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How Well Do You Know Your Heart?

By July 9, 2011February 6th, 2018Balance, Health, Healthy Living

Quote about living from the heartMany years ago, I read an interesting novel by Rose Tremain called Restoration.ย Set in the mid seventeenth century England, the bookโ€™s lead character Robert Merival, along with a fellow medical student, happen upon a man with an open wound on his chest that allows his beating heart to be seen and touched by the human hand.

When they reach in and touch the manโ€™s heart, the two marvel that when touched, the heart has no feeling. This organ, to which we ascribe all things relating to the most powerful of human emotions, itself has no feeling. The human heart has no feeling!ย Something about this continues to intrigue me, so I looked at some of the things we do, or donโ€™t know, about the complicated and much discussed human heart.

Put Your Hand on Your Heart

If asked to put their hand on their heart, most people would place it on the left side of their chest, but in actuality, it sits closer to the centre. The left lung is slightly smaller than the right, to accommodate it. The heart weighs less than one pound, with the average womanโ€™s heart weighing only eight ounces and a manโ€™s only ten. A womanโ€™s heart beats faster than a manโ€™s. Some scientists believe that the longer the ring finger is in boys, the less chance they have of having a heart attack.

Here are more nitty gritty detailsย to consider. The heart is almost entirely muscle, the myocardium, and is strong enough to lift approximately 3000 pounds, close to the weight of a compact car. Your heart beats about 35 million times a yearโ€”100,000 beats per day, 70 beats per minute, with enough strength to shoot blood a distance of 30 feet! By the time we turn 70, the heart will have beat 2.5 billion times!

Did you know that your heart actually sits closer to the centre of your chest, not on the left side? #heart #health Click To Tweet

The First Organ to Show

The heart is the first organ to show at nineteen days and scientists believe that by eight weeks, when the embryo is only an inch long, it is fully developed.ย The heart starts beating in the unborn fetus before the brain is even formed. Scientists still donโ€™t know what makes it start beating, but know it is generated from within the heart itself and doesnโ€™t need a connection to the brain to keep beating.

The origin of the traditional heart shape remains somewhat controversial, as the human heart only vaguely resembles the stylized images we see. If you clench your fists and put them side by side, thatโ€™s roughly the size and shape of the adult human heart. So where did this universal heart shape symbol originate? It’sย reported that the seed of the silphium plant, used in ancient times as an herbal contraceptive, might be the source of the heart symbol. It could also be considered to represent features of the human female body, or when viewed upside down, part of the manโ€™s.

Clench your fists and put them side by side... thatโ€™s roughly the size and shape of the adult human heart. #heartClick To Tweet

The Heart as a Symbol

Baby and Adult hands in shape of your heartThe heart has long been used as a symbol to refer to the spiritual, emotional, moral, and in the past, also the intellectual core of a human being. The heart symbol is consistently used to represent love, particularly romantic love, itโ€™s red color representing both blood and passion.

Classical scientists and philosophers, including Aristotle, believed that the heart was the seat of thought, reason or emotion, often rejecting the brainโ€™s value and instead viewing the heart as the seat of the soul. The word โ€œheartโ€ originates from the Latin โ€œcorโ€ which means soul or feeling and in most cultures, references to the heart have continued to be used metaphorically for deep feelings and emotions.

The heart has long been used as a symbol to refer to the spiritual, emotional, moral and intellectual core of a human being. #heart #emotions Click To Tweet

Universally, the heart represents similar things. In the Chakra system, the fourth Chakra is located in the centre of the chest and is called the Heart Chakra. This Chakra is associated with the aroma of the rose, with doves and the planet Venus. It was, after all, Venus, the Goddess of Love, who deemed the rose sacred. Her son Cupid along with the rose, the dove and the heart, have all become enduring symbols of the yearโ€™s most โ€œheartโ€ celebrated dayโ€”Valentineโ€™s Day.

Your Heart is Green โ€” In the Chakra System

Chakra System_Heart is greenIn the Chakra system itโ€™s not red, but the color green, that represents the Heart Chakra.ย Green symbolizes harmony, creativity, health, abundance and nature. The Heart Chakra is associated with unconditional love and compassion, the centre where all feelings of love emanate.ย When we open our Heart Chakra, we become channels for universal love.

