I’ll be the first to admit, this is a practice I am still learning and striving to improve. A week ago, however, the voice within became very loud, screaming at me to not have that cup of coffee that I usually look so forward to enjoying. Believe me, I LOVE my coffee! So, instead of taking my body’s advice, I did what most people usually do out of pure habit. I had my cup of coffee, and that entire day, I felt more anxious than ever. At one point I even felt my heart beat do something out of the ordinary. My nervous system was so activated, my mind, my thoughts naturally followed suit! Before long, I was a crying mess and I wasn’t really sure why.

The next thing I did was hook myself up to a biofeedback device designed to measure heart rate variability (HRV) and Coherence. As I predicted, my nervous system was completely dysregulated. My HRV graph was all over the place and my coherence was in the red zone. My score was about 20% out of 100 which is low by any standard. So, what is HRV and Coherence?

In short, while the heart generates rhythmic patterns, the beat-to-beat interval varies. For example, as you inhale, your heart rate increases, and as you exhale your heart rate decreases. Thus, your breath is one of several major factors that influences your HRV. Other major factors are the central and peripheral nervous system states. In fact, you can see with your own eyes how your thoughts affect your heart rate patterns. This is what I love about this device the most, you can experiment with your breathing, your thoughts, and in my case, what you put into your body, to see how these factors affect not only your HRV but more importantly, your state of Coherence.

Coherence is a term described by scientists as a highly efficient physiological state in which the nervous system, cardiovascular, hormonal and immune systems are working efficiently and harmoniously. Basically, increased coherence is correlated with increased well-being. As stated by Heartmath, a leading company dedicated to health and wellness, high coherence is a state associated with positive emotional attitudes which send signals to the brain that reduce stress and improve brain function.

I highly encourage anyone and everyone to practice with biofeedback either on their own or with a coach. Utilizing the emWave device not only for myself but also with my clients has provided the only concrete way to measure empirical data to track progress and effect of lifestyle changes ranging from how you breathe or eat to how to think.

Click here to learn more about the science behind emWave and Heart Rhythms.

I’ve always believed in the power of this tool, but it wasn’t until this morning that I got to experience first-hand, how powerful it is.

The morning after my anxiety meltdown, as usual I thought about my morning coffee, but this time, my body cringed and I listened, “No coffee, please! No alcohol, no toxins! Please!” That day I started an experimental cleanse replacing my morning coffee with detox tea. Less than a week later, after monitoring my HRV every day, my heart rhythm is painting beautiful, smooth, sin waves in my HRV graph and my coherence is up to 100% (admittedly, after morning yoga & meditation). Though previously, what I found was that yoga & meditation alone did not bring me to full coherence. Another example to show that balance is key!

I’d like to end this entry with a question. Last night, in a conversation with a yoga teacher, I heard her ask someone in the room, “What would you have to give up to be someone that you look up to?

Not only do I invite you to ask this of yourself, I embrace the challenge of asking this of myself. When I know that the activity of my heart and my thoughts create an electromagnetic field that extends up to several feet around me, it makes me want to do everything and anything that I can to create a field that has a beneficial impact on not only myself, but the lives that surround me.

If you or anyone you know is interested or have any questions about utilizing HRV to make a difference in your life, please don’t hesitate to comment or email me directly.

The following is a great video of Dr. Rollin McCraty explaining the “Science of Heart.” I couldn’t explain it better:

The following is an excerpt from an interview with Dr. Richard Davidson (internationally renowned for his research on the neural substrates of emotion and emotional disorders):

“… Our work indicates that there are signals in the prefrontal cortex of the brain, which can be recorded, that reflect an individu- al’s overall level of happiness or well-be- ing. Individuals with greater left side pre- frontal activation, on average, tend to be individuals who report themselves to be happier, more energetic, and more opti- mistic. These are the kind of people who jump out of bed in the morning and are ready to embrace the world. They are approach oriented. It’s not a laid back type of happiness. It’s an active, involved happiness. And that’s what my index reflects…”

How cool is it that our brain’s are built for to be trained and re-trained… and we can ‘learn’ happiness, compassion, love, peace… and interesting that this activity is predominantly occurring in the left hemisphere…

And not only can meditation bring you happiness, and peace, but it also brings you a stronger immune system, more focus, greater vigilance… so what would happen if we started teaching our children and soldiers and physicians and politicians all to meditate? What would the world look like then? well.. at least our country…

And not only does it affect us, but it also affects the people around us… here’s the closing note of the interview:

“…To be succinct, we can influence other people’s health simply by the way we act.

EXPLORE: So we know that, if I medi- tate, I can affect my brain. Do we have any data that, if I meditate, I can affect the brains of the people that I am in- teracting with? If you are in the presence of an enlightened person, are you up- lifted?

