Just One Heart: A Cardiologist's Guide to Healing, Health and Happiness
By Dr Jonathan Fisher
HarperCollins, 316 pages, Rs 499

Part muscle, part engine, part soul, the human heart is the emotional and spiritual compass of the body. Yet, when the heart becomes diseased, modern medicine only diagnoses its symptoms clinically, failing to explore a patient’s spiritual life.

In ‘Just One Heart’, cardiologist and mindfulness teacher Dr Jonathan Fisher offers a radical new perspective on understanding heart health and happiness. He argues that there is a complex interplay between the heart and mind that affects our overall well-being. With this holistic outlook, he bridges the longstanding divide between Eastern spirituality and Western science, heralding a renewed, integrated approach to heart health that encompasses the mind, body, and spirit.

This book explains seven timeless qualities to protect the heart for holistic health and vitality; offers    practical tools to navigate anxiety and burnout; along with easy explanations on how the heart functions. There are also daily practices such as heart meditation, mindful journalling and community involvement, among others, that strengthen the heart’s resilience.

Drawing on inspiring stories of those afflicted by heart disease and conversations with more than fifty experts in mind-body health, this compassionate guide empowers readers to connect with what truly matters – the awakening of the mind-heart connection. It is essential reading for healthcare professionals, their patients and anyone seeking lasting health, peace of mind and happiness.

Here is an excerpt from a chapter that explains “the role of positive emotions and the nuance of emotional honesty”:

The Anatomy of Happiness

Even as I began to practice mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) techniques and slowly noticed my stress levels lessen, something was still missing. While learning valuable skills to navigate life’s challenges, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I wasn’t experiencing the joy and happiness I remembered from childhood. Recovering from chronic stress and pulling back from the edge of total burnout, I discovered, was not the same as living fully. To live life to its fullest, I had to learn how to manage stress, seek positive emotions, and engage in positive experiences. That’s where the study of the science of happiness helped me.

When we speak of “happiness,” what comes to your mind? How do you define or measure happiness in your life? Reflect on this as we explore the anatomy of happiness and its various facets.

At one time, I was coming out of my most profound depression, and I wondered, Can I become a happier person? I was surprised to learn that the emphatic answer from science is yes! Neuroscientific research has overthrown the adage that you cannot teach an old dog new tricks. Our brains exhibit neuroplasticity, which enables neural pathways to shrink or grow based on their use (Davidson and McEwen 2012). This means we can rewire our brains and alter how we respond to stress, cravings, or daily interactions, changing our life experiences and outcomes.

Before we dive into the heart-awakening emotions and states, it will help to explore the broader context in which these live—the experience and science of happiness. Strictly defining happiness is a challenge philosophers and scientists have struggled with and disagreed about for thousands of years. Take a moment to reflect on your beliefs about happiness. What are the causes and conditions required for your satisfaction? What gets in the way?

Aristotle and other ancient Greek philosophers had a name for the temporary pleasure of sensual experiences like a delicious meal: “hedonia.” While some may argue that fleeting pleasures are superficial or meaningless, our ability to experience this type of momentary happiness or hedonic pleasure depends on our ability to notice and savor these moments amid the distractions and stressors of daily life.

Rick Hanson, PhD’s teachings have profoundly influenced my journey toward greater happiness. Hanson focuses on neuroplasticity, mindfulness, and positive psychology as a psychologist. In his book, ‘Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence’, he introduces the concept of “taking in the good,” which involves deeply savoring experiences to enhance well-being (2013).

His message that we can rewire our brains through what he calls “self-directed neuroplasticity” particularly resonated with me (Hanson et al. 2023). Hanson suggests that we can significantly improve our mental state by regularly and intentionally engaging in this practice of embracing positive experiences. This idea of actively shaping our brain’s pathways to foster a more positive outlook offers a hopeful and empowering approach to personal development and well-being.

On the other hand, according to the Greeks, “Eudaemonia” represents a deeper, more enduring form of happiness derived from a sense of life purpose or meaning when we reflect on our lives. The Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman provides an interesting perspective on these two forms of happiness (2013). He suggests that we have two aspects of our identity—the “experiencing self” that appreciates temporary pleasures and the “remembering self” that creates and holds onto narratives about our past experiences.

Finding the balance between these two aspects of our identity is critical to experiencing true and sustainable happiness. To accomplish this, we can strive to strengthen our “experiencing self” by attuning to our physical bodies, the home of all our feelings. We should also engage our minds to address inaccurate thoughts or beliefs and intentionally focus on moments of pleasure and meaning.

Consider this fundamental question: Is happiness a choice? And if not, how much control do we have over our level of happiness? Research suggests that the answer is yes and no. Our happiness levels are determined by a mix of genetic factors (around 50 percent) and environmental exposure (about 10 percent), leaving the rest up to us by monitoring and choosing our actions and interpretations (approximately 40 percent) (Lyubomirsky 2008).

Some people are genetically predisposed to be more cheerful and optimistic while others may have a genetic tendency toward a more reserved or sad disposition. This inborn tendency (often referred to as our “happiness baseline” or “set point”) doesn’t mean we are predetermined to be happy or unhappy, but instead that it sets a general range within which our happiness may naturally fluctuate. Our happiness is not predestined or unchangeable. It is a dynamic equilibrium influenced by our choices and behaviors.

You may wonder how to foster the best conditions and habits for longterm life satisfaction, acknowledging the popular notion that happiness is, to some extent, a choice. Even though our decisions play a significant role in our well-being and happiness, it’s essential to recognize that happiness is a complex and multifaceted aspect of life.

Various factors, including our circumstances, mental health, and external challenges, can influence it. While we can make efforts to enhance our happiness, it’s also important to acknowledge that some individuals face unique obstacles, such as chronic mental illness, which can make the pursuit of happiness more challenging.

Embracing our agency in shaping our lives is empowering, but we must also show compassion and understanding to those facing additional barriers on their journey to happiness.

While some skeptics might argue that our DNA and genetic code wield an insurmountable influence over our habits, personalities, tendencies, and behaviors, the modern field of epigenetics has promising news. The science of epigenetics demonstrates that our inherited genes do not dictate our destiny (Pinel, Prainsack, and McKevitt 2019). By practicing new behaviors, we can influence which of our genetically inherited programs are activated or deactivated. Therefore, just as we can rewire our brains, we can also “reprogram” our genetic code.

Though happiness might be elusive, understanding its multifaceted nature, honing our ability to experience pleasure, and leveraging the power of neuroplasticity and epigenetics are pivotal to living well and nurturing our happiness.

[The excerpt reproduced with the permission of the publishers.]