2/06 Internal States

Tomorrow we’ll talk about interoception — the brain’s ability to perceive internal bodily states (hunger, thirst, pain, temperature, emotion). For many neurodivergent and chronically ill people, interoception is atypical: signals are muted, delayed, or misinterpreted. This affects self-regulation, fatigue management, and emotional awareness.

Key topics:

• What interoception is and why it matters

• How altered interoception shows up (ignoring hunger until you crash, not sensing pain until it’s intense, emotional build-up without awareness)

• Connection to neurodivergence and chronic illness: EDS, POTS, migraines, sensory processing

• Strategies: body scans, journals, check-in timers, external cues

Resources:

• resource on interoception and neurodivergent nervous system: Neurodivergent Insights

• resource on gut-brain axis (which overlaps with interoception): PubMed Central+1