According to most Chinese Medicine, the heart โ€œhouses the mind,โ€ the health of the heart energy having a lot to do with our mental activity – even our consciousness. The heart governs our ability to sleep soundly, think clearly and have a good memory. The healthy heart plays a big role in our emotional health and our ability to experience meaningful relationships. The heart represents the element of fire. Mother Teresa said it beautifully, “A joyful heart is the inevitable result of a heart burning with love.”

According to most Chinese Medicine, the heart โ€œhouses the mind.โ€ The health of the heart energy having a lot to do with our mental activity - even our consciousness. #health #heartClick To Tweet

Introducing Institute of HeartMath

The Institute of HeartMath, a non-profit research organization, has made breakthrough discoveries in our understanding of the heartโ€™s intelligence, reporting that scientific evidence now indicates the heart is far more complex than weโ€™d ever imagined, sending us emotional and intuitive signals to help govern our lives.

The heart is much more than an organ that pumps blood, directing and aligning many systems in the body so they can function harmoniously with each other.ย Although the heart is in constant communication with the brain, it makes itโ€™s own decisions and has itโ€™s own independent nervous system called โ€œthe brain in the heart.โ€

Although the heart is in constant communication with the brain, it makes it's own decisions and has itโ€™s own independent nervous system called โ€œthe brain in the heart.โ€ #heart #brainClick To Tweet

HeartMath also reports that positive emotions such as happiness, appreciation, compassion, care and love, improve the hormonal balance and immune system response. The heart has the ability to retain memories and there are documented cases of heart transplant patients reporting that the implanted heart often brings up behaviors or memories that are not theirs, but those of the donor. HeartMath research has shown that our intelligence and intuition are heightened when we learn to listen more deeply to our own hearts.

How Conscious Are You of Your Heart?

How often do you stop and consciously pay attention to your heart? Even at rest, your heart muscle works twice as hard as your leg muscles when sprinting. Weโ€™ve all heard that laughter is the best medicine, so give your heart a great workout, as laughing increases the blood flow for up to 45 minutes, improving your overall heart health.

Even at rest, your heart muscle works twice as hard as your leg muscles when sprinting. #heart #healthClick To Tweet

Maybe stopping to smell the roses, listening to your heart and sharing laughs with loved ones, are all good things to focus on in February, as it is not only the month of all things “love”, but is also Heart Month.ย Although the heart has no feeling physically, when you’re in love, you really do โ€œfeelโ€ with your heart.

Perhaps more than any other organ, the heart feels and senses emotions and responds, making every day a perfect day to experience and feel love. This beautiful quote by Helen Keller speaks volumes, โ€œThe best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.โ€

I invite you to open your heart and see what happens. In what ways do you listen to your heart?

Take your health to the next level, with a complimentary health consultation. It starts here with the True Health Assessment. Are you as healthy as you feel?

Two people in the sunset with their hands in a heart shape

 

Beverley Golden

Beverley Golden is a writer, storyteller, peacenik and health & vitality consultant, who loves testing unconventional ways to shift paradigms in the playing fields of health and wellness, storytelling and creativity as a path to world peace. Her passion is turning the โ€œimpossibleโ€ into the possible, using her own experiences with a lifetime of health issues, to inspire and support others to live their life to the fullest. You're invited to a Complimentary Health Consultation, starting with the True Health Assessment that offers a customized personalized snapshot of how healthy you are in the areas of lifestyle, heredity and nutrition. Contact me to get started!

103 Comments

  • Lorii Abela says:

    This is timely for Valentine’s day! Anyway, it is also good for those with no Valentine’s date as it focuses on centering on self. Love it. It made me aware and breathe. Sometimes, when there are too many things going on, I forget to take a breather.

    • Thanks for your observation Lorii! Yes, when we focus on our heart and truly go inward and love ourselves, any day is a good day to celebrate our lives. Happy to hear it made you stop and remember to breathe too. I think all of us forget to stop and breathe sometimes in our hectic fast-paced world!

