More Than a Beat: The Truth My Heart Knew Before My Mind Caught Up
- maryrburrell
- Apr 9
- 3 min read
The heart doesn’t lie.
It just waits patiently for you to hear it.
I used to think my emotions were just background noise—something to be managed, pushed through, or ignored when inconvenient. But over time, I’ve learned that my heart speaks in ways my mind can’t always explain. It doesn’t use logic, charts, or plans. It speaks through feelings—some subtle, some overwhelming—and whether I like it or not, it always tells the truth.
For years, I didn’t really listen. When my heart raced before a big decision, I called it anxiety. When it felt heavy, I told myself to shake it off. When it felt tight, I swallowed my words instead of saying what I needed to. But no matter how much I tried to control my emotions, my heart always found a way to make itself heard.
What My Heart Has Been Trying to Tell Me
1. A Racing Heart: Not Fear—Something Bigger
I used to mistake every fast heartbeat for panic. Public speaking, new opportunities, difficult conversations—anytime my heart pounded, I assumed it meant this is bad. But I’ve started to ask myself: Is this fear, or is this growth?
Because the truth is, my heart races for both. It beats faster when I’m scared, yes—but also when I’m excited, when I care deeply, when I’m about to step into something important. I’ve realized that sometimes, fear and excitement feel the same. And maybe that means I shouldn’t run from every racing heartbeat. Maybe it means I should lean in.
2. A Heavy Heart: The Things I Carry
There have been days when my heart felt heavy for no obvious reason. Not sadness in the way people usually talk about it, but a quiet, lingering weight—something unfinished, something unspoken. I used to ignore it, hoping it would pass.
But I’ve learned that heaviness is often a sign. It’s my heart reminding me that there’s something I haven’t dealt with—a feeling I’ve buried, a truth I haven’t faced, a piece of myself I’ve been neglecting. When I actually sit with that weight and ask What am I holding onto?, the answer is usually something real. And facing it, rather than pushing it away, is the only way it starts to lighten.
3. A Tight Chest: The Words I Didn’t Say
There have been moments when my chest felt tight, like I was holding my breath without realizing it. I used to dismiss it as stress, but now I know better. That tightness is usually my heart’s way of saying, You’re not being honest with yourself.
It happens when I avoid hard conversations, when I don’t speak up for what I need, when I pretend I’m fine when I’m not. My heart tightens when I silence myself, and the only way to release it is to say what needs to be said. Even if it’s scary. Even if it’s just admitting something to myself.
4. An Open Heart: The Moments That Feel Like Home
Then there are moments when my heart feels different—light, free, open. It happens in unexpected places: deep conversations, laughter that makes me forget time, standing in the sun on a quiet morning, hearing something I didn’t know I needed to hear.
In those moments, my heart isn’t asking for anything. It’s just reminding me: This is what it feels like to be here. This is what matters.
Learning to Listen
For so long, I tried to think my way through life. But my heart has always known things before my mind could make sense of them. So now, I try to listen more—to the excitement, the discomfort, the heaviness, the lightness. Because my heart, even in its confusion, is always telling me something.
Maybe yours is too.
So, if your heart is racing, ask: Is this fear, or is this something I actually want? If your heart feels heavy, ask: What am I carrying that I need to release? If your heart feels tight, ask: What am I afraid to say? And if your heart feels open, stay there as long as you can.
Because our hearts don’t lie. They just wait for us to listen.
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