DAVIDSON: Yes, I have no doubt in that. And, again, I don’t think it requires any nonstandard theoretical framework to un- derstand. It’s not as if there is a transmis- sion of some unknown energy, but, rather, simply by the demeanor of an individual, by what they say and how they say it, by
their gestures, they can affect, unquestion- ably, the mind and brain of those with whom they interact.
For instance, there is a lot of nonspe- cific healing that occurs in the ordinary course of a doctor-patient relationship. A doctor can make his or her patients feel more at ease, well cared for and attended to, and that can actually promote real bi- ological change that is beneficial.
When I am in the presence of the Dalai Lama, I am affected. There is no question about it, and it is very powerful. For in- stance, one interaction I had with the Dalai Lama occurred during a break in the meeting. He was sitting in a chair, and I was kneeling beside him, talking to him. We were close, and the whole time he had his hands on my ear lobe and was rubbing my ear. This went on for fifteen minutes. It was completely natural, and the impact of touch in that way can be very powerful. I had the experience of feeling very deeply secure and comforted by the Dalai Lama’s presence. But I don’t think it requires these crazy theories that there is some kind of energy that we really have not identified scientifically. It can be explained using the principles that we understand. I have yet to be confronted by new and compelling evidence that cannot be subsumed within the rubric of conventional scientific un- derstanding. But the fact that we can affect each other is very important, and having a scientific understanding of it doesn’t at all diminish its importance.

EXPLORE: So you would say that a per- son’s mind can affect other people?

DAVIDSON: Yes, and we should pay at- tention to this in our culture. That’s an- other issue that is addressed in the ethical framework of many of these traditions— the interdependence that all beings have on this planet. There is a level of interde- pendence that is very profound, and, when you actually begin to understand this scientifically, it makes perfect sense. The way we think, how we behave, the qualities that we exhibit, very directly af- fect those around us. We can affect their brains, and we can affect their bodies. To be succinct, we can influence other peo- ple’s health simply by the way we act.”

AHO! Well said Dr. Davidson! And thank you for stepping out of your spiritual closet and stepping up to lead a revolution in our way of thinking, feeling, and being!

If you would like to read this entire interview, here’s the reference:

EXPLORE, September 2005, Vol. 1, No. 5

July 10th, 2009

Pearl & Johanna Pre-Lunch Interview

Make business decisions with ease and grace.

Ever find yourself questioning and doubting yourself with every choice you encounter for your business?

Are you expending enormous amounts of energy sifting through what seems like an overwhelming bombardment of information from infinite sources?

Is everyone telling you to do something different?

Making wise business decisions can be a tricky business in and of it self.

While experience and knowledge can bring you so far, tuning in to your inner guidance system is essential for moving your business forward in a way that aligned with your truest self.

Join us for the July 10th Women in Business Luncheon as Pearl Schroy and Johanna Klouda-Mercado, of East West Wholistic Education, share some simple, yet powerful tricks to maximize your intuition.

You will learn how to listen to your own voice. Pearl and Johanna take an integrative approach to get you connected to what is most important.

Be prepared to engage in somatic and meditative exercises that will have you learning to make choices with confidence and ease.

It is so easy to get caught up in the chaos of our own and other people’s thoughts. Our experience of every moment in life is subject to responses to every internal and external stimulus in the universe. How often have you woken peacefully to have your entire day shaken up by one little phone call or email carrying the ripples of someone else’s sadness, anger, or confusion? I dare to say distraction is more often than not our normal state of existence. So how do we learn to ride that powerful wave of chaos and not wipe out in the wash? And then, once we learn to ride, how do we master the ride with the kind of stealth and grace that others can look upon with complete and utter awe? Isn’t this the skill to strive for? It matters not what wave we choose to take on in life. What matters is how we ride it.

This ultimate challenge must be taken on at the level of the mental, the physical, and the emotional. Each of these realms is like a circle, or a sphere, ever so persistently contracting and expanding. Each is a boundless entity, breathing in, out, and all around the source which is center.

Bring it back to center. Bring all back to center. Whatever the moment and experience is, always be able to bring yourself to center. The instructions are simple yet the knowing is never enough. A certain shift must first occur. Transformation of the knowing into the Being is how we access what we call Center. Being breath, being silence, and being acceptance. The body manifests in the realm of the physical where our breath serves as source. Thoughts manifest in the realm of the mental where silence serves as source. Feelings manifest in the realm of the emotional where acceptance and peace serve as source.

In source is center and from center, there is choice. Where there is choice there is a sacred freedom, the freedom required to gracefully master the art of creating form from chaos. Here, we no longer wait for the perfect wave to arrive. Here, we simply create the perfect wave of our lives.

Always remember…bring it back to center.