  • Alene Geed says:

    I loved reading this post. I did not realize how little I actually knew about our most important organ. The fact that the heart is formed within 19 days when the fetus is formed is fascinating. Thanks for doing all this research and sharing it with the world. Will be sharing as well

    • Happy to hear you learned some new things about the heart from this piece, Alene! Doing the research was fascinating, as I also learned a lot of things I didn’t know. It’s amazing how complex the heart is and the fact it forms at 19 days truly is incredible to think about. Glad you enjoyed reading the post and that you appreciate the research!

  • Cheryl says:

    Great discussion in this article Beverley. The heart is a centre we need in Life, and as you point out, in various ways. This topic always intrigues me! You have presented it concisely, always a pleasure to read your articles <3

    • Thank you so much Cheryl! Glad you enjoyed the information about the heart and how it isn’t only a physical organ, but is the seat of our emotions and even our spiritual selves. I appreciate your support, as always!

  • Loved you post! When you start talking about heart chakras it completely sings to me! Thank you for sharing. I totally agree.

  • I love this! Definitely worth sharing. I did know about the location of the heart, but thought it was smaller than 2 fists. P.S. I’m a big fan of HeartMath. One of m y all-time favorite books.

    • Happy you learned some new things from this post, Jackie! Yes, the heart is fascinating and HeartMath is doing incredible work to study and share more about the intelligence of the heart. Something we don’t often hear about when only the physical characteristics of the heart are focused on.

  • Thank you for your informative post Beverley! I know a lot about the heart chakra, not so much about the physical characteristics. I appreciated learning more.

  • Suzie Cheel says:

    Yes the heart is such an important 0rgan in more that 1 way which you beautifully outline. The Heart Chakra does need to be open to allow us to fully be true to ourselves- thank you xxoo

  • Tamuria says:

    I so enjoyed reading this the second time around, Beverley. Your article is packed with interesting information about the heart. It’s so easy to take for granted the very thing that keeps us alive.

    • Thanks for reading the post again, Tami. Hopefully this time around there were some new tidbits or ideas about the heart to consider. I believe that many people do take their heart for granted and yet, for me, the more I learn, the more fascinated I am by how the heart has meaning in our emotional, physical, moral, intellectual and spiritual lives.

  • I’ve read some of the work done by HeartMath before and still find it fascinating. This was a well-researched and well written post. You just never know what else we can learn if we try!

    • HeartMath is doing incredible work, Barb. I’ve followed them for many years and their work is cutting edge. Thanks for the thumbs up on my post, as I love doing research in hopes people will learn something new.

  • Thanks so much for this great post Beverley. It’s interesting how cultural beliefs about the heart and love, as well as the belief that the heart chakra is green, have developed. Whatever may be believed about the heart and the chakras I think it is important that the belief resonates with the person.
    For example, many believe that the chakras each have an individual color, yet some view the chakras as not so much with color as having a specific invisible, colorless ir multi-colored vibration. Whatever works, in my opinion!

    • Thank you for your thoughtful comment, Genevieve. Knowing you are also interested in health and healing, I appreciate your feedback and thoughts on this post. There is a higher spiritual energy to the chakras as well as the colour and the invisible multicoloured vibration. I agree with you that what we believe, is what matters most when it comes to how we view them.

  • Well researched and interesting post Beverley. Thanks for sharing!

  • Robin says:

    Wonderful post, Beverley! This is perfect for Valentine’s Day! I have been very aware of my heart rate. I have been wearing a heart monitor for years while I exercise to not only monitor it, but to make sure I am reaching my goals. I recently received a Fitbit as a gift and it helps keep an eye on my heart rate as well. Finally, I love Helen Keller’s quote!! Again, great post!!

    • Thanks so much for reading this, Robin! Love hearing that you are highly conscious of your heart and that you are tuned in and monitoring it to stay healthy. It sounds like the Fitbit is a great addition to your workout program and helps keep you on track. I love all Helen Keller quotes and happy this one stood out for you in the post!

    • Tarah says:

      Awesome information Beverley! Thank You!!!

