I have just made a heart move. A big one. After 36 years, I moved from the northwest to LA. I never would have chosen LA from my logical mind.

For many years, I attempted to navigate the world from my head. My journey through life has been to reconnect with my body and all it’s wisdom. My feelings, my intuition, my deep heart’s knowing.

Your brain is not just in your head. Brain cells are in the heart and the gut. When I center in my heart and/or belly, I can feel my power unleash.  When I am a head on a stick, I tend to loop around in stories. Not much happens except increased anxiety and resistance.

Heart Math has spent years researching the heart and their research shows more power there than in the brain. Our heart has the smarts to create coherence through our entire system–vascular, nervous, hormonal and chemical.

Our lower bellies, called the Hara or Dantian in eastern tradition,  are our centers of gravity. In some feminine traditions, the belly is considered to be the deep well of knowing and creativity. In martial arts, the lower belly is the center of balance and power.

So how do we shift our patterns so that we can live more fully and regularly in our hearts and lower bellies?

First, notice where your attention resides in your body. For most of us, it is between our ears. And, often, we are barely breathing. Your energy flows where your attention goes. So, little by little, begin to bring your attention to your breath, your heart, your lower belly, your feet.

To create heart coherence, breathe gratitude into your heart and breathe compassion out. Gratitude can be simple. I feel grateful for the sunlight flickering on my desk as I write this. And, I feel compassion for all of us as we do our very best every day.  The Heart Math Institute offers a free course on coherence.

Next time you get up to move or walk or do yoga, place your attention in your lower belly and the hip area. Move from there. In the west, this area gets a bad rap. We think that we have to be thin with tight abs. We push our emotions down into this area and then eat sugar or try to escape instead of feeling. Instead, relax your belly. Feel your power. Love this area.

When I feel overwhelmed, reactive, stressed or burned out, I often just place my hands on my heart and belly and breathe. It brings me back to center and back to self-compassion.

As you begin to reconnect with these parts, notice that your “intelligence” expands. You might have more intuitive insight. You may find that you can feel your way through a problem. Creative solutions appear when you least expect them.

Do you feel bigger?  More grounded? Expanded?  Welcome home. Your body and your brain are glad to have you back.

Please feel free to leave a comment or forward to others.