10 Things You Didn't Know About Your Heart
“And now here is my secret, a very simple secret: it is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”
Let’s geek out for a bit.
The human heart is nothing short of incredible. You may already know that it’s responsible for pumping blood throughout your body and that it beats an average of 100,000 times per day.
But according to Joseph Chilton Pearce, the author of numerous books on human and child development, your heart is more than a pump. You can measure your heart’s energy with an electrocardiogram three feet from the body. I’ve even heard up to 17 feet.
This means that your heart is constantly sending out an electromagnetic field that extends well beyond your physical form.
And get this: Your heart’s magnetic field is 5,000 times stronger than that of your brain.
There's a lot to learn about this powerful muscle. Knowing what your heart is capable of can be the first step to healing and understanding yourself on a much deeper level.
With that said, here are 10 things you probably didn't know about your heart.
My Favorite Heart Facts
More than half of heart cells are neural cells, and the heart uses the same neurotransmitters as the brain
The heart connects with all ganglia in the body
The heart directly communicates with the brain (without filter)
The heart produces 2.5 watts of electrical energy with each heartbeat, which is enough to power a small lightbulb
The heart’s atrium produces the hormone ANF which influences the function of the limbic brain (the emotional lower brain system) and can help balance and calm us
The heart entrains us to Earth’s magnetic field
Heart energy saturates every cell in the body
The heart influences DNA and creates fields and fields of information
The heart has its own nervous system, the intrinsic cardiac nervous system (ICNS), which is more complex than the spinal cord
The heart is the first organ to form in the human embryo and it begins to beat by day 22*
As you can see, the human brain and heart easily entrain or influence one another. Our thoughts and beliefs are literally carried in our heart’s neural cells. And we entrain to each other’s fields whether we are aware of it or not.
*Heart energy is first formed in utero and provides the electromagnetic field and organization for the entire human body. A fetus grows surrounded by the mother’s heart energy and they entrain to each other at the very beginning. Mother and baby are said to share similar brains and hearts, as well as similar craniosacral rhythms and constrictions. The mother's energy field gives the baby their energetic model.
The Mystery of Heart Intelligence
According to Donna Eden's Energy Medicine, the heart’s field of information can be carried by the heart even after transplant.
She references the case of a boy named Darryl who received a heart transplant from Timmy, and how Darryl changed after this procedure. Timmy died from a fall while reaching for a Power Ranger toy outside of his hotel window. Darryl’s mother said not only did her son’s smile change after the transplant, but he refused to play with Power Ranger toys afterwards and put them all away. Darryl was even recognized by his donor Timmy’s dog.
This case suggests that heart intelligence is:
Nonverbal
Nonlinear
Holistic
Intuitive
Genius
Our heart’s wisdom is much greater than what we can comprehend with our rational minds. In fact, our hearts are always trying to communicate with us, but we often ignore these messages because they don’t always make logical sense.
The heart is the source of our intuition and our connection to the collective consciousness. Our hearts know things that we don’t, and it’s up to us to listen.
Taking Care of Your Heart Energy
It's important to take good care of yourself when working with the heart. If you don't, you'll be affected by those around you and will carry the weight of the world on your shoulders.
Developing your intuitive sense requires you to take care of yourself energetically. Become aware of who you are in the moment. According to research on cell attraction, your heart’s energy has two choices: open or closed. Which would you prefer to experience?
How to Practice Heart Opening
Heart energy is a powerhouse, babe. You are the most powerful you when your heart is open. Here are some ways to open your heart:
Meditate. Meditation makes your brain more pliable, increases neuroplasticity, regulates blood pressure, slows the aging process, and can often be better for your system than sleeping.
Smile. Smiling opens the heart and actually changes your brain chemistry. Smile at a loved one, a pet, or at yourself in the mirror. Bonus points if you can smile at someone you don't know.
Play with high-vibration emotions. Emotions are magnetic; put them on like you would put on an item of clothing. Use music to take you even more deeply. Use a moving meditation to cleanse or clear the emotional body of debris if needed.
Open your pericardium meridian. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths. Connect to the front, back, and sides of your heart. What do you feel? How do you feel? Invite the body's wisdom to speak to you. Hold your left middle finger with your right hand (this is the access point to the pericardium meridian.) The more those points are open, the more energy can flow.
Practice yoga. Set yourself up in a heart-opening yoga posture like sphinx, camel, triangle, or child’s pose. Breathe deeply and let the body rest in the shape.
Notice how you feel before, during, and after you've done something to open your heart. How does it feel in your body? In your relationships? At work? When you're creative? I invite you to reflect and journal about your experiences for further insights.
Final Thoughts
We have only just begun to understand the power of the heart. As we continue to learn more, we can harness the heart's power and use it to our advantage.
How?
Through alchemy. The heart is the alchemist of the body, turning our emotions into fuel for the journey. In my Sacred Alchemy course, I'll teach you how to listen your heart's language, translate and alchemize emotions, and truly heal yourself.
I invite you to stay in the work and dive deeper!