About the Institute of HeartMath

The Institute of HeartMath (IHM) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational and research organization founded in 1991. Since its inception, IHM has conducted pioneering research on stress and emotional physiology, heart-brain interactions, and effective performance. From this research, IHM developed simple, user-friendly techniques that people can use to relieve stress and develop greater levels of intelligence and emotional management. These techniques have been researched and their effectiveness scientifically validated in many studies. In addition, there is solid evidence that they have a positive effect on the parts of the brain where learning occurs. Innovative educational programs based on IHM research have been shown to help student motivation, self-discipline, and focus.

Several school systems that either have utilized HeartMath services or have ongoing programs include:
Boone County School District, Burlington, Kentucky, Carmel High School, California Youth Authority, Carmel, California, Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, California, Des Moines Independent Community School District, Des Moines, Iowa, Driftwood Academy, Hollywood, Florida, Galena Park High School, Houston, Texas, Holyoke Public Schools, Holyoke, Massachusetts, Humboldt County Office of Education, Eureka, California, L.A. County Office of Education, Los Angeles, California, Manteca Unified School District, Manteca, California, Mingus Union High School District, Cottonwood, Arizona, Minneapolis Public Schools, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Missouri Dept. of Corrections, Pajaro Valley Unified School District, Watsonville, California, Palm Springs Middle School, Dade County, Florida, San Simon School (Bureau of Indian Affairs), San Simon, Arizona, Staten Island (New York) School District, New York, Stoughton Public Schools, Stoughton, Massachusetts, Sweetwater Union High School District, San Diego, California, University of Cincinnati at Clermont, Ohio, Walzem Elementary School, San Antonio, Texas, Washington, D.C. Public Schools, Weiser School District, Weiser, Idaho.

The Institute of HeartMath has spent over twelve years developing and implementing programs with the goal of improving children’s emotional health and academic performance. The scientific foundation of these programs has been researched and developed with the assistance of an advisory panel of leading physicists, cardiologists, psychiatrists, educators, brain researchers and other scientists. IHM researchers began by studying health instead of disease and the physiology of high performance versus stress. As a result, IHM research and educational initiatives helped refine simple tools and techniques that facilitate healthy, high performance states and accelerate recovery from stress. A number of the Institute’s studies have been published in major medical journals such as The American Journal of Cardiology, Journal of the American College of Cardiology, Stress Medicine, and Integrative Physiological and Behavioral Science to name a few. IHM also has collaborative research relationships with other institutions such as Stanford University, University of Alabama, Claremont Graduate University, University of Cincinnati at Clermont, and University of Central Florida.

Because of the scientific validation of the HeartMath techniques, HeartMath applications have grown over the last decade. The broader mission states that through innovative research and public education, IHM aims to facilitate more balance and health in people’s lives by:

• Researching the effects of positive emotions on physiology, quality of life and performance.
• Helping individuals to transform stress and rejuvenate their health.
• Providing Prevention and Intervention strategies for improved emotional health, decision-making, learning skills and violence reduction in communities, families and schools.