Timing a new habit to coincide with an existing habit helps us to remember to do it. You could create a notification on your phone or post a reminder note where you will see it — like the bathroom mirror. Practice your intention for the week. Every time you take action, celebrate yourself. It could be a simple as saying “Nailed it!” With a little happy dance. Some things I want you to keep in mind this week — Transformational change is a journey filled with peaks, valleys, and detours. Perfection is an illusion. No one and no thing is perfect. Be kind to yourself. If you forget to practice, first - forgive yourself! Ask yourself what you can learn from the experience. If you have questions please leave me a comment or email me at IntendWell@gmail.com. For a limited time receive a free copy of my "Quick to Calm Guide" at IntendWell.US. Every Friday I will send you a link to my video of the week plus BONUS content available only to email subscribers. References Mental Imagery Skills in Competitive Young Athletes and Non-athletes Mental Rehearsal in Sport Does Mental Practice Enhance Performance Shaping Reality through Mental Rehearsal

This is the first in a series of videos about how to make transformational change in your life. In this video we will talk about how to clarify your desired outcome. Before we dive in, I want to tell you about a series of experiments conducted in 2007 and 2008. Researchers separated 160 barley seeds into 4 groups labeled A, B, C, and D. Each time the experiment was run, the seeds were in the lab at the University of Arizona. Volunteers in a remote location focused intention for growth on one of groups for 10 minutes. “My intention is for all the seeds in the target group to sprout at least 3 mm by the 4th day “ The location of the participants changed each time: audiences in Sydney, Australia (600 participants), Palm Springs, California (130), Rheinbeck, New York (100), Hilton Head, North Carolina (500) and Austin, Texas (120) plus people participating over the internet. The researchers in the lab did not know which group of seeds received intention. The seeds were harvested 5 days later and measured. Every time the group of seeds that were sent intention grew faster than the seeds in the other groups. So what do seeds have to do with your transformational journey? The first step is to set your intention, which requires being crystal clear in your mind about your desired outcome. What does success look like for you? Let’s revisit the wording of the intention used in the seed germination experiments. What do you notice about it? 1 - it’s very specifically focused on growth. There’s no mention of any other type of change. 2 - the intention states “what” not “how” 3 - the results are measurable — at least 3 mm 4 — the timeframe is limited to 4 days Think about whatever it is that you want to change. Usually, transformational change involves our health, finances, or relationships. Things like losing 20 pounds, buying a new car, or finding a romantic partner. These are all things that take time - they wont change overnight. But we can still set an intention for what we will do differently over the next week. What’s the first step for you? Write it down in the form of an intention. Here’s some examples to help you get started. Health I intend to walk for 20 minutes at least 3 days this week. I intend to eat at least 3 servings of fresh fruit or vegetables every day for the next 5 days. Finances I intend to deposit at least $20 in my savings account this week. I intend to upload my resume to at least 2 job search sites by Saturday. Relationships I intend to make new friends by participating in a meet-up event next weekend. I intend to list 10 things that I like about myself. Spend some time this week writing your first intention. If you need help, leave a comment below or email me at IntendWellLLC@gmail.com. See you next week when we will talk about how to know that you are ready for change. If you want to see the power of intention for yourself try the seed experiment at home. Visit IntendWell.US to receive a free copy of my Quick to Calm Guide filled with techniques to relieve stress and build resilience to anxiety. I promise not to flood your inbox and you may unsubscribe at any time. References Double-Blind Test of the Effects of Distant Intention on Water Crystal Formation [Evidence about the power of intention] Harvard Business Review “The Power of Intent” Seed Germination Experiment

Contrast, in the realm of art, involves skillfully blending opposing values, textures, or colors. This could be achieved by juxtaposing light and dark, smooth and rough, or even vibrant orange and soothing blue. The purpose of contrast is to infuse depth and captivate the viewer's visual senses. Artists utilize contrast as a tool to guide the observer's gaze across the various elements within a composition. Beyond the realm of art, contrast emerges as an intrinsic facet of life. It encompasses a stark divergence from our desired state. Imagine a world where everything unfailingly aligns with our preferences; it would inevitably lead to a monotonous existence. In the movie L.A. Story, the weather is a glorious sunny and 72 degrees every day. It's so predictable that the weather forecast is filmed in advance. But there is nothing like a few days of rain to make us really appreciate a sunny day. Instead of yearning for contrast to swiftly dissipate, we have the remarkable opportunity to harness its potential for personal development. Not getting what we want is good because we appreciate what we have. In this way, contrast magnifies the pleasure we experience in our lives. It revitalizes our ability to truly savor and appreciate the aspects of life that may have become mundane or overlooked. By highlighting the disparities, contrast prompts us to cultivate gratitude for the aspects we may have taken for granted.

If you have seen my video on The Biology of Stress, you know that the stress response affects our vision. When we are in Parasympathetic (or Rest, Digest, and Heal) mode, our eyes are relaxed and scanning the environment. When we are triggered, our attention zeroes in on the perceived threat. We develop tunnel vision. We stop noticing other aspects of our environment. Long slow breathing is my number 1 go-to remedy for stress but sometimes our autonomic nervous system need a little more TLC. If your stress response has been triggered and you just can’t seem to stop thinking about what happened, try this technique to reset your autonomic nervous system.

