Do You Know That the Heart Can Think?

It is common advice to young people especially when they are still in their college years to let their mind rule over their heart. It is too early for them to engage in serious relationship with the opposite sex as they have not yet matured enough and are not yet equipped to lead a married life. They have to get themselves ready for a major responsibility once they finish their studies. Meanwhile, their heart, as they say feelings, should not overwhelm their minds. As a matter of analogy, the head is on a higher level compared to the heart and must therefore take precedence.

Many, however, would not easily subscribe to the wisdom of this advice. They would still follow the dictates of the heart. Apparently, when emotions such as love and compassion are involved, the heart rules.

Why is this so? Can the heart really dictate one’s actions?

Scientific evidence pointed out that, in fact, the heart can dictate the brain which is touted as a more rational and conventionally more pragmatic decision maker. According to the Institute of Heartmath, the heart communicates with the brain in ways that influence how we perceive and respond to stimulus coming from the outside world. The heart can even cause the brain to obey its commands. The heart has its own little brain as 40,000 neurons were found in it!

This observation is further substantiated by anecdotal evidences in the medical field. These are at best anecdotal because heart transplants are not that commonly performed. And it would be unethical to experiment on people. Pending more rigorous scientific investigations, heart transplant cases appear to confirm the theory that the heart thinks independently. Amazingly, heart recipients exhibited their donor’s lifestyle and way of thinking.

Claire Sylvia, after receiving the heart of her donor who was supposed to be unknown to her, was able to name him through his dream. She got to like beer when she actually doesn’t like to drink before her surgery. She also started to walk like a man. This story was featured by Daily Mail  in their Health section. Another corroborative fact is a man who even married his donor’s wife and committed the same thing his donor did. Fox News have details of the story.

We cannot therefore be a better judge on people’s decisions where mostly emotions appear to be involved. This is because the heart has a mind of its own.