Just because you feel it doesn't make it true...
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Woah! Okay, put the pitch forks down just for a moment and let me explain...
I'm not talking about emotions, I'm not trying to gaslight anyone I promise - I'm not going to go there with you guys today, but I'm talking about interoception - or rather - your brain's ability to interpret bodily sensations so other processes can understand what action to take (if any) in response. The thing is, your brain is a bit of a liar... that is if you consider lying by omission still lying... but, if you stick with me for a couple of minutes, I'll explain how you can tell the difference between real sensations & brain trickery. |
Hi folks, as some of you might know - my name is Elle, and I'm a Clinical Neuropscyhologist/Educator who LOVES to talk about brains, neurodivergence and increasing accessibility to health, fitness and overall wellness.
Brain VS Body
We tend to assume that our body tells us the truth.
Hungry = eat
Tired = stop
Don’t feel like it = don’t do it
Simple, right?
Not quite.
Even in neurotypical brains, what you feel isn’t a direct readout of your body. It’s an interpretation of your internal state.
Hungry = eat
Tired = stop
Don’t feel like it = don’t do it
Simple, right?
Not quite.
Even in neurotypical brains, what you feel isn’t a direct readout of your body. It’s an interpretation of your internal state.
Why does the brain lie?
The brain isn't really lying... per-sè, the thing is, is that the signals it gets from the body are somewhat fuzzy and so your brain, trying to be a good little worker, pulls examples from your past about similar feelings and attributes the most likely reason behind that bodily sensation.
This is great predictive technology, but of course, if, for example, you've never learnt what anxiety feels like in your body then your brain doesn't even really have a fighting chance of interpreting the sensation.
The bits of your brain mostly responsible for this predictive error are the Anterior Cingulate Cortex (we're seeing him again because he's great at tracking mismatches) and the Insular Cortex along with some other higher-order parts involved in regulation and interpretation. The Insula is the big player here, and the super cool thing is that current modes suggest it doesn't JUST receive signals it also PREDICTS them, from tracking your internal environment.
This is great predictive technology, but of course, if, for example, you've never learnt what anxiety feels like in your body then your brain doesn't even really have a fighting chance of interpreting the sensation.
The bits of your brain mostly responsible for this predictive error are the Anterior Cingulate Cortex (we're seeing him again because he's great at tracking mismatches) and the Insular Cortex along with some other higher-order parts involved in regulation and interpretation. The Insula is the big player here, and the super cool thing is that current modes suggest it doesn't JUST receive signals it also PREDICTS them, from tracking your internal environment.
So, what does that have to do with my title?
While this applies to lots of different signals, let's talk about hunger - and overeating.
The same signal can mean different things:
Hunger isn't a clean signal. It involves lots of systems that track the internal environment and integrates external signals - it doesn't just pop up from energy deficit. It can be: low energy - tiredness; external cues - like a social post showing a perfectly decorated cake; expectations - I feel "something" in my tummy, it must be hunger; and learnt associations - it's 4pm, it's time for a snack, or, it's Saturday - it's pizza day!
And when those signals overlap, the brain picks the most likely explanation — not necessarily the correct one.
That’s why you might eat when you’re actually tired.
Or skip a workout when your body was perfectly capable of moving.
The good news? Neurotypical brains are pretty good at updating their guesses.
The same signal can mean different things:
- Low energy could be hunger… or poor sleep
- A “weird tummy feeling” could be hunger… or anxiety
- Restlessness could be fatigue… or boredom
Hunger isn't a clean signal. It involves lots of systems that track the internal environment and integrates external signals - it doesn't just pop up from energy deficit. It can be: low energy - tiredness; external cues - like a social post showing a perfectly decorated cake; expectations - I feel "something" in my tummy, it must be hunger; and learnt associations - it's 4pm, it's time for a snack, or, it's Saturday - it's pizza day!
And when those signals overlap, the brain picks the most likely explanation — not necessarily the correct one.
That’s why you might eat when you’re actually tired.
Or skip a workout when your body was perfectly capable of moving.
The good news? Neurotypical brains are pretty good at updating their guesses.
How to tell the difference?
As a neurotypical brain, here are 4 ways of telling if the sensation is true or not:
1. check context: use top-down reasoning, for example by asking yourself "did I eat recently?", "did I sleep badly?", "am i stressed?"
2. prediction testing - drink instead of eating and wait 30 minutes, start the workout and do 5 minutes and then check in with yourself on energy levels. If the feeling goes away, it was a bad prediction!
3. increase interoceptive accuracy - you can TRAIN your brain to understand which signals mean what. For instance: Try to notice the quality of the sensation — empty, shaky, tense, restless, nauseous, heavy... this can give us important info on what the sensation stems from.
4. notice the time lag. Real signals tend to build slowly and persist, whereas misinterpreted signals spike quickly and fluctuate with your attention/emotions.
1. check context: use top-down reasoning, for example by asking yourself "did I eat recently?", "did I sleep badly?", "am i stressed?"
2. prediction testing - drink instead of eating and wait 30 minutes, start the workout and do 5 minutes and then check in with yourself on energy levels. If the feeling goes away, it was a bad prediction!
3. increase interoceptive accuracy - you can TRAIN your brain to understand which signals mean what. For instance: Try to notice the quality of the sensation — empty, shaky, tense, restless, nauseous, heavy... this can give us important info on what the sensation stems from.
4. notice the time lag. Real signals tend to build slowly and persist, whereas misinterpreted signals spike quickly and fluctuate with your attention/emotions.
Thanks all <3
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Thanks for being here with me, and make sure to click on "follow" to stay tuned for part 2, YouTube 9:00pm Tuesday 14th April,CEST where we'll talk about how these signals are interpreted by neurodivergent brains - spoiler, it's not the same!
As always, if you've got any questions or comments, or even if you'd just like to say hi, I'd love to chat, and please do leave me a like to let me know you've been here! |
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