Book Review: HeartMath

The HearthMath Solution looks and for all intent and purposes is a self help book, however I wish the cover designers and authors had made the front cover look a little more scientific rather than so self-helpy - I fear many would be put off by the claims of how you can instantly improve your life with the methods included within. It looks like just another fad, another scheme which may work for some people and not others and involves stack loads of money. It isn't. It deserves a more scientific outlook because the book starts with just that, the foundation of the techniques discussed later. Experiments reveal a field of energy that is emitted from the heart of every person and extends around 8 feet from the body. You know how someone's bad mood can affect you, and how the atmosphere of 70,000 people in a sports stadium feels...


The authors show how the heart has its own measurable intelligence due to a small nervous system that is connected to the brain, therefore able to communicate emotion and 'thoughts' to our control center. This is first science that I have come across that explains intuition in a clearly defined way. There is note made of the number of metaphors and idioms we use to describe our heart intelligence through language - following our heart, my heart wasn't in it, and so on.

The various techniques come later in the book and teach you how to center in on your heart, listen to what it is saying whilst trying to blank out that untrained monkey that is our 'head' intelligence, the mind. The authors argue that much of our (undue) daily stress that effects physical well being comes from our habit of listening to the head first and reacting in a very primitive way to our environment. If we learn how to step back, breath, and focus, we give the heart a chance to speak and then with all the best intention, wisdom and integrity backing us up, we can make the right decision - that being whatever means our mental balance is unaffected. This is eastern philosophy for on-the-go yuppies, meditation for those who prefer it packaged in a western container - either way, I am a fan. The same as any meditative practice in our modern lives - the hardest thing is finding the time and discipline to follow through these techniques. I am sure however that those who do tune into their heart will be rewarded.