  • Gill says:

    I’ll have to tell my husband who recently went through some heart issues, we have a muscle strong enough in our heart to lift 15X his body! He’ll be quite intrigued! The heart is an amazing organ that definitely has phenomenon attached to it! Whenever things get hard for me, I depend on listening to my heart to help me. It’s usually telling me to go out for a run and amazing understandings happen! ๐Ÿ˜€ Happy Valentines Beverley on February 14 ๐Ÿ˜€

    • Hope your husband enjoyed hearing all the nitty gritty details about the heart, Gilly. It is quite a fascinating organ indeed. The heart is not only a physical organ, but I believe it is the organ of our emotions too. When we listen to it, we are given insights to follow in our lives. I love hearing that you hear it telling you to get out and run and that you know to listen to that! Hope you had a lovely and healthy Valentine’s Day too!

  • A good advice Beverley to open your heart and to laugh more. Everybody should do that much more, and act with their hearts…

    • Thanks Katarina. Yes, staying open-hearted and making sure to laugh are great ways to live. The more people do this, yes, hopefully the more heart-centred our world will be!

  • Beverley,
    Wow, so much information! I LOVE IT, no pun intended, lol. Great job breaking down everything, including the Heart Math information, and making it so easy to understand. Love your writing, sister!

    • Thanks for the LOVE, Liz! ๐Ÿ˜‰ Glad you enjoyed the information and found it easy to understand. I really appreciate the work HeartMath is doing and the light they are shining on the independent and important part our heart plays. Thanks for the thumbs up for my writing too. xo

  • Hi Beverley,
    Very informative article! I did not know the heart was the first organ to be formed or the amount of times it beats in a day! I check my heart rate before and after endurance runs and sprints. When my husband is in a deep sleep I often put my hand on his heart just to check the rhythm of his heart beat!

    • I think a lot of people are surprised to hear that the heart is the first organ to form, Sharise. It really points to the importance it plays overall. There is so much interesting information about the heart and I’m delighted that there was some new information in it for you. I loved hearing how you put your hand on your husband’s heart while he is sleeping to check the rhythm of it too.

  • Hi Beverley ๐Ÿ™‚

    What an awesome and informative post on why you should really know your heart ๐Ÿ™‚ After reading your post, I will pay closer attention to how I am feeling and think about how important MY heart is just to day to day living and I agree with you that laughing definately helps the heart!

    Thanks for sharing ๐Ÿ™‚

    • So happy this post on the heart brought you some new awareness of your heart, Joan! And paying attention to this most important of organs is always a good thing. Yes, laughing is good for so many things and good heart health is just on of them. Appreciate your comment and you’re welcome. ๐Ÿ™‚

  • Alyssa Martin says:

    Love Chinese medicine!

  • Great article Beverley, and I agree that the Institute of HeartMath sounds fascinating! I’ve been working on creating a new series of courses recently and in the process for the first time realized how much of my work to promote emotional resilience is heart centered which is surprising since I’ve always considered myself to be pretty pragmatic. Thanks for the inspiration!

    • That’s a wonderful discovery you made for yourself Marquita. The heart truly is the seat of the soul and functions independently as you read. Your course sounds wonderful and I’m happy you found some new inspiration in this piece! All the best with it. Emotional Resilience truly aligns perfectly with the heart.

  • Carol Rundle says:

    What wonderful information about our beautiful hearts, Beverley. God made us in such an amazing way. Interesting about green being the color for the heart chakra. Green is my favorite color.

    • Thanks so much Carol! Glad you enjoyed the information. We humans are indeed quite amazing and intricate. Yes, in the Chakra system, the heart chakra is green and sits in the centre, the meeting place of heaven and earth. There are three chakras above it and three below it. Green comes from the melding of blue (communication chakra above it) and the yellow chakra (the gut and our identity), below it.

  • Lisa Swanson says:

    Wow, never heard of the institute of heart math… found that very interesting. Thanks for a great article.

    • You’d really love what the Institute of Heartmath is doing, Lisa. They are cutting edge in their findings and what they share about healing from the heart as a collective. Glad you enjoyed the article too!

  • Tamuria says:

    What a wonderful article! I learned so many news things. I’m intrigued by the Institute of HeartMath and the findings re the heart’s intelligence. I love the images you have with this.

