The overarching theme of my humble website here is to explore the connection between Mind, Body and Soul. But I so often witness, and personally experience, the dynamic between Mind and Heart that it’s worthy of a discussion. There can be a constant tug-of-war between Mind vs Heart that is typically no contest as the Mind almost always seems to prevail. It can be the big bully in the playground, kicking sand on the sensitive heart.

The biggest barriers to opening your Heart are fear and linear thinking. When the Mind temporarily falls asleep at the wheel and/or the Heart exerts itself, we can get a taste of the vibrational level of love, feelings, sensations, even wisdom. Your Heart starts running off with a beautiful, creative, romantic idea, blissfully leaping at the hope of a new relationship, job, travel destination, home move, etc, only to be squashed dramatically by the pragmatic Mind. The Mind swarms in like killer bees, stinging and bringing all this potential joy to a grinding halt. It quickly introduces the fear, the doubt, the questions and the need for predictability and security. Like a tsunami, the Mind floods the Heart, mercilessly drowning and disconnecting your true desires.

The challenge is to not overuse the Mind for matters of the Heart. This does not imply the Mind is useless; to the contrary, it can be extraordinarily helpful in understanding ideas, performing certain actions, and functioning in everyday life. The problem arises when the Mind fully takes over and you no longer feel happy, joyful and alive. You become a judging, controlling, pragmatic, doing machine rather than a living, breathing, feeling human being. Like so many things in life, there’s a balance we should strive for and giving your Heart an occasional win is a gentle sign of self-compassion. Many of your fondest memories may come from experiences such as trips, vacations, parties – all typically initiated by the Heart. So relax and don’t overthink things, weighing all the pros & cons, and let the Heart lead the way.