What Makes Your Heart Beat Faster?

You may not realize how much your heart rate varies throughout the day or that it changes with your emotional state.

By becoming aware of the variability in your heart-rate, you can learn to take control and quiet your emotions. This is called reaching a state of coherence. Practicing a simple relaxation technique will help reduce stress, balance emotions, and increase performance. Used just a few minutes a day, you can learn to transform feelings of anger, anxiety or frustration into peace and clarity, and learn to take charge of your emotional reactions. Your health, communication, relationships and quality of life will improve.

Begin by imagining you are breathing in and out through your heart. Imagine the breath coming into your heart with the inhalation, and out through your heart with the exhalation.

Do this for a few minutes.

Then imagine something or someone whom you really appreciate. This may be different than going to a relaxing place – it could be an activity such as reading to a child, walking your dog, a physical activity, or sitting with someone you love. I imagine myself reading to my son when he was a child and I immediately move to a place of coherence. Imagine this for a few minutes.

Then, go back to breathing in and out through your heart for a few more minutes. Get up, stretch and know you’ve done something good for your whole self.