HEART COHERENCE

HEART COHERENCE REDUCES Stress & Anxiety

As we experience feelings like anger, frustration, anxiety and insecurity, our heart rhythm patterns become more erratic. These erratic patterns are sent to the emotional centers in the brain which it recognizes as negative or stressful feelings. These signals create the actual feelings we experience in heart area and body. The erratic heart rhythms also block our ability to think clearly. Many studies have found that the risk of developing heart disease is significantly increased for people who experience frequent stress. Stress is an umbrella term that embraces emotions such as irritation, anger or frustration, judgement, guilt and depression. These emotions create a chain reaction in the body — stress hormone levels increase, blood vessels constrict, blood pressure rises, and the immune system is weakened. If we consistently experience these emotions, it can put a strain on the heart and other organs, and eventually lead to serious health problems.

Psychologists once maintained that emotions were purely mental expressions generated by the brain alone. We now know that this is not true — emotions have as much to do with the heart and body as they do with the brain. Of the body’s organs, the heart plays a particularly important role in our emotional experience. The experience of an emotion results from the brain, heart, and body acting in concert.

The HeartMath Institute, a Central California research center dedicated to the study of the heart and the physiology of emotions, has conducted numerous studies identifying the relationship between emotions and the heart. A number of their studies have provided new insight into understanding how the activity of the heart is indeed linked to our emotions and our health, vitality and well-being.

Emotions and the Heart HeartMath studies have defined a critical link between the heart and brain. The heart is in a constant two-way dialogue with the brain — our emotions change the signals between the heart and brain in complex ways. The heart sends more information to the brain than the brain sends to the heart. And the brain responds to the heart in many important ways. This research explains how the heart responds to emotional and mental reactions and why certain emotions stress the body and drain our energy. 10 Denver Mile High Edition Health, Hope & Happiness

Conversely, research shows that when we experience heartfelt emotions like love, care, appreciation and compassion the heart produces a smooth pattern that looks like gently rolling hills. Harmonious heart rhythms, which reflect positive emotions, are considered to be indicators of cardiovascular efficiency and nervous system balance. This lets the brain know that the heart feels good and often creates a gentle warm feeling in the area of the heart.

Learning to shift out of stressful emotional reactions to these heartfelt emotions can have profound positive effects on the cardiovascular system and our overall health. It is easy to see how our heart and emotions are linked and how we can shift our heart into a more efficient state by monitoring its rhythms. A simple and effective tool to link your heart and brain is called heart-mind coherence.

Being Appreciative Has Benefits The feeling of appreciation is one of the most concrete and easiest positive emotion for individuals to self-generate and sustain for longer periods. Almost anyone can find something to genuinely appreciate. By simply recalling a time when you felt sincere appreciation and recreating that feeling, you can increase your heart rhythm coherence, reduce emotional stress and improve your health.

For people who may initially find it difficult to self-generate a feeling of appreciation in the present moment, experts suggest that they recall a past memory that elicits warm feelings. With practice, most people are able to self-generate feelings of appreciation in real time and no longer need the past time reference. Rollin McCraty, Director of Research for the HeartMath Institute, says, “It’s important to emphasize that it is not a mental image of a memory that creates a shift in our heart rhythm, but rather the emotions associated with the memory. Mental images alone usually do not produce the same significant results that we’ve observed when someone focuses on a positive feeling.” Positive emotion-focused techniques, such as heart-mind coherence, can help individuals effectively replace stressful thoughts and emotional patterns with more positive perceptions and emotions.

The HeartMath Institute, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) research and education organization has been researching emotional physiology, optimal function, resilience and stress-management for more than 25 years. Find free resources that show and tell more about heart-brain coherence. HeartMath.org

HeartMath Inc. is a cutting-edge performance company providing a range of unique programs for individuals, health professionals and organizations and technologies to improve health and well-being, while dramatically reducing stress and boosting performance and productivity. HeartMath.com

19th Annual Spring Holistic Fair

March 14th & 15th • 10 am – 5 pm (both days)

Explore alternative choices for taking care of your body, mind, spirit and our environment at the 19 th Annual Spring Holistic Fair from Belu Olisa Holistic Fairs.

A wonderful variety of exhibitors will assist you in uncovering the deeper wisdom we all carry, and expand your awareness. Some of the modalities and products that will be at the Fair are aromatherapy; animal communication; CBDs; natural skincare and makeup; zero waste options; shamanism; The ReConnection, sound and other healing modalities; and nutritional products and services.

Experience the intuitive arts via an intuitive reading - astrology, tarot, clairvoyant readings, aura portraits, angel cards. Sign up for psychic development classes. Shop our creative vendors and artisans. Find crystals and gemstones. Learn more about Native American healing. Reconnect with old friends and meet new ones. Register at the Fair for great door prizes. There will be free lectures all day. All Fairs are 10am – 5pm Saturday

and Sunday and include free parking, free lectures, great door prizes. Admission is $7/day, $12/weekend; children 12 & under FREE. $1 Discount with non-perishable food donation. This Fair helps to provide food donations for the Larimer County Food Bank. Location: The Ranch, Larimer County Fairgrounds, South Exhibition Hall, 5280 Arena Circle, Loveland. All fairs open for additional exhibitors and sponsorships. See Holistic-Fairs.com or contact Carol at 970-472-0200 or holisticfairs@gmail.com. See ad page 2.

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CALL FOR COVER ART SUBMISSIONS!

{YOUR CREATIVITY HERE} SEE YOUR ARTWORK FEATURED ON THE COVER OF NATURAL AWAKENINGS!

Submit your paintings and illustrations to Natural Awakenings for the chance to be seen on one of our covers!

For more information, including submission terms, regulations and format requirements, visit NaturalAwakenings.com/CoverArt.

See your artwork featured on the cover of Natural Awakenings!

Natural Awakenings Looking for Cover Artists C reative individuals that would like to see their work featured on the cover of a nationally distributed magazine now have an excep tional opportunity. Natural Awakenings is extending a call for cover art and accepting submissions online via a dedicated webpage. Now in its 26th year, the franchised, monthly, healthy living publication that’s available in more than 70 U.S. markets is known for eye-catching covers that feature original works by artists from around the world.

“This is an exciting opportunity for artists to be featured on one of our covers and reach a huge new audience because our monthly readership exceeds 2.5 million,” says founder and CEO Sharon Bruckman. Selected artists that grant permission to have their work appear on a cover are featured in a one-third page, professionally written “Cover Artist” bio-style piece that describes the artist and includes their contact information. Natural Awakenings covers reflect monthly editorial themes and a variety of selections are distributed to all franchise publishers so they can choose which they want to use. “Our covers are creative and help convey our mission of mapping out alternate routes to a healthier, happier and longer life,” says Bruckman. “Art that is inspiring, uplifting and occasion ally whimsical can unlock our imagination and nurture our spirit.”

For more information, including a list of monthly themes, submission terms and format requirements, visit NaturalAwakenings.com/CoverArt.

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