Listening to Your Heart, Literally

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/05/01/want-empathetic-listen-heart-beat-scientists-say/

I have always wondered why do doctors always listen to our hearts? What does it tell them? Should I purchase my own stethoscope? There are good reasons for us to 'listen to our hearts'. Maybe we need to change something in our lives that's harmful, or maybe we have arrhythmia.

This week I saw a study from Anglia Ruskin University where volunteers were asked to listen to their own hearts and count their heartbeats while they were shown clips of social interactions. Those who counted their beats were judged as more empathic than those who didn't. They were better able to correctly identify emotional experiences they were viewing (compared to non-social clips, where there was no difference). It came down to noticing the changes in their heart rates, such as feeling the rates increase while watching stressful social interactions and feeling empathy for the actors.

Researchers noted that not being able to process how our body responds to social situations can prevent us from responding appropriately. It also gives credence to the idea that empathy may be teachable - by helping people focus on their physical sensations. So here's a suggestion: the next time you're in (or witnessing) a stressful interaction, try feeling your pulse and see if it weirdly helps you process your feelings. At AISC we know from experience that it's really not so weird that when we "pay attention to self (and others)," we have better interpersonal interactions. Now bring your whole self into it.

It's OK to be Pretty OK.

• Please keep up the mindfulness of your water consumption - Chennai is only at 10% of its H2O goal right now. Remember that you can go to this calendar to get a tip a day until we leave school for break. Water is Life.
• Saturday, Dec. 8 Heritage Trust Tour
• Monday, Dec. 10 Operation Appreciation
• Saturday, Dec. 15 Staff Holiday Social 
• Wednesday, Dec. 19 Light Breakfast in the Unity Courtyard