Does your heart speak to you? …what does it say?
Does it guide you? …where to?
I’ve recently changed my coaching business name to Heart Centered Holistic, and it just feels right! It is more specific to my goals and purpose in my life and my work. It reflects the goals and purpose of those I live alongside, and those I seek to meet.
Without a doubt, my heart has been one of the strongest influences on my journey. As long as I can remember, I was the little love bug of the family, always wanting to have fun and do things that make people happy. For better or worse, I’ve gone ahead and allowed it to make many big decisions over the years. One of the oldest quarrels in existence is whether to listen to the head or the heart. What we think we “should” do versus what we really want to do. Of course, like with any decisions made from any part of our body, there have been plenty of missteps along the way. I’m still learning to find balance but will always check back in with my heart at the end of the day. That is where the true magic lives. When properly cared for and understood, it’s the place that inspires me more than anything else. It’s clear – a heart-centered existence is one of deepest authenticity, connected and full of goodness for ourselves and one another.
The inner guidance speaks – if we only listen, we will hear. The feelings many of us are familiar with (or maybe sometimes ignore) are the messages and when we learn to decipher them, we know where to go and what to do. Anxious, dreadful pounding when danger or betrayal strikes; the sinking weight of guilt or defeat; blushing palpitations in the precious moments of romance; warm and fuzzy joy at the sight of playful children or animals. What has your heart shared with you? Did you listen?
My heart builds strong bonds to its sources of nourishment and has felt resentments toward sources of neglect or mistreatment. It can be a challenge not to cling too hard to what feels good or close ourselves off from any possibility of being hurt or uncared for again. Opening my heart to the truth of my experience is something that I didn’t used to think twice about. Loud, energetic, acting before speaking, and going full speed into my thoughts and feelings without as much self-awareness, just being “myself”. Over the years, learning how my approach affected those around me had me realizing it was time to pull in the reigns a LOT and think more about how I feel and what I say. This came with built-in embarrassment of being “too sensitive” or dramatic. Walking on eggshells, feeling like I might take up too much space or that others couldn’t love me just the way I was. Maybe what I had to question was if I could love myself just the way I was. Not anymore. The ability to feel so connected to others experiencing deep feelings of joy, gratitude, success, love, sadness, loss, injury, or hardship is so powerful and often overlooked. In many cultures or gender roles, it can even be suppressed or discouraged – creating deep-rooted imbalance that can snowball into a lot of negative energy and manifest into disease and mental illness.
How do we reverse imbalances? Have the courage to feel at your very core, to think through your soul and not just the logical brain. Stand in gentle strength and curiosity while taking steps toward the “Yes’s” your body confirms. The key I’ve found is to leave extra space for the messages to come through – for haste makes waste. In relation to others, I’ve learned the space we hold for them assures they can receive their truth and connect in a way that is a “Yes” for them, too. That is where I’ve experienced the most authentic and sustainable connection.
If something isn’t feeling quite right, I love to dig a little deeper to discover what it is that repels me. A red flag, an unpleasant memory transferring itself onto this moment, a misunderstanding, aimless anxiety, lack of intentional downtime, big changes or transformations creating significant forks in the road? Whatever it is, these are signs to redirect. Whether it’s the action, thought, or feeling, it’s time to shift. Maybe the wind has been going in the same direction too long, took a dangerously sharp turn, or has somehow been steering the ship in a zig-zag – not so efficient, is it? Luckily, we are fully capable of getting our hands on the ropes and setting the sails in the right direction. Like with anything, it takes time, practice, and the support of caring confidants.
Holistic heart health is multi-faceted and has the ability to improve and heal many diseases and mental illnesses. It’s an emotional, physical, creative, connected, and sometimes challenging process, but well worthwhile. What we learn about our hearts can be applied in countless ways including social settings, decision making, and our daily routines. Being heart-centered is not about being intensely emotional, nor pumping iron 365 days a year and eating an overly restrictive diet. It’s about living in a space that is open and creates opportunities that are in alignment with our core values (Exploring the Value Within). Soul foods like music, love, nature, and art can pump our hearts full to the brim with understanding of what is for us and what we would like to continue going toward. Smiling is a sure sign that our heart is feeling good and we are on the right track!
