Help kids handle big emotions by unlocking the power of this 6th sense – interoception! Enhance emotional well-being and self-awareness with these activities.
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We’re all well familiar with our five senses – sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. But did you know we have a sixth one? It’s called interoception and it’s a hot topic in the world of neuroscience right now.
That’s because researchers are becoming increasingly aware of how important this sense is for our mental and emotional well-being.
If a child’s sense of interoception is not well developed, they will struggle to handle their emotions, social interactions, and to meet physical needs. Life will feel like a constant battle for them, full of confusion and frustration.
Luckily though, we can teach our children to become more attuned to their interoceptive signals.
So read on to find out just what exactly interoception is and how we can help children hone their interoceptive awareness. Or for a more in depth look with helpful ideas, check out Interoception: How I Feel: Sensing My World from the Inside Out.
So, what is interoception?
While our outward facing senses are busy taking in information from the environment around us, our interoceptive sense is all about internal cues.
Interoception is like an internal radar, which enables us to sense signals from inside our body. It sends all sorts of messages such as how fast we are breathing, the pace our heart is beating, whether we are hungry, or too hot, or in pain.
It’s as if our brain has set up it’s very own private WhatsApp group and invited all our internal organs to join. The WiFi signal is created through the miracle of neurotransmitters (chemical communicators that carry a nerves message from one cell to the next) throughout the nervous system.
It’s as if our brain has set up it’s very own private WhatsApp group and invited all our internal organs to join.
So, the thermoreceptors in your skin might be sending messages to say your temperature is dipping. Meanwhile, your bladder might be sending pics of a gauge pointing to full, while your tummy might be showing one on empty.
When we can interpret things like this going on inside our bodies, it helps us to understand how we are feeling. This in turn allows us to take appropriate steps to self regulate – we’ll pull on a sweater as we nip to the loo – oh, and don’t forget to grab a nice snack too.
It’s therefore easy to see, how interoception paves the way for a positive relationship with so many aspects of life, such as sleep, toileting, appetite and healthy lifestyle choices.
How awareness of interoception can help kids handle big emotions
So, if a child can recognize and interpret these messages, they will know to take action. They will know to do things, such as drink when they feel thirsty – which stops dehydration and headaches, or eat to when hungry – preventing those hangry problems setting in.
Being able to regulate like this, goes a long way towards creating a sense of well-being. But it doesn’t stop there! Here’s the really interesting thing – interoception also informs us about our emotional states too. It’s this sense that gives us the gift of self-awareness. Yes – it literally allows us to understand our own character and moods.
And when we are able to recognize and interpret these emotional signals, it helps us mitigate the effects of some of those really negative feelings, such as anger or depression. Here’s how it works…
What has interoception got to do with emotion?
You might be wondering what the messages sent from our skin or lungs or stomach might have to do with emotion. So, let’s break it down-
Imagine you’ve just hopped over the gate to bring your neighbour some freshly baked cookies. The sun is shining and life feels good. Good, that is – right up until the second you detect a sudden sound and movement from the hedge. It turns out, it is the family’s pet Jack Russell. He isn’t inside the house as usual, and worse than that, he thinks you’re an intruder!
Instantly your heart rate explodes. You feel much less in control of your bladder than a few seconds earlier and you have the prickly sensation of goosebumps all over.
Well, incredibly, all those sensations you just experienced, have appeared long before the logical part of your brain is even aware you’re afraid.
You see, whether we are conscious of it or not, our amygdala (the brain’s very own threat detector) is constantly scanning our environment to alert us of any sign of danger. When it picks things up that might threaten us, physiological changes start to happen in our body, long before our conscious mind is ever aware we feel that way.
Research shows emotional circumstances begin with non-conscious changes in the body called somatic markers. It’s only some time after this, that the conscious brain turns up to the party – detecting these changes in the body and then registering them as a feeling.
Help kids handle big emotions: Name it, to tame it
Amazingly, it’s this process that allows feelings, to be felt. Once the logical brain has given the feeling a label, it then goes on to shape our reactions and behavior, in the given circumstance.
It’s amazing to think just how many different messages can be sent from one organ alone, in you body.
For instance, your stomach might send you a growling sensation to let you know you need food, a flutter to let you know your excited, butterflies to let you know you’re nervous, churning to let you know you should be worried, or nausea and vomiting to let you know something is terribly wrong either physically or emotionally.
Sometimes the emotion related to these cues will be glaringly obvious (such the fear produced by the Jack Russell). But at other times they can be more subtle making it difficult to interpret what emotion exactly, they are communicating. However, if we can learn to recognize and process what signals mean (such as tense muscles, a clenched stomach or fluttering heart) in our conscious brain, it can determine our ability to regulate our emotions and deal with the challenges presented more effectively.
That’s because it is known, that if we can notice and label emotions as they are happening, it gives us more control over these feelings and our reactions to them. This step reduces their intensity. It can help children having melt-downs. It can even help us as adults when confronting overwhelming emotions, by helping us make sense of them.
The ‘name it to tame it’ technique, was discovered by neuroscientist Dr Dan Siegal. He outlines it in detail in The Whole-Brain Child. This caring and funny book draws from the latest neuroscience findings, and names this technique as one of twelve proven strategies for raising calmer, happier children.
Name it to tame it!
Dr Daniel Siegal
And that’s why it’s so important to develop our children’s interoceptive awareness. It is key to helping them cope with stress. However, some of us are better at this than others and here’s why.
Awareness of interoception
All of our senses provides us with information that is interpreted by the brain. But for each of us this experience will be slightly different.
Just as some people have 20/20 vison, while others may be short-sighted or even colour blind, so too each person will experience interoception differently.
It’s as if interoception has a volume control. For some children, its turned down so low they can hardly hear it. But for others it may be turned up full blast…
Under-responsive interoceptive awareness
So, some children may be under responsive – meaning they may not get these messages or might struggle to make sense of the information provided by their interoceptive sense. If they don’t recognize the source of their discomfort, they can’t easily meet the need.
They might not be as aware of their internal sensations, such as not recognizing when they’re hungry or full, or even when they need to use the bathroom. They might have a high tolerance for pain or discomfort, not realizing when they’re hurt or unwell. Additionally, they might engage in activities with a lot of force or intensity without recognizing their own strength.
A child who struggles in this way, may also struggle to regulate their emotions. If they don’t recognize the cues, they can’t identify the emotions. If they can’t then ