The Heartmath Solution: The Institute of Heartmath's Revolutionary Program for Engaging the Power of the Heart's Intelligence by Doc Lew Childre and Howard Martin; ©1999 Planetary Publications

Heartmath Discovery Program Level 1 : Daily Readings and Self-Discovery Exercises for Creating a More Rewarding Life by Doc Lew Childre and Sara Paddison; ©1998 Planetary Publications

If you've read many personal development books, you know that to find a truly original idea is rare. The best authors have the gift of saying something old in a new way that makes it more accessible; the worst simply have the temerity to say something old the way it's always been said and stick their names on the front cover.

What sets Doc Childre and the Heartmath team aside is that they actually came up with something new, and then back it up with a set of simple techniques to put their findings into practice. Their discovery? That the physical heart has a lot more to do with our health and well-being than we ever thought possible, and that the simple act of "activating heart energy" by focusing attention on your physical heart and feeling sincere feelings of love, care, and appreciation reduces stress, strengthens our immune system, and gives us a reliable means to access our intuition.

As an added bonus for those of you tired of the "fuzzy science" that many new-age tomes use to "prove" reincarnation, alien abduction, and the existence of Lemuria, the "math" part of heartmath actually stands up to some examination. Studies measuring ECG, HRV, IGA, DHEA and just about every other set of initials you can think of help satisfy the part of our brain that cries out for a rational explanation for something we all intuitively know - that love is good!

I've listed two of their books for this review because for me they encompass the best of what is a growing library of resources. The Heartmath Solution is a great overview of their work (yet practical enough to begin benefitting from immediately); The Heartmath Discovery Program is a six month long five-day a week home study course to help you integrate and incorporate the Heartmath ideas and methodology into your everyday life.

I first did the Discovery Program between October 1999 and March 2000, and I found it invaluable, well-paced (neither too fast nor too slow), and enjoyable to do. If I was to search for a criticism, it would be its slightly self-referential nature - it offers readings from other Heartmath books by the authors, and then marvels at the wonderful insights they themselves have offered up to the reader. However, those of you who miss getting the daily tip delivered to your mailbox each morning will love the daily exercises and experiments in this program.

My favourite Heartmath concept is the distinction between care (when you actually feel empathy, interest, and/or love for something) and "overcare" (when your empathy has turned to sympathy, your interest has turned to worry, and your love has turned to a need to control). Simply stated, care heals and energises; overcare kills.

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