Nourishment for our physical heart includes eating a full spectrum of colors and textures from minimally processed foods, plenty of water, and remembering it’s important to enjoy our favorite comfort foods in moderation, too! Getting our body moving to supply our heart with fresh oxygenated blood is one of the most important factors to heart health. Just 20 minutes a few times a week can make a huge difference! Forcing more blood to pump through our body helps increase the demand for blood to the heart, creating new blood vessels and reducing the chances down the road of significant bodily dysfunction like heart attacks and strokes. Spending active time outside is even better, feeding the soul with nature while getting more fresh air into our lungs (when air quality is poor, indoors with an air filter works, or going out while or after it rains is another great option! Remember, taking care of our bodies can help mitigate some of the health risks associated with our environment). Other factors to help our heart include getting enough rest and self-care, reducing significant stressors (or reducing our reaction to the stressors), even acts of service to others.
A note worth highlighting is that we cannot pour from an empty cup. It is vital to take care of and listen to our hearts if we want to show up and support others. Being in tune and closer to balance, knowing where our strengths are and how we want to carry them out. Knowing the compassion inside my heart has helped me to understand how others likely want to feel – along the lines of treating others the way you want to be treated – loved, understood, accepted, cared for, respected, encouraged. Every heart deserves reciprocation of these sentiments. I open my heart and arms with kindness and compassion to as many people and creatures as possible. I believe to harm others is to harm ourselves, to want to hurt is to be hurt, not to try to understand others is not to understand ourselves, and when we know better, we do better. These ideas and many others guide my choices everyday – what I choose to purchase, for our dollar is a vote to keep companies in business; what I choose to eat, for if I don’t want to be killed and eaten, I would not kill to eat; how I choose to transport tiny creatures out of my house, for I would hope if I was in the wrong place at the wrong time I would be given the same grace; and the choice to allow others to exist in our minds as their own unique expression of this world – without judgment, knowing no one wants to be judged when we are all just doing the best we can with the hand we are dealt.
I would love to know what makes your heart sing! What have you learned about your heart center on your journey?
In what ways do you need more connection and support around living in alignment with your soul and body?
I would love your support!
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– Laura
laura@heartcenteredholistic.com
One can only hope to achieve such balance and natural intuition through this journey that is life. Your words speak a soothing tone that can only come from thoughts in tandem with the hearts expression. Most of my life I’ve treated my mind as a work in progress, knowing I hold such a heavy weight inside that conflicted with the world I observed around me. As we grow and learn to understand, it’s dire we give our hearts a platform to not only influence our reasoning, but steer our actions day to day. Its very much a two way street of giving and receiving what we pour into the world around us like you so beautifully illustrated. For one cannot love without first loving themselves. Thank you for sharing these intimate thoughts. Sentiments as such are what humanity needs in these strange times. I hold a lot of the aforementioned ideals dear to me and strive to conduct myself in such a manner but we are fallible and I still frequently fall short. Thus highlighting the importance of such gentle reminders. A pleasant read from a bright soul, one may never know what such sparks ignite.
Thank you for your thoughtful reflections, Jonathan. You’re right, the heaviness we experience inside in conflict with our environment can feel like work to overcome or understand. Work can often have a negative connotation, and the idea we are in progress can often make us feel less than who or what we are meant to be. It’s right here in the moments of progress that we shine the brightest, building on the foundation brick by brick. When it feels slow and arduous, I like to take a stand back to see how big the wall I’ve built really is, and not to forget that when we zoom back in to the small steps. I’m glad to hear that reflecting back to the heart resonates with you as a way to better relate in this world, especially through the strange times we are experiencing. It’s true we don’t always meet the ideals we strive to uphold, and that’s ok because we weren’t meant to. It’s in the effort put forth and in falling short that we learn the most valuable lessons. Thank you for opening the discussion in a meaningful way, and sharing your enjoyment of my offering!