Dem Dry Bones (and that Wonderous Heart)

Dem Dry Bones is the title of a song which includes the following lyrics:

The toe bone connected to the heel bone,
The heel bone connected to the foot bone,
The foot bone connected to the leg bone,
The leg bone connected to the knee bone,
The knee bone connected to the thigh bone,
The thigh bone connected to the back bone,
The back bone connected to the neck bone,
The neck bone connected to the head bone,
Oh, hear the word of the Lord!

One thing that isn't included in this list is how the heart is connected to and communicates with the brain.

1. Biophysically. Take your pulse right now..........................Have you got it?.............Good!..............What you are feeling is a pressure wave that sends information to your brain.
2. Neurologically. Your nervous system is like a sophisticated telephone system with messages travelling rapidly along its path, regulating blood pressure, adrenal function and body fluid retention.
3. Biochemically. ANF - “the balance hormone” is secreted to positively affect reproductive and immune system function. It also inhibits the release of the stress hormones. 
4. Electromagnetically. The electromagnetic field of your heart is 5000 times greater than that of your brain. Every cell in your body is receiving information via this field. This energy is also measured outside your body in an 8 foot radius. (You affect everyone and everything in that field.) 

Based on the information it receives, the brain then decides which chemical changes are necessary. The perception that one is under attack (stress) causes a very different process to take place than when one is feeling safe.

Start paying attention to the type of signals you are sending and receiving. Positive signals positively affect your emotional, mental and physical health. Negative signals create stress. What are the words of your heart?

Image: Eraxion

Upping The Auntie

Recently, I decided to post my own opinion poll on Twitter. After all, if the "big guys" can do it, why can't I?

My question: Should I change my business name from Change of Heart Stress Solutions to Auntie Stress?

I received 49 votes - 22% in favour of Change of Heart Stress Solutions and 78 % for Auntie Stress with several other variations emailed to me.

I am grateful to the people who cared enough to vote and honoured by those who decided to leave thoughtful comments.

If you're looking for people to add to your Twitterunity, I'd like to suggest this fine flock of folks:
1. Christine Korda 2. Doug Symington 3. Kathrin Hardie
4. Daniel Brenton 5. Kathryn Presner 6. Marcia Robinson
7. Croz From Oz 8. Claudia Olivos
9. Cyndi In BC 10. Working Moms 11. Joe Hage
12. Jac Poindexter 13. Woensel 14. Vita Kolodny
15. Jeremy Renals 16. Lucie Octeau 17. Koga Brown
18. Robert Kennedy 19. Tshombe Brown 20. Kiera Lewellyn
21. Meryl Steinberg 22. Jo Van Every 23. Jooser 24. Pat Sawyer
25. Gareth Hinchley 26. Lonnie Hodge 27. Megan Oltman
28. Reasha Moriba 29. Semmerson 30. Java4Two
31. Liam Murray 32. BelieveSulli33. Couch Surfing Ori
34. Accrete 35. Joseph Jones 36. G. L. Hoffman
37. Conrad Hake 38. Casper McFadden 38. Kayt Hoch
39. Brenda MacIntyre
 
If you're curious about their thoughts, please have a look here: Poll Daddy. Some chose to respond to me privately, so their comments will not be listed in the poll.

A heartfelt thanks to all of you! (The ones I know about.)

Now, that I have more information, I can take this to heart and decide what the next step will be.

Which do you prefer?

• Change of Heart Stress Solutions
• Auntie Stress

Photo courtesy of: Owais Khan

Earth Anagram

Rearrange the letters and earth becomes heart. Coincidence? You know what they say about coincidences!

In honour of Earth Day, start with your heart!

Stress affects the communication from your heart to the brain. The clearer those signals, the better you perform. Find out how you can unscramble your heart signals from "Auntie Stress", and make the world a better place, one heartbeat at a time.

• What does "start with the heart" mean to you?
• If you did start with the heart, how would it positively affect your world?

Work of heart image by: Rodolfo Clix

Related posts:

1. An Earth Day Observation
2. Earth Day
   

A Twitterin' Surprise

Bring 'em on, I say! The more, the better. I love them! They make life interesting and brighten up one's day. I love the fact that it often involves secrecy and planning to pull them off.

What am I talking about? Surprises! They've always been a positive experience for me.

Recently, I had a lovely surprise - one I didn't see coming, which makes it all the more enticing. Daniel Brenton, a Twitter neighbour, generously offered me a free Twitter background. What a gift from the heart - there goes that "Reverberational Effect" again! A huge thank you for this, Daniel!

And, he didn't just stop there. The next day, I received images for my website. Daniel is no stranger to the Reverberational Effect, although it takes a different form. Check out his Gratitude Watch. Wouldn't this be a nice feature on the nightly news?

Here's the thing about surprises. Ask around and you'll find that some people dislike them. The unpredictability and the lack of control of both themselves and the situation can be scary.

This fear often has its genesis at a much earlier time when a surprise had a bad outcome - one that caused emotional or physical pain of some sort.

The amygdala is a gland that is responsible for strong emotional memory (fear or anger). An event that has significant impact is remembered by the amygdala. When an event that is similar (doesn't have to be an exact match) to the initial event occurs, the amygdala sounds the warning and the body promptly goes through the stress response - flight or fight. It happens so quickly that we don't have time to logically think things through and reason that this event is not the same as the initial one. The 1400 chemical changes that occur add to our feelings of discomfort. As a result of not feeling so great, it reaffirms the belief that we "don't like surprises".

Learn how to change this cascade with techniques that are do-able in the moment, so you can change how you feel about what I consider to be one of life's joys.

• Has your life been negatively impacted by this dislike of surprises?
  
• Have you secretly longed to get over this?
  
• What would this mean to you and your family and friends?

Please contact Daniel for more information if you're interested in a graphics package - Twitter background, logo, letterhead, business card design.

Image: When I asked Daniel about the source, he stated, "The images were from a CD of public domain photography I've had for years. I think most of the people photos have fashions from the 1980s ... but nature, fortunately, is always in style." That is a wonderful thing!

Quietening the "Upstairs" Voices

Three weeks ago, I wrote about the difficulties I had in writing an article when my head got involved. This is an important concept and it bears repeating.

When I write because I want to do a good job, the ego gets in the way. Switching to my heart suddenly allowed the words to flow - I was writing for the joy of it, not for recognition, or validation or even because I had to. The difference was extraordinary.

I've been struggling with my writing the last few weeks. Some would say that the muse left. I know it had more to do with the pressure I put upon myself. As soon as I acknowledged it, I felt better about writing.

When we learn to quiet the voices "upstairs", and speak or write from the heart, we do better. The brain is important - it allows us to reason, to think, to decide, to problem-solve. However, without heart, those things are cold and often empty - without heart.

When we are acting from the heart, there is a quality that infuses our work and our play. It is joyful, engaging and full of love.

I've learned that my brain can be my own worst critic. Picking apart, reviewing, questioning and generally being a pain in other parts of the body! This is stress and also stress-creating behaviour.

There's a strange thing that happens when I am determined to write a great article. It seems that the more pressure I put on myself, the harder it is to write. The trick is in learning to allow the flow of words to stream - it's about getting out of my own way. Which, by the way, is one of my mantras!

If I just sit down and write, it happens. It's a weird and wonderful feeling - magical, yet practical! And, learn-able!

When I practise stress transformation techniques I activate the power of my heart. The more I do that, the more I am truly in the moment and I say and do the right things. After all, the heart is about love in its purest and simplest form.

Has stress taken over your life? When and how?

Photo courtesy of Sanja Gjenero