Heart and circulation: emotional and spiritual meaning
Updated
Conditions
Explore the emotional reading of each heart and circulation condition.
Blood pressure
Blood pressure problems, often linked to accumulated emotions, control and the pressure we put on ourselves.
Veins and circulation
Circulation and vein problems, often linked to joy of living, direction in life and the flow of love.
Your heart beats around 100,000 times a day. It pumps blood through a network of arteries, veins and tiny capillaries that, laid end to end, would circle the Earth more than twice. Through this circulation, every cell in your body receives the oxygen and nutrients it needs, and releases what it no longer needs.
In the emotional and symbolic approach to health, the heart is associated with love: our capacity to love, to be loved and to love ourselves. Blood represents joy of living, and circulation represents the way love, energy and life flow through us. When the heart or circulation is affected, it can be an invitation to look at how freely love moves in our life.
What your heart and circulation represent
In this reading, the heart symbolises home. It represents love, joy, vitality and security. Its energy radiates throughout the body, and it works like an energetic pump that makes life circulate. Symbolically, the right side of the heart is linked to the father and the left side to the mother. A calm, gentle heart rhythm is often seen as the sign of a person who is at peace inside.
Blood is compared to the fuel of a vehicle: to work well, it must be clean and flow freely. It represents joy of living and the energy that circulates in us. It also carries our genetic heritage, which links it to our family, our "bloodline" and our clan.
Circulation is the network that distributes love, joy and life to every part of our being, without discrimination. It is often read as the reflection of our desire to evolve.
Common emotional themes
Loving yourself and receiving love
Heart problems are often associated with a basic question about love: either we do not love ourselves enough, or we do not feel we receive enough love from others or from life. Guilt can quietly play a part, making us feel unworthy of love.
Heartbreak and taking life too seriously
The heart may react when we feel as if our heart has been "torn out", when we feel not nourished enough by the love of others, or when we take life too seriously.
Love that no longer flows
Poor circulation is often read as love that is blocked. We may find it hard to express our feelings, or feel in conflict with love. When a situation affects us emotionally, we may withdraw from it because we do not have enough energy to move forward. We may also protect ourselves from emotions that feel too intense to bear.
Joy of living
When joy of living fades, circulation may slow down too. Sadness, severe self-criticism, worries, tiredness or anger can make everything "freeze". So can over-excitement or obsession. In this reading, life needs projects, ideas and sensations to circulate.
Family and belonging
Because blood carries our heritage, blood problems can invite us to look at our relationships with our family. Is there a conflict with a relative? Do we sometimes feel like a stranger in our own clan?
Reading the signs: where circulation is affected
In this approach, where circulation problems appear can add nuance. Take these as questions to explore:
- The legs relate to our emotional direction, and to the emotions we can rely on and care about.
- The hands relate to expressing our emotions, and sometimes to a wish to stop what we are doing.
- Cold hands or feet may point to withdrawing from full emotional participation in life, as if we were keeping our distance.
- A blood clot may relate to a well-kept secret, or to a feeling of having been betrayed, where emotions hardened instead of flowing.
Caring for your heart from the inside
The idea is not to blame yourself. Genetics, age, diet, tobacco, activity levels and many medical factors play a real role in heart and circulation problems. The emotional perspective simply adds another question: how freely does love flow in my life?
A few gentle practices can support this inner work:
- Open yourself to love. Let others show you affection, and notice when you push it away.
- Stop criticising yourself. Harsh self-judgment weighs on the heart.
- Forgive yourself. The more we forgive ourselves, the more easily we can accept love from others.
- Focus on compassion. Attention to love, compassion and forgiveness is said to help the heart work in joy and peace.
- Let life circulate. Keep projects, ideas and new experiences moving in your life.
- Look after your heart physically. Regular movement, good food, sleep and not smoking are some of the best gifts you can give it.
Questions to ask yourself
Take your time with these. There are no right answers; simply notice what comes up.
- Do I love myself enough, and do I feel loved by others?
- Am I taking life too seriously at the moment?
- Is there guilt that makes me feel unworthy of love?
- Is love flowing freely in my life, or have I closed myself off to avoid being hurt?
- Where has my joy of living gone, and what could bring it back?
- Is there a conflict with a member of my family that still weighs on me?
When to see a doctor
- Chest pain, pressure or tightness, especially spreading to the arm, jaw or back. Call emergency services.
- Sudden breathlessness, fainting or a very fast or irregular heartbeat. Call emergency services.
- Weakness on one side of the body, facial drooping or difficulty speaking. Call emergency services.
- A painful, swollen, warm leg, especially in the calf.
- Swollen ankles, breathlessness when lying down or unusual tiredness.
- Regular blood pressure checks, even if you feel well.
Sources and inspiration
- Jacques Martel, Le Grand Dictionnaire des Malaises et des Maladies.
This page is an original interpretation written by Body Hemi-Sync. It is inspired by these sources and does not reproduce them.