Do you ever have trouble falling or staying asleep? Before you reach for the pill bottle, try this simple energy technique to calm a busy brain and get a great night's sleep. It's free. It's easy. There are no side effects. In less than 7 minutes, I teach you how to use the Infinity Technique (aka the figure 8 technique) to quiet a chattering mind, heal injuries, prepare the brain for learning, and strengthen your energetic boundaries. Because it integrates the energy between the hemispheres, the Infinity Technique also prepares the brain for learning (like the Energy Pretzel technique). If this all sounds too woo-woo for you...try it anyway! This technique is rooted in ancient practices of Tai Chi and Qigong. There must be a good reason people still use it today.

If you could wish for any superpower, what would you choose? Sure, flying would be pretty cool. How about to be an Agent for Peace? Fear and animosity are rampant. These emotions make it difficult to think clearly. Feeling scared or angry impedes our brain's ability to problem solve, collaborate, and make decisions. When our brain goes on high alert, benign events can be misinterpreted as a threat to our safety. Our survival instinct can lead us to overreact - even lash out at others. You already have the superpower to spread peace. You just need to practice it. Our heart is always broadcasting magnetic waves -- like a little radio station. Studies have proven that a heart in coherence can bring the hearts of people nearby into coherence as well. Your mission (if you choose to accept it) is to practice heart coherence using a biofeedback device and radiate coherence to hearts nearby. This helps people around us relax, tap into their cognitive abilities and interpret non-threatening situations. When we learn how to use the power of our heart to foster social coherence, we can transform every difficult conversation --whether with your parents, your teenager, or your boss at work -- into a positive, heart-to-heart interaction. References Achieving Collective Coherence: Group Effects on Heart Rate Variability Coherence and Heart Rhythm Synchronization https://www.heartmath.org/assets/uploads/2015/01/achieving-collective-coherence.pdf New Frontiers in Heart rate Variability and social Coherence research: techniques, technologies, and implications for improving Group dynamics and outcomes https://www.heartmath.org/assets/uploads/2018/03/new-frontiers-in-hrv-and-social-coherence-research.pdf Long-Term Study of Heart Rate Variability Responses to Changes in the Solar and Geomagnetic Environment. https://www.heartmath.org/assets/uploads/2018/03/long-term-study-of-hrv-responses-to-changes-in-solar-geomagnetic-enviroment.pdf

How does it feel when the systems in our body are not working in coherence? Our gut can feel tied up in knots. Our heart is hammering in our chest. Our brain has a hard time concentrating and making decisions. Symphony orchestras have a conductor to keep the musicians in sync but who is the maestro keeping the systems in our body (circulatory, digestive, respiratory, nervous) working in harmony? Both the heart and the brain produce an electromagnetic field. The amplitude of the heart’s field is 60 times greater than the brain and is broadcast to every cell in the body. The magnetic component of the heart is 5,000 times stronger than the brain. Of all the neurological pathways between the brain and the heart, 10% carry signals from the brain to the heart and 90% carry signals from the heart to the brain. So the heart is doing most of the talking. Have you heard of Heart Rate Variability or HRV? You have probably seen the output from an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) that depicts the heart’s electrical signals. The heart beat rhythm is represented by a line of peaks and valleys showing contractions or beats. An average of the length of time between beats is your heart rate variability. You may be surprised to learn that the space of time between our heart beats is irregular. It VARIES. And the more the length of time between heartbeats varies, the more coherent your systems are and the more resilient you are to stress. That seemed counterintuitive to me the first time that I heard it. When we talk about the heart beating we would think that regularity would be important. So in relation to heart rate variability, it may help to think of variability as flexibility. The symphony of our bodies is composed in different time signatures and we need a conductor who can keep up with the tempo changes. A flexible heart is like a tree that bends in the wind so it doesn’t break. You can use an HRV biofeedback device to train your heart to be more flexible. There are several on the market. (I am not into product reviews so I recommend that you research your options before making a purchase. Look for a device that provides real-time HRV feedback with a breathing pacer.) Studies have shown that Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback training lowers anxiety, anger, and blood pressure. It improves mood, sleep, problem-solving capability, athletic and artistic performance. In this video, I demonstrate a biofeedback device that you can use build coherence between the systems in your body. Find out how our inner conductor can make us more resilient to stress. REFERENCES HeartMath approach to self-regulation and psychosocial well-being https://www.heartmath.org/assets/uploads/2020/08/heartmath-approach-to-self-regulation-and-psychosocial-well-being.pdf Following the Rhythm of the Heart: HeartMath Institute’s Path to HRV Biofeedback https://link.springer.com/epdf/10.1007/s10484-022-09554-2?sharing_token=iuIDz8ftiMkFcRsES1Nm1_e4RwlQNchNByi7wbcMAY7hdPw_Wnr_zxPeJkC3C5PJvBrF0syQ1K86Ac1IeunNX0eSfavYqVYAEncJX8TSA4-KZVglnwvDTR5yiSyLmK4oYaSixwnrtSqR2Bm1ua1BPCDlZdaKiQ_DsiyU7UyYWz8= Implementing Mobile HRV Biofeedback as Adjunctive Therapy During Inpatient Psychiatric Rehabilitation Facilitates Recovery of Depressive Symptoms and Enhances Autonomic Functioning Short-Term: A 1-Year Pre–Post-intervention Follow-Up Pilot Study https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2020.00738/full A meta-analysis on heart rate variability biofeedback and depressive symptoms https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-86149-7