Interoception: Where the Body Meets the Mind in Resilience.

Before we can think clearly, we need to feel clearly. Interoception is the quiet sense that helps us notice what our body is telling us, moment by moment.

The Quiet Sense we often Overlook.

You may remember a day when you worked through lunch, only realising you were hungry when a headache arrived. 

Or a day when a conversation left your shoulders tense, your breath shallow and your mind restless long after the meeting ended.  

Perhaps you’ve felt the opposite, stepping outside, taking a breath of cool air and noticing your chest soften, your thoughts clear.

These are not distractions. 

They are messages from your body, telling you what you need.  They arrive quietly, waiting for you to listen.

This sense has a name.. interoception.

Often called the “eighth sense,” interoception connects your biology to your psychology, forming a bridge between your body and your mind.

It anchors your capacity to adapt, recover and renew, supporting resilience from the inside out.

What is Interoception?

Interoception is your ability to sense what is happening inside your body.. your heartbeat, breathing, warmth, tightness, hunger, thirst and fatigue. 

It complements other senses and is foundational for resilience, helping you recognise imbalance before it becomes a crisis.

Interoception is not a vague concept. 

It is well established in neuroscience and psychology, linked to the insular cortex, anterior cingulate cortex and vagal pathways that relay information about your body’s state to your brain. 

Studies using heartbeat detection tasks and brain imaging have consistently demonstrated how interoception influences emotional regulation, stress responses and decision-making (Garfinkel & Critchley, 2013; Haase et al. 2016).

A quiet story of Interoception in Practice.

I once worked with a client, a senior leader, who described feeling constantly on edge, unable to relax even on weekends. 

They would wake early, check emails and move through the day driven by a quiet urgency.  Meals were skipped, water left untouched, breathing shallow and unnoticed.

In a coaching session, we paused for two minutes to notice what was happening in the body. “Tightness in the chest,” they observed “and a slight headache.”

For the first time in weeks, they noticed their breath. 

This was the beginning of reconnecting with interoception, by recognising the early signals before the body demands a louder response. 

It became a practice, informing when to pause, when to hydrate, when to step outside for a walk and when to acknowledge the need for rest.

This is not a luxury. It is the practical work of resilience.

Interoception and Biological Resilience.

Biological resilience is your body’s ability to maintain stability and recover after stress, illness, or exertion. 

Interoception is the mechanism through which you notice the need to rest before exhaustion, drink before dehydration, or adjust effort before injury.

Research with athletes and high performers shows they excel in detecting internal signals, using them to guide pacing and recovery.  

Studies have found that individuals with strong interoceptive awareness often have better autonomic regulation (heart rate variability), which is associated with faster recovery from stress (Haase et al. 2016; Bellan, 2018).

Ignoring these signals can lead to injury, illness, or chronic exhaustion, quietly draining biological resilience over time.

Interoception and Psychological Resilience.

Emotions are bodily experiences. 

Anxiety may feel like a racing heart, anger like heat in the chest, calm as a deepening breath.

Interoception allows you to recognise these signals early, providing space to respond rather than react.  This is foundational for psychological resilience, supporting emotional regulation and clarity under pressure.

Research indicates that people with higher interoceptive accuracy (those who can detect their heartbeat without checking their pulse) show greater emotional awareness and are more effective at managing stress (Garfinkel & Critchley, 2013). 

Conversely, low interoceptive awareness has been linked to difficulties in emotion recognition (alexithymia), anxiety and depressive symptoms.

Interoception and your Daily micro-Decisions.

Interoception is not limited to crisis moments; it guides everyday resilience:

• Noticing early hunger and choosing nourishing food before energy crashes.

  
  

• Recognising rising tension during back-to-back meetings and taking a breath between calls.

  
  

• Feeling fatigue as a signal to rest rather than push through.

  
  

• Sensing calm after a walk and using it to reset focus.

  
  

These micro-decisions, informed by interoception, prevent the slow drip of depletion that can lead to burnout.  

They align with Sleep, Movement and Nutrition practices, ensuring these foundations are not just performed but felt, adapting to what the body truly needs.

When Interoception becomes disrupted during Mental Health Crises.

Interoception can become disrupted during mental health crises.

In anxiety and panic, bodily signals are amplified.

A racing heart is perceived as danger, shallow breathing as suffocation, chest tightness as collapse. 

Normal bodily fluctuations are magnified and catastrophised, fuelling a fear cycle: sensation, fear, more sensation, more fear. 

Studies show that individuals with high anxiety may have heightened interoceptive sensitivity but misinterpret signals, driving hypervigilance (Paulus & Stein, 2010).

In depression, trauma, or burnout, the opposite can occur.  Signals may become muted, with hunger, thirst and fatigue going unnoticed and emotions feeling flat. 

This disconnection can lead to neglect of physical needs, reducing resilience during crises.

Rebuilding interoceptive awareness helps recalibrate the body-mind system, allowing signals to be felt safely and interpreted accurately, enabling proactive care and stability during recovery.

