Listening in: how interoceptive awareness helps with emotional regulation.

Could tuning into your body be the missing link in better emotion regulation? What steps help us notice and interpret these internal signals? How does our cultural background shape the way we experience body awareness?

What is interoceptive awareness and why it matters?

Interoceptive awareness is our ability to notice internal body signals like hunger pangs, muscle tension, heart rate changes and more. These sensations often arise before we are even conscious of how we feel. For example, a racing pulse can foreshadow anxiety, while a soft warmth in the chest can signal calm. Research shows people with stronger interoceptive skills report greater emotional balance and life satisfaction. These body-based skills help us intervene early before a situation spirals into overwhelm or shutdown.

Let’s consider Anesu, a project manager. Each afternoon, she found herself struggling to focus. Her breathing would become shallow and a tightness formed in her throat. These were classic “fight or flight” signals. Initially, she ignored them attributing it to a “long day.”

Why does this matter across cultures?

Interoceptive signals are universal but how we interpret them is deeply cultural and personal. Research shows that some cultures nurture a somatic vocabulary using metaphors such as “gut feeling,” “heartache,” or “butterflies in the stomach” to express emotional states. For many Black and African communities, stress often first appears as physical symptoms like digestive upset, nausea, cramps, or irregular appetite or headaches and muscle tension. Someone might say, “I just don’t feel right” long before uttering “I am feeling overwhelmed.” Focusing only on verbal labelling or diagnostic categories risks alienating people and reinforcing distrust in care systems. Emotional regulation starts with feeling safe and seen, and that includes being understood through the lens of your culture. These embodied expressions serve as culturally rooted practices of connecting emotions with the body. These expressions function as built-in emotional signals, alerting people to pause, reflect and respond.

By contrast, many Western contexts prioritise cognitive labels by encouraging people to name their feeling directly as “anxiety,” “sadness,” or “anger.” While precise, this approach can sometimes overlook the early and visceral cues that precede a full-blown emotion and can lead to delayed intervention until distress becomes overwhelming.

Moreover, in many African contexts, cultural teachings around emotional expression play a significant role. Openly naming emotions especially negative ones can be discouraged with an emphasis placed on resilience and communal harmony. As a result, the body becomes the primary language of recognising and naming our distress.

Recognising and validating these cues not only supports more inclusive care but empowers people to embrace emotional expression in ways that feel culturally respectful and natural. For mental health practitioners and self-help tools to truly support emotional regulation, they must integrate these cultural nuances. Interventions that ask “Where do you feel that in your body?” rather than simply “How do you feel?” can bridge the gap and validate the body’s wisdom and alignment with cultural norms.

Building on Anesu’ example. She had long internalised the beliefs that strength meant pushing through. So when she first noticed her tight throat, she had dismissed the signs and pushed through the discomfort. With guidance, she reframed her approach and recognised interoceptive cues and self-care as strength. She began pausing to acknowledge these sensations and practice slow diaphragmatic breathing (4-second inhale, 3-second hold and 6-second exhale). Research show this activates the Parasympathetic Nervous System and lowers cortisol levels (stress hormone). This simple act of tuning in helped her prevent full-blown panic and reclaim her emotional rhythm.

Practical steps: assess, reflect and respond

Building interoceptive skills takes intention. Here are three practical steps to assess, reflect, and respond to your body’s messages and take intentional action before stress overwhelms you. Here are evidence-informed exercises from our Getting Started Mental Health Care Package:

Self-assess with MAIA

Begin by tuning in to your internal experience. Use the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA) quiz to see how quickly and accurately you notice your body signals. The Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA) questionnaire evaluates eight facets of body awareness from “noticing” to “trusting” body sensations. Higher MAIA scores are linked with lower anxiety and improved emotion regulation.

• After taking the quiz, identify your strengths (e.g., “I am emotionally aware”) and targets for growth (e.g., “how can I reduce my worries”). Use this as a map for personal development.

Reflect with journaling prompts

Once you begin noticing body sensations, it helps to reflect on them. Writing creates space between reaction and awareness. Try these prompts:

Reflect on a recent emotion charged moment:

• “When I felt anxious yesterday, my body reacted by…”
• “Last time I felt calm, I noticed…”
• “A moment when my body signaled before my mind caught up was…”

For example, after a tense work meeting, Anesu wrote: “My shoulders were tense and my jaw clenched. Writing about it allowed me to name the stress. I then stretched and the tension softened. I felt clearer and more grounded.”

Respond with a guided body scan

Once you have assessed and reflected, it is time to act. A body scan helps you slow down, locate areas of tension or ease and make space for change.

Follow these steps from our Body Awareness Workbook:

1. Find a quiet space and settle into a comfortable seated or lying position.
2. Close your eyes and take three slow and deep breaths to ground yourself.
3. Start at your feet and notice sensations of pressure, warmth, tingling or stillness.
4. Move slowly upward, scanning legs, hips, abdomen, chest, arms, neck and head.
5. Name each sensation without judgment (e.g., “warmth,” “tightness,” “fluttering”).
6. Reflect briefly: Which areas were most alive? Where did you feel nothing at all?

This practice not only builds your ability to detect subtle cues but also engages the parasympathetic nervous system, helping you shift from the “fight, flight, freeze, or fawn” response back into rest and digest.

Take the next step

Ready to deepen your body-mind connection? Subscribe to the Getting Started Mental Health Care Package today and access practical tools and exercises that honour your unique experiences. From self-assessment quizzes to structured journaling prompts, you can gain the skills to reconnect with your body and improve your emotional regulation.

Follow us on our social platforms – Instagram, YouTube and Facebook @tabvumamentalhealth and subscribe to our mental health care packages for tips, resources and culturally safe mental health support designed for you.

Until next time,

Tabvuma Mental Health