We’ve all heard the saying “follow your heart” … well it turns out there’s actual science behind that concept! Dr. Deborah Rozman is a Behavioral Psychologist and President of HeartMath, an amazing company that provides scientifically validated tools and training to help adults and children learn self-regulation skills to manage stress and enhance emotional well-being.
It’s super cool, cutting-edge type stuff supported by 26 years of research (links in the show notes below if you like reading medical studies as much as I do).
As moms we tend to be super hard on ourselves and stress is definitely a part of our lives. If you’ve ever wished for a way to be calmer, more present, sleep better, or maybe just yell less :), this episode is for you!
HeartMath: The Science of the Heart
It’s not just touchy-feely mumbo jumbo or the stuff of science fiction — you can measure the connection with an EKG and actually observe how stress responses behave and what they do to our bodies.
We’ll get into it in depth in this episode, but the short version is that HeartMath uses something called heart rate variability to assess the state of the autonomic nervous system.
With the HeartMath Inner Balance sensor, you can know your heart readings in real-time. The HeartMath app then reads the patterns and gives you suggestions of practical ways to retrain your stress response in the moment.
It’s useful for both adults and kids and there’s a lot of great links in the show notes below. I’ll be writing soon about my experience and I actually plan on working HeartMath into our homeschool curriculum too!
In This Episode You’ll Learn

the scientific discovery in the 1990s that changed the way we look at the heart
how to lower your stress levels significantly in only 6 weeks
how we really do send each other good vibes (or bad ones)
1400 biochemicals that are released when we are stressed or irritated
the fight or flight survival mechanism (and why our bodies do this)
how the pattern of the heart during a stress response triggers parts of the brain
“mom guilt” — is it real or all in our heads?
the connection between stress and sleep
how baby’s brainwaves are tied to mom’s heart rhythm
how and when to start using HeartMath techniques with children at school or in the family

Resources We Mention
Learn more about Deborah Rozman at HeartMath.com
View the research behind HeartMath techniques here.
Stress Management Tools by HeartMath

EmWave2 Standalone Device
Inner Balance emWave2 Family Wellness Bundle