share from our heart, there is an authenticity and vulnerability that create a feeling of connection and intimacy if the listener is open and receptive.

There is also a distinct feeling when we are not connected to our heart. This could manifest as“ coldheartedness,” which might be experienced as a chill in the room or a conversation killer, and it will create a block to genuine intimacy.

Another feeling occurs when we are in our heart in an overly sympathetic manner. These kinds of interchanges often feel cloying, sometimes suffocating, and frequently invasive.

The heart is the home of compassion. When I work with someone in the helping professions, especially healthcare providers, their genuine concern for others is apparent. Their warmth and caring is frequently the original inspiration that moved them toward their profession.

Yet another experience occurs when our heart resonates with another person’ s heart. A warmth in meeting, ease of connection, feeling deeply seen and heard— these are the empathetic connections that may become lifelong relationships or enduring imprints on our heart.

What is the quality of energy that our hearts generate? The heart expresses warmth, compassion, forgiveness, empathy, lovingkindness, and most of all inspiration. A fullhearted person is a happy person.

In Chinese medicine, the element of the heart is fire, and there is a distinct sensation when this element is balanced. We feel excited, creative, and“ on fire” for life. The heart is the birthplace of our deepest inspirations, so when it has been suppressed or exhausted, we may have a flat, muted experience. Burnout approaches when our creative fire has gone out.

However, when I sit with them long enough, I often discover that they are much better at giving than receiving. The front of a caregiver’ s heart— the part that they radiate love from— feels warm and wide open.

However, often they have much less awareness of the back of their heart, the heart space of self-love and nurturing. I think of this as the deep well that feeds the rest of the heart. Like any well, when it is