The physiological foundations of flow: Exploring the heart-brain connection

Most of us have experienced days at work when we are 'in the zone.' Your hands move across the keyboard with ease, you find a crucial DTP to help a patient, you’re working in a state of ease and flow. Before you know it, the day is done. If you've played pickup basketball with friends, you've probably experienced similar states where every shot goes in and you're 'locked in.' What I'm writing about here is the state of flow. In these states, you feel intrinsically satisfied.What are the flow states?The concept of flow states was introduced by psychologist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi in 1970. Flow is the mental state where you're fully absorbed, focused, and enjoying an activity, often altering your sense of time. In this state, action and awareness merge and you feel at one with the activity.Key characteristics of the flow state include:1Complete concentration on a singular taskA sense of clarity about what needs to be done next.A balance between your skills and the task’s challengesA loss of self-consciousness and sense of time. A feeling of intrinsic reward from the activity itself.The flow state is characterized by intense focus where you perform at your full capacity. Flow is not just about high performance, but also about the enjoyment and fulfillment of being completely absorbed in an activity.1As you read this, consider your experiences with flow states. Can you recall times when you were fully immersed in an activity, losing track of time and feeling effortless performance? Or are you more skeptical about achieving such a state?Let's go deeperFlow states often come and go uncontrollably. You can improve your chances of experiencing them by shifting your nervous system into a more rested and relaxed state. In a parasympathetic state, we release oxytocin and serotonin, our heart rate decreases, our blood pressure lowers, and stress hormones and inflammatory proteins decrease. In this state, we are more likely to experience heart coherence — when our body's systems, breathing, heart rhythms, brain rhythms, and hormonal response are in sync.2 This creates a measurable energy field that improves our physical and mental well-being and positively impacts those around us.While the psychological and cognitive aspects of flow states are well-documented, there’s growing research on the physiological aspects. Research shows a strong correlation between heart rhythm variability and our ability to enter this state.The heart, not the brain, generates the largest electrical field in the human body. This heart-generated magnetic field is about 500 times stronger than the brain's electrical activity and can be measured several feet away from the body.3 In a flow state, marked by increased heart rate variability, we see an increase in heart-brain synchronicity and amplified brain wave activity.4 The body's physiological state appears to be linked to the subjective experience of being in flow.The variability between each heartbeat is a better determinant of overall health than heart rate. Two people can have the same heart rate, but their variability can be different. Heart rate variability (HRV) measures the variability between heartbeats. It’s the best-studied and most promising quantitative determinant of resilience.5 When stressed, our heart beats more steadily and consistently, resulting in decreased vagal nerve tone and lower HRV, stimulating our sympathetic nervous system. This can limit our ability to achieve these states.Read: The prescription for a joyful pharmacy practiceHow can we get into flow?Besides setting clear goals, a person can engage in flow by becoming immersed and enjoying the immediate experience, incorporating the following:Clear goals at every stepA balance between challenging tasks and experiencing successNot ruminating over failurePaying less attention to distractionsPractising coherent breathing— by slowing your breathing rate to 5-second inhales and exhales.Focusing more on the process and less on the result.Consider what’s possible with an open mind. For readers resonating with this message, take a small step forward. Leave your phone on airplane mode when doing work, whenever possible, single-task rather than multi-task, and try spending five minutes with yourself in silence while practicing coherent breathing. All are acceptable and helpful options to help you experience more flow.Manjit Hansra is the founder of Rx for Renewal. He is a CDE and consultant pharmacist focused on providing tools to help pharmacists prevent and manage burnout. Subscribe to his newsletter HERE. References: 8 Traits of Flow According to Mihaly CsikszentmihalyiHeartMathThe Heart, Mind and SpiritDoty, James R. M.D. Mind magic : the neuroscience of manifestation and how it changes everything. New York, New York. Penguin Random House, [2024]Heart Rate Variability as an Index of Resilience