What is interoceptive awareness and how can it unlock body wisdom?
What is interoceptive awareness?
- Interoception is simply our ability to feel physical and emotional sensations in our body.
- Physical sensations can include our hunger, fullness, thirst, pain, fatigue, having an itch, heat or coldness, or toileting needs etc.
- Emotional sensations arise from the feelings we have when we are sad, angry, scared, joyful, excited or any other emotion we may have. The sensations may be changes in heart rate, tightness of chest, wanting to cry, clammy hands, having a lump in the throat or burning ears etc.
- Our awareness of these physical and emotional sensations, as well as the different signals our body gives us, is referred to as interoceptive awareness.
What is the brain's role in I.A?
The insula (or insular cortex) is a small, deep region of the brain (in the cerebral cortex) that plays a key function in our interoceptive awareness. It is responsible for helping us to:
- Process senses in the body
- Connect senses to our cognitions and emotions
- Perceive and feel pain or empathy
- Control blood pressure
- Maintain our body in a neutral, balanced state (i.e. homeostasis)
- Allow us to have a sense a self or bodily agency
- Influence our risk and reward behaviour
How do we measure interoceptive awareness I.A?
- IA is most commonly determined by heart-beat detection tests. The greater your ability to detect your heart rate accurately, indicates higher degrees of interoceptive awareness.
- Behavioural tasks can help you recognise changes in your internal state, such as changes in your temperature after completing a task.
- Self-report questionnaires can also be helpful in identifying bodily awareness.
- Measuring IA can help to identify hyper or hypo sensitivity to bodily sensations. Hypersensitivity is when people have a heightened response to stimuli whereas hyposensitivity is when people have a dampened response to stimuli.
- Hyper or hyposensitivity to bodily sensations can be more common for people who are neurodivergent (e.g. have ADHD or have Autism- ASD), have experienced trauma or have certain physical and/or mental health conditions.

How interoceptive awareness can unlock body wisdom?
Now that you have a better idea of what interoceptive awareness is, below is an outline of how IA can help you unlock body wisdom directly related to your body image:
Recognizing Hunger and Fullness Cues: Interoceptive awareness helps you tune into subtle bodily sensations like stomach growling, fullness, or thirst. This can guide you toward eating intuitively, rather than following external cues like the clock or diet rules.
Emotional regulation: By noticing sensations tied to emotions (e.g., tightness in the chest for anxiety, warmth for joy), interoception allows you to name, process, and respond to feelings rather than suppressing or avoiding them.
Responding to Stress: Many of us are unaware of how stress manifests physically (e.g., clenched jaw, shallow breathing). Interoception provides insight into these patterns, enabling proactive self-soothing techniques such as deep breathing or progressive muscle relaxation.
Guiding movement and exercise: Interoception helps you recognize when movement feels energizing versus exhausting or harmful. It encourages movement that aligns with your body’s needs rather than pushing through pain or fatigue for external goals.
Improving digestion : Interoceptive awareness can help you notice digestive discomfort, such as bloating or sluggishness, and adjust eating habits or stress levels accordingly, as the gut is closely tied to emotional well-being.
Building Self-trust: By regularly checking in with your body and acting on its signals, you reinforce trust in your internal guidance system, reducing reliance on external validation or conflicting advice.
How can I start enhancing interoceptive awareness?
Mindfulness: Your body performs numerous vital functions that keep you alive and thriving, such as breathing, digestion, circulation, and maintaining internal balance. You can appreciate the intricate mechanisms that allow your body to function and sustain your life.
Sensory exploration: Your body performs numerous vital functions that keep you alive and thriving, such as breathing, digestion, circulation, and maintaining internal balance. You can appreciate the intricate mechanisms that allow your body to function and sustain your life.
Labelling inner states: Your body performs numerous vital functions that keep you alive and thriving, such as breathing, digestion, circulation, and maintaining internal balance. You can appreciate the intricate mechanisms that allow your body to function and sustain your life.
Key points
IA is a fundamental sense for body wisdom
IA is a fundamental sense for body wisdom
Slowing down and recognising your body’s signals