The Heartfulness Project is a mind-body program that teaches participants new skills and techniques to help them manage and live with chronic long-term health issues such as heart diseases and the emotional and psychological issues such as stress, anxiety and depression which accompany these illnesses.
In collaboration with Dr Tamara Russell, founder of the Mindfulness Centre of Excellence, we created a program that addressed this lack of provision for a persons emotional and mental wellbeing when faced with potential life threatening diseases such as coronary heart diseases. In 2016, I addressed the All Party Parliamentary Working Group on heart failure where I argued for a more integrative approach to the treatment of heart patients in the UK.
Overview of the Heartfulness Project
Drawing upon the latest scientific evidence from the fields of neuroscience, neurocardiology, positive psychology, creativity, compassion training, tai chi and mindfulness, this program explores mind- body interactions and the role of emotions in health. We will learn skills that increase emotional regulation and resilience resulting in lessening of stress, anxiety and depression. We will learn tools to self-soothe when emotionally activated and learn how to move out of stressed and anxious states into a ‘rest and restore’ state where we can heal.
This increased emotional wellbeing has a direct impact on the body by decreasing the release of stress hormones such as cortisol as well as reducing the release of inflammatory molecules, both implicated in many chronic diseases such as heart disease, AF, high blood pressure, diabetes, IBS and many more. Reduction of these stress hormones and coupled with increases in self-care tools can result in the lessening of the physically diseases symptoms and progression.
Articles on the Heartfulness Project
Dr Maya Campbell 