This book is about the revolutionary discovery that the human brain can change itself, as told through the stories of the scientists, doctors, and patients who have together brought about these astonishing transformations. Without operations or medications, they have made use of the brain’s hitherto unknown ability to change.

Some were patients who had what were thought to be incurable brain problems; others were people without specific problems who simply wanted to improve the functioning of their brains or preserve them as they aged. For four hundred years this venture would have been inconceivable because mainstream medicine and science believed that brain anatomy was fixed.

“Happiness belongs to those who are sufficient unto themselves. For all external sources of happiness are, by their very nature, highly uncertain, precarious, ephemeral, and subject to change.” – Arthur Schopenhauer

There is nothing wrong with self-interest as such. We need to take care of our biological selves, make sure we have adequate food, water and shelter, avoid danger, take rest and ensure our other basic needs are met. Without this basic level of self-interest none of us would survive for very long.

Today, however, we in the more developed countries need to spend very little time and energy fulfilling these physical needs. If we are hungry or thirsty we simply go to the refrigerator, or we can get in our car and drive down to the supermarket – in the middle of night in many cities.

Do you get a knot in your stomach when you sit down to pay the bills each month?  Wake up in the middle of the night wondering how you’re ever going to get out of debt?  Get a feeling of helplessness and hopelessness when you read headlines about the housing crisis, oil prices, soaring health care costs, inflation, recession and unemployment?

If you’re feeling worried and anxious about money, you’re not alone.  For millions of people, financial stress is eating away at their basic sense of security and well-being.  And it’s not just bank accounts that are being drained, but also physical and emotional resources, which in turn impact health, relationships, productivity and happiness.

A recent survey shows that stress due to money and the economy is taking a significant emotional and physical toll on Americans. If unmanaged, the intensified stress can poison a once healthy relationship. HeartMath® has explored human emotions extensively for the past 17 years, using heart rate variability, or heart rhythm patterns, to measure inner emotional states and stress levels.

Stemming from this research are innovative techniques and technologies that utilize the heart’s powerful rhythms to intercept and manage stressful emotions. Couples around the world are using this scientifically validated heart-focused approach to deal more effectively with today’s heightened stress, fear and anxiety and to revitalize their heart connection.