    • So happy your found this piece brought you some new insights about the heart Tami! The Institute of Heartmath is doing incredible research and I now you’d love them and what they are doing. Appreciate hearing you liked the images too! Thanks as always for your contribution to the conversation.

  • Joyce Hansen says:

    Excellent article Beverley covering so many different areas of the heart and heart imagery and meaning. There are so many telling heart phrases that we use like heart-broken and wearing one’s heart on one’s sleeve that tells us so much about our inner being.

    • That’s a great point you make Joyce! Yes, the phrases or sayings we use about the heart truly are a reflection of our inner being or soul. There is much to know about the heart and I’m happy you appreciated the variety of information this piece offered!

  • Joan Potter says:

    Great article – Interestingly, just tonight on the NBC nightly news was an excerpt on decreasing dementia by keeping our hearts strong. Go heart health! Also, love the Helen Keller quote!

    • Very synchronistic indeed Joan! Yes, the heart is truly one our often most understood organs and I’m not surprised that exercising is important to help decrease our risk of dementia. Yes, Go Heart Health! Yes, I love the Helen Keller quote too!

  • Kim says:

    Very interesting information!

  • Great post! You reminded me about the Heart Chakra. I do know where the heart is, years ago, doing a workshop when I was a teenager, they told us where the heart was. Since then, I put my hand over my heart especially when I am nervous or scared. It helps me calm down.

    • Thanks so much Sabrina! Glad you enjoyed this post. I’m happy to hear it brought back memories of a workshop you did and how you really feel the benefits of putting your hand on your heart whenever you are anxious or frightened. It is so simple to do and yet it really works. And knowing where the heart is is the key, as so many people think it is far to the left.

  • Kimberly says:

    Great post for Valentines Day! Very interesting info and perspective on one of our most important organs!

  • Verushka says:

    Thanks for the Heart primer! I’m going to be paying more attention to the heart.. it’s so easy to forget the priorities!

  • That was so interesting, Beverley. The first organ to show really grabbed my attention. It’s a super driving force from the very beginning. I do need to be more conscious of my heart, as you mentioned. I too believe in the heart’s strong ties to our immune systems and overall well being. I think I will treat my heart to a little dark chocolate right now to say, “thanks!”

    • A lot of people are surprised to hear that the heart is the fist organ to show, Meghan. It seems to fascinate people. I think we all would be wise to pay more attention to our heart and something as simple as placing our hand on it daily, makes a big difference in calming us down and bringing us back to centre. Hope you enjoyed the chocolate too! That is a great way to thank your heart indeed!

  • I have to admit, I haven’t really slowed down enough to pay attention to my heart, like you mention, nor think about it much… even when doing yoga I was working really hard in not letting my mind wander and focusing on my breath and trying to sit still! lol

    BTW.. loved when I was pregnant and hearing my girls’ heartbeats for the first time, an amazing thing!

    • Glad this post brought back such a wonderful memory of listening to your girls’ heartbeats Kristen. That is an amazing experience! The thing about the heart is it is actually directing the show within our body and even stopping and putting your hand on your heart a few times a day, brings you back to your centre and I’ve been told helps you to slow down and become more conscious.

  • Teresa says:

    Nice article with wonderful insights on our most precious organ, the heart. I am mostly aware and have even taken some courses with HeartMath. I did not know of the reference to the plant – how beautiful that it is all connected. Thanks for sharing this…..

    • Glad to hear there was something new in this post for you Teresa. Yes, everything is connected by energy which we humans often cannot see. Appreciate knowing there were some wonderful insights in it for you too!

  • I am fascinated by the fact the heart physically has no feeling. I think this is probably true for the rest of our organs as well. It leads me to think that we truly are made of up energy reactions. Over my years I have seen couples where one partner died and the other would pass on within a year due to what their relatives called “a broken heart.” Love is the reason we are here to connect with love, give and receive love. Is it the heart that holds this energy? And, is this why we have so many people today with heart problems? A lot to ponder. I love this post on the heart and thank you!

