Stress usually refers to our internal reaction (fear, anxiety, surging
heart rate and blood pressure, fast breathing, or muscle tension) to negative,
threatening, or worrisome situations—a looming performance report, a dismissive
colleague, or rush-hour traffic. Over time, negative stress can depress you, burn
you out, make you sick, or even kill you.
Of course, many people know the negative impact of cumulative stress
and do their best to counteract it. Some people take advantage of exercise classes
or massage; others attend stress management seminars; many others take a vacation
every year. The problem is that company cultures and the stress in people’s
private lives work against such approaches.
Stop the Chain Reaction
To stop a stressful chain reaction, you need to practice a technique
we call “Quick Coherence.” The heart is a primary generator of rhythm
in your body, influencing brain processes that control your nervous system, cognitive
function and emotion. Quick Coherence, a powerful emotion refocusing technique,
connects you with your heart power to help you release stress, balance your emotions,
and feel better fast. Practicing Quick Coherence will help you find a feeling
of ease and inner harmony that will be reflected in your heart rhythms. More coherent
heart rhythms facilitate brain function, allowing you more access to your own
higher intelligence, so that you can improve your focus, creativity, intuition
and high-level decision-making. Here’s how it works.
Step 1: Heart Focus. Gently focus your attention in the area of your
heart. If you like, you can put your hand over your heart to help. If your mind
wanders just keep shifting your attention back to the area of your heart.
Step 2: Heart Breathing. As you focus on the area of your heart,
pretend your breath is flowing in and out through that area. This helps your mind
and energy to stay focused in the heart area and your respiration and heart rhythms
to synchronize. Breathe slowly and gently, in through your heart (to a count of
5 or 6), and slowly and easily out through your heart (to a count of 5 or 6).
Do this until your breathing feels smooth and balanced, not forced.
Step 3: Heart Feeling. Continue to breathe through the area of your
heart. As you do so, recall a positive feeling, a time when you felt good inside,
and try to re-experience it. This could be a feeling of appreciation or care towards
a special person or a pet, a place you enjoy or an activity that was fun. Allow
yourself to feel this feeling of appreciation or care. If you can't feel anything
it's okay, just try to find a sincere attitude of appreciation or care. Once you’ve
found a positive feeling or attitude, you can sustain it by continuing your heart
focus, heart breathing and heart feeling.
Quick Coherence works not so much because of the breathing step,
but because you are engaging a positive emotion, and then focusing on and holding
that feeling or emotion. This is what produces the most significant shift in ones
heart rhythms. PE
