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RESEARCH

Listening to our Hearts

The patterns of our pulse have a profound impact on our emotions, and tuning into this rhythm can help us be more intuitive and in tune with our feelings, scientists have now proved. The ever present pattern of our being has been recognised, alongside the mind, as integral to our thinking and decision making.

This ability to 'listen to our bodies'– called interoception – and has been studied by researchers at the University of Sussex, and evidence shows that 'following our hearts' can have real life implications. They worked with traders in the stock exchange to measure their ability to detect their heartbeat and found that they were more sensitive than the average person to the beat of their body. This in turn was linked to their ability to follow their instinct when processing data in split second decisions.

The practice of 'tuning in' to the heart has also been developed into therapy for people with Autism, to help them overcome instances of anxiety and recognise their emotions in more tangible ways.