Interoception, Neurodiversity and Mental Wellbeing.

Interoception does not develop in the same way for everyone. 

Recent practitioner research (Goodall, 2022) highlights that in autistic individuals, the development of interoception can slow or pause, potentially as a self-protection mechanism linked to trauma and chronic stress. 

Many autistic individuals experience overwhelm, during which interoceptive awareness may decrease or shut down, reducing the ability to recognise emotions or meet biological needs such as hunger, thirst and rest.

Without interoceptive awareness, emotions can escalate without conscious recognition, with anger becoming rage or sadness becoming distress, often misinterpreted by others as emotional immaturity or dysregulation. 

This challenge extends to managing basic needs, particularly during periods of stress or anxiety when body signals go unnoticed.

This also relates to the survival instinct. 

In typical development, interoception allows us to sense internal signals and respond calmly to situations. 

However, for individuals with atypical interoception, everyday stressors may be misinterpreted as crises, leading to a reliance on survival instincts and hypervigilance in non-life-threatening situations.

Supporting interoceptive awareness in neurodivergent individuals can include:

• External supports (smartwatches to monitor heart rate, hydration reminders, weather apps, hydration charts).

  
  

• Internal supports (somatic activities such as mindful breathing, toe curls, body scans practiced 2–3 times daily over 8 weeks).

  
  

• Structured check-ins (“What signals does your body give you when you are hungry or stressed?” rather than general yes/no questions).

  
  

Assessment tools like the Interoception Sensory Questionnaire (Fiene et al. 2018) or Goodall’s Interoception Evaluation and Support Plan can help determine interoceptive awareness, guiding interventions that build self-regulation and resilience.

Supporting interoception in neurodivergent individuals is not separate work but a core part of resilience, enabling a shift from survival-driven reactions to calm, context-appropriate responses in daily life.

Interoception and the Social Domain.

Resilience also lives in our relationships.

Interoception quietly influences the social domain by shaping how we sense and respond to others.

Being attuned to your internal signals helps you notice when social situations become overwhelming, allowing you to pause or set boundaries before burnout. 

It also underpins empathy, as recognising and regulating your own bodily and emotional states enhances your ability to sense and respond to others with clarity and care.

For example, noticing a quickening breath in a tense conversation can prompt a pause, grounding yourself before responding, protecting relationships while preserving your energy.

The influence of Environment.

Environments shape interoception. 

Calm, safe environments support interoceptive clarity, while high-pressure or noisy environments can blur or overwhelm signals, disconnecting you from what you need.

High-load environments fill your Stress Cup rapidly, while interoception helps you notice when it is nearing overflow, prompting actions to adapt, recover and renew before a tipping point.

Why interoception matters for your Resilience Journey.

Interoception helps you recognise stress early, manage energy wisely and restore balance before a crisis escalates.  

It is the practical foundation for using psychological tools effectively, bridging the biological and psychological domains of resilience.

Interoception is how you notice your Stress Cup filling before it overflows. 

It is a quiet, consistent reminder to adapt, recover and renew.

micro-Practices to build interoceptive Awareness.

Body scan pause.

Take two to three minutes to scan your body, noticing tension, warmth, heaviness, or lightness without judgement.

Breath check.

Take three slow breaths, noticing the movement of your chest or belly and the softening of tension as you exhale.

Naming body signals

When emotions arise, ask:

• Where do I feel this in my body?

  
  

• What is this sensation telling me I need?

  
  

Interoceptive journaling

Once a day, write down:

• One signal your body gave you.

  
  

• How you responded.

  
  

• What you learned about your needs.

  
  

These practices build emotional granularity, a key component of psychological resilience.

Reflection before moving forward.

Before we explore psychological resilience and mindset practices, pause. Take a moment to notice your body.

What signals is it giving you right now?

What might it need?

This is not a soft add-on to resilience work.

Listening to your body is a disciplined, structured act of care. It expands your capacity to meet challenges with clarity, steadiness and adaptability.

In our day-to-day lives, we navigate a constant stream of problems from the inbox, deadlines, career pressures, family tensions, minor frustrations. Yet when the body falters, all those problems collapse into one.. your health.

This is why we start here.

Your body is not separate from your resilience, it is the foundation of it.

Investing in your biological domain, through interoception, quality sleep, nourishing nutrition and sustainable movement is not indulgence, but preparation.

By refining your ability to process and act on what your body is telling you, you build a platform for psychological resilience to stand upon.

Without it, mindset work risks becoming intellectual optimism rather than embodied capacity.

Before we move on, take a breath. Check in.

What is your body telling you now?

Moving into Psychological Resilience.

Interoception prepares you for the next stage of your resilience journey. 

As we explore mindset, cognitive reframing and emotional granularity, these tools will be most effective when anchored in bodily awareness.

You are building resilience from the inside out. 

Let your body guide you as you learn to navigate stress, challenge and growth with steadiness and clarity.