Variability is a good thing with your heart rate and turns out with your emotions too! We have known that increased heart rate variability is a sign of good health for many years. A study published in Circulation back in 1996 described how the level of resting heart rate variability (HRV) was connected to a healthy autonomic nervous system. It appears that either increased sympathetic activity or reduced vagal (parasympathetic) activity correlated with the propensity to develop lethal arrhythmias. An elevated HRV may reflect a more relaxed state and reduced stress while a low HRV may indicate the need for rest and recovery.
Here are 6 things you can do to increase your HRV…
- Rest – Be sure and always follow high demand activities with plenty of rest.
- Sleep– Always get adequate sleep targeting at least 7 hours each night.
- Drink Green Tea – This will increase HRV perhaps by both stimulating and calming your metabolism.
- Listen to calming music – It appears that classic music may help improve your HRV.
- Deep breathing – Pausing throughout the day to take five slow deep breaths may improve HRV.
- Omega 3 Fatty Acids – Taking fish oil as a supplement may improve HRV.
Now it turns out that variability in your emotions is also a healthy behavior. Rather than remaining stoic and not experiencing highs and lows in your emotions, expressing the extremes of emotion (especially your positive emotions) may actually improve your health. A study published in the Journal Emotion asked 175 people to monitor their emotions by tracking 16 positive and 16 negative emotions over a six-month period. They found that those with the greatest range of positive emotions had significantly lower levels of an important inflammatory marker compared with people whose positive emotions reflected little variability. This was independent of the ratio of positive to negative emotions.
So there may be a real difference in how happiness impacts your health. By allowing yourself to experience periods of elation mixed with simple levels of gladness, you may be improving your health. Norman Cousins was more correct than he realized when he said, “Hearty laughter is a good way to jog internally without having to go outdoors”.