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A virus, a first confinement, a second wave, a curfew for the inhabitants of several large cities and a new confinement … The Covid-19 crisis does not end, “but we are already measuring the impacts on mental health”, advises Franceinfo specialist in positive psychology Florence Servan-Schreiber. According to a Public Health France survey reported by France Bleu, the number of people suffering from a depressive state simply doubled between the end of September and November 6. “This epidemic is stressful, anxious and can generate psychological distress for many of us”, the director general of health, Jérôme Salomon, explained on Tuesday 17 November during his meeting with the press on the epidemic. To overcome this stress, a new method from the United States has been making its way in France for ten years: cardiac coherence.
This method originated in California, where the HeartMath Institute (in English) “discovered the link between heart rate variability (HRV) and our nervous system”, retraces at franceinfo Florence Servan-Schreiber. Heart rate variability (HRV) is a measure of autonomic nervous system function. “Although the heart is relatively stable, the times between two heartbeats can be very different.” and they reflect the agitation of the nervous system, explains the specialist in positive psychology.
“The nervous system is in autopilot mode, depending on what we are going through, it reacts regardless of our will. With cardiac coherence, we regain control of it”, illuminates the cousin of the doctor David Servan-Schreiber who was the first to introduce this method in France. Author of several health bestsellers, Care (ed. Robert Laffont, 2003) e Anticancer (edited by Robert Laffont, 2007), who died in 2011, democratized cardiac coherence.
What does this method consist of? “It is a breathing technique that allows you to reset your nervous system. It allows you to calm down, relax, rest. We are in permanent tension between two systems: the sympathetic, which accelerates, and the parasympathetic., Which decelerates”, details Florence Servan-Schreiber. To put it simply, with each breath, the sympathetic nervous system is activated and the heart rate increases. When you exhale, the parasympathetic nervous system activates and the heart rate decreases, the heart slows down.
“With cardiac coherence, we don’t press any pedal, neither on the accelerator nor on the brake. This method neutralizes our impulses, in both directions.
Florence Servan-Schreiber, specialist in positive psychologyto franceinfo
“It is a physiological state, complete for franceinfo the doctor and nutritionist David O’Hare. But no one can say that he invented it, just as the person who made the thermometer cannot claim to have invented the fever. ” David O’Hare he has become one of the proponents of cardiac coherence since he discovered it twenty years ago “incidentally, translating documents for biofeedback software”. This allows you to view, on a computer, thanks to the heart rate variability curve, the balance of the nervous system.
Author of several books on the subject, including Cardiac Coherence 3-6-5 – The guide to anti-stress breathing (edited by Thierry Souccar, 2019), David O’Hare went so far as to theorize a cardiac coherence practice, the 3-6-5 method. “It’s an exercise to do three times a day for five minutes each time, He explains. During this exercise, you should take six breaths per minute, or one every ten seconds. ” Hence the name 3-6-5. “It’s a mnemonic device. Five minutes is a compromise, adds the doctor. I recommend doing this exercise approximately every four hours as the effect of cardiac coherence gradually wears off after this time. “
All the specialists interviewed by franceinfo are unanimous: cardiac coherence can be prescribed in cases of stress and anxiety. “This technique lowers cortisol, the stress hormone”says David O’Hare. “Cardiac coherence allows you to control the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system”, sums up Laurent Uzan, sports cardiologist. “We can teach it to people who have anxiety attacks, to children to cope with fear of exams, to manage worry or even sleep.”, assures Florence Servan-Schreiber.
“This method is useful for very stressed patients and has absolutely no risk or side effects.”
Laurent Uzan, sports cardiologistto franceinfo
This method has been tested in particular in the academy of Poitiers (Vienne), where 800 students have tested it, or in Reunion. David O’Hare had come to class to prove it. “Primary school in particular takes three minutes to do synchronous breathing. All the children breathed together when they entered the classroom, after recess, after lunch and after afternoon recess.”, he says. And the results are there, with “significant progress in mathematics, especially in geometry “, writes the newspaper The New Republic. The atmosphere of the class is also affected. “Since we put it in place, it’s been a lot easier to get to work, it really allows for a transition between playtime where kids have a lot of emotion to deal with and working where you have to channel yourself.” Primary school teacher Gaëlle Dudognon advances in France 2.
This method is also recommended by nutritionists in case of digestive diseases. “When we practice cardiac coherence, we improve the parasympathetic which is essential for digestion, we use it to treat irritable bowel syndrome (stomach pains, bloating, constipation …)”, assures the nutritionist Fabien Piasco. But beware, this doesn’t make you lose weight. “It would be a bit coarse shorthand to say that, says nutritionist Carole Copti. But this is not entirely wrong because stress can lead to overweight, so heart coherence could have an indirect effect. “
Twenty years after its discovery, cardiac coherence already has its followers, as evidenced by the ten applications available in smartphone stores on this topic or the videos (this or this) viewed several million times on YouTube. “More than 4,000 healthcare professionals have attended our training”says David O’Hare, whose programs are available on his website. But there is a lack of studies on the subject, to the chagrin of the doctor who regrets that all scientific studies on this subject are carried out or funded by the HeartMath Institute, which produces the best-selling cardiac coherence software in the world. “A dozen theses are in progress or planned as far as I know, it’s good because they will be university publications, there will be nothing to sell”, the doctor rejoices. Marie-Josée Grasso, a psychotherapist, often recommends it to her patients. “In psychotherapy, we work on the origins of stress and anxiety, but patients need tools to manage them, so this is one of the things I can offer”, ensures.
“It doesn’t cure the cause of the stress, but it’s a good addition to therapy.”
Marie-Josée Grasso, psychotherapistto franceinfo
“It’s a super attractive concept, but the 3-6-5 method won’t reduce the risk of heart attacks by 30%, it’s an element that can be used in addition, says Laurent Uzan. But it will not replace a healthy lifestyle, regular sports and a healthy and balanced diet “.
Florence Servan-Schreiber and David O’Hare understand the doubts and skepticism sometimes encountered. “It’s so simple you may underestimate its impact, ensures the former. We are free to test or not, if we are curious or if we feel the need. It turns out there is an effective, surprisingly simple technique. ” This method, once explained and demonstrated with software, proves convincing, according to the doctor: “This method has the best profit / investment ratio. I tell people: “Get a breathing guide, it’s on the Internet or in smartphone stores, give yourself three weeks, take 15 minutes a day and see what happens.”
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