    • Although I am not 100% sure, Karen, I think the heart might actually be one of the only organs that doesn’t “feel” anything. I’ll do more research to confirm. ๐Ÿ™‚ Yes, energetically, we are all connected and I believe the mid point in our body, the heart, which is the seat of the soul, is that point between heaven and earth where we connect to each other. I’ve also heard stories of people literally dying of a “broken” heart when a loved one passes. Love your questions about so many people with heart problems. All of our etheric body holds the love energy, as I believe it is what we are born of and like you say, what we are here to experience and share. Glad you enjoyed this post and there is much to ponder when we look at the fascinating human body!

  • Wow! I just love this, Beverley! And learned so much! I didn’t know the heart was the first organ to be formed!
    But I truly love the research about the heart “sending us emotional and intuitive signals to help govern our lives.” Amazing!
    Thank you for this!

    • Thanks Susan! I think a lot of people are unaware of the independent nature of the heart. Yes, it is the first organ to form and all the current research is showing that we can alter outcomes using heart centered “thinking”. And the heart is sending us emotional and intuitive signals all the time. The challenge is to listen, as we humans seem to believe the brain is the king. Glad to hear you learned something new in reading this! You’re welcome.

  • Beth Niebuhr says:

    Quite an interesting article, Beverley. I didn’t know that the heart makes itโ€™s own decisions and has itโ€™s own independent nervous system called โ€œthe brain in the heart.โ€ Hmm, my first husband was a cardiologist. Wonder if he knew that? I’m very thankful for my hard-working heart!

    • Reading your comment, Beth, my thought about your question was… I doubt traditional medical practitioners are aware of these subtle things, as this also adds a more spiritual perspective to the heart conversation. The heart is quite fascinating and the recent research is showing it is really the key organ running the show. The brain is important, however, the heart is independent and does make its own decisions. I love that it is the first organ to form as well.

  • Deb Nelson says:

    What a post, Beverley! Once again, sharing so many insights that we either aren’t aware of, or don’t pay attention to. The Mother Teresa quote really resonated with me. I’m also struck by our eagerness to follow tradition even when we know it’s not fact (shape of heart). Didn’t know about chakra and color green. Romanticism is alive and well in our culture!! Trying to stay centered, keeping a balance that suits me.

    • Thanks for really absorbing so much of this post, Deb. I always appreciate your attention and hearing the things that stood out for you. We certainly do adopt believes in our culture and hang on to them for dear life it seems. The Chakra system is very interesting and the colours of the higher Chakras mirror the lower ones. The heart…the green Chakra, is the mid point. Yes, to staying centered and aiming for balance. My daily task as well!

  • So I had to ask myself if I am more aware of my heart 1 year later. I believe I am. Hard to accept how small it really is, how it does more than beat & pass blood thru our systems. It also talks to our brains. I think our heart & brain are our two most exquisite organs.

    • Happy to hear you are more conscious and aware of your heart and your health since last year, Roslyn. I think the more aware we are, the healthier we have the chance of becoming. And yes, the heart actually directs the show, with the brain being equally exquisite and yet in some ways secondary to the heart. Appreciate you revisiting this for yourself!

  • Such a valid post Bev. What really struck me is that the heart beats at 8 weeks… meaning the baby is alive. Wow…

    • The heart is a very powerful and often misunderstood part of who we are Norma! And yes, the fact it beats at 8 weeks speaks volumes about how central it is to our human beingness. Glad you found the post valid. Appreciate hearing that.

  • After reading this post, I see that I definitely need to be more aware of my heart, Bev! Because definitely I’m not ๐Ÿ™‚ The same with breathing, how often do we stop to breath deeply and profoundly?
    Really important for our health and souls, thanks for the reminder!

    • Glad there was some info in this piece that gently reminds you to pay more attention to your heart, Delia. It is really such an important and key organ and yet we often take it for granted in our day to day lives. Yes to breathing more consciously as well. Such important things that are so easy to forget about and take for granted. And yes they are so vital to our health and well being. ๐Ÿ™‚

  • Tammi says:

    The HeartMath is very interesting. I had not realized the heart has a memory. Fascinating to think it stores the memories and stories of our lives.

    • Happy you found this of interest to you Tammi. The interesting thing is that people believe the brain is where are memories are and in fact it is in our body, especially the heart. Hope you had a wonderful Valentine’s Day and a heart-filled year too.

