The key to self-awareness and emotional regulation.
Interoception is the awareness of the messages sent from receptors on all our internal organs, like thirst, hunger, sleep, etc. It’s also responsible for that gut feeling when deciding to take a new job or the feeling on the back of your neck when something doesn’t feel right.
“Simply put, when you know how to listen to your body, you respond to life’s challenges with more patience, clarity, and balance.”
Dr Naomi Murphy
Interoception helps us notice changes in heart rate, breathing, muscle tension, hearing, and vision, which alert us to the beginning of something like anxiety before it sets in. Some of us have learned to ignore these signals to stay safe: like not speaking up in a home where aggression is present; or not crying when we’re upset because we are told to ‘toughen up’; or not savouring our achievements because they were never enough for our parents. The good news is that interoceptive awareness can be practised to strengthen it, like exercising a muscle.
Being actively in tune with our internal bodily experiences gives us the power to make conscious behavioural choices and avoid reacting with habitual responses. Research has shown that interoception determines our capacity to regulate emotions and influences susceptibility to mental health problems such as anxiety and depression.
So, next time you meet someone who gives you the ‘creeps,’ check and see which parts of your body gave you that feedback.