  • Lisa says:

    Hi Beverley, what a great post on the heart, and you leave me with one of my favorite quotes by Helen Keller, perfect read for Valentine’s day. We all need to take good care of our hearts, physically and emotionally. Happy V day!

    • Love that quote by Helen Keller as well, Lisa! And I agree, that on all levels our heart is a primary organ and we would be wise to take good care of it for sure. Thanks for the Valentine Day wishes and same to you!

  • Cher says:

    Great information! I especially love the info about the heart chakra and the color green since green represents harmony, etc. Thanks so much for sharing!

    • Thanks so much Cher! Yes, for many people the idea of the heart chakra being represented by the colour green is a new way of looking at this energy centre which sits literally in the middle of our body, connecting the lower and the higher halves, bringing harmony to the whole. Glad you found something new in this and appreciate you commenting.

  • Ashley says:

    Wow, I had no idea that the heart was the first to show! Thanks for sharing that info, after just having a baby, it’s amazing what the body is capable of!

    • Glad there was something new to learn from this piece, Ashley. People don’t seem to know that the heart is the driving force in our lives, not our brains, and it actually has a brain of its own independent of the brain. Congrats on the new baby, and I agree that the body is truly amazing.

    • Glad there was something new to learn from this piece, Ashley. People don’t seem to know that the heart is the driving force in our lives, not our brains, and it actually has a brain of its own independent of the brain. Congrats on the new baby, and I agree that the body is truly amazing.

  • Julie Wilson says:

    I have been very heart centered for awhile now. I have learned to listen to my heart and follow my heart in all situations.

    • It certainly does make a big difference in our lives when we lead from our heart, Julie. Glad to hear you have been tuned in and following your heart for quite a while now. Live is really flows when we live from our heart, not only our head.

  • Veronica says:

    This is great education in the heart and matters of the heart. It is interesting that it is the first organ

    • Many thanks Veronica. Glad you found the information timely and that hearing that the heart is the first organ to form captured your imagination. Appreciate your voice in the conversation!

  • Never knew that the heart chakra was actually the color green as a symbol. I would have thought red myself.

  • Lorii Abela says:

    Thanks for sharing this very amazing article. Sounds very interesting.

  • Tina says:

    WOW! This was really fun to read and very informative. I had no idea about a lot of these statistics about the heart. I do know a heart can be broken (of course not literally) and I also know Valentine’s Day is a great opportunity to share heart-felt love with the people in your life.

    • So happy to hear you learned something by reading this piece, Tina. How lovely that some of these bits of information wow’d you. ๐Ÿ™‚ Yes, Valentine’s Day and every day is a great day to share some heart-felt love with the people in our lives. Thanks for your enthusiasm, as it is greatly appreciated.

  • Since reading this blog, I have been more present to my heart. I’ve chosen to come from a heart centered place and feel less stress & more love and happiness. Harder to get me upset and that’s a good thing.

    • So happy to hear that you took something from this article and were able to apply it to your daily life. It is wonderful when we are open to something new and then see how it integrates and benefits us by adopting it, Roslyn. Thanks for sharing this too!

  • Loved learning so much about my heart. A few facts I had forgotten. Enjoyed this blog. Recently created a graphic using the same Helen Keller quote, so definitely attuned.

    • Yes, we are on the same wavelength indeed Roslyn. Happy you relearned some information about the heart. It is quite a fascinating organ and so many people have no idea that it functions independently from the brain. This offers a whole new perspective on how to be in the world. Appreciate you reading and sharing here too.

  • The heart is an important organ in any living being body and I am delighted that you have highlighted the role of the Heart Chakra which also connects the lower and higher chakras in the body in your post.

    Heart Math also created the Quick Coherence Technique which not only helps to ground and provide stress relief but also helps us to develop our Intuition. Thank you, Beverley for an informative post.

    • Thanks for taking notice of this Vatsala. This piece was written a few years ago and I appreciate you offering the addition of the Quick Coherence Technique from HeartMath. I love how they are teaching us all that the heart runs independently of the brain and actually allows us to “lead from the heart” if we choose, to live a heart-focused life. And yes, the heart chakra is the joining point in our energy centres and often people get blocked in this very area. Appreciate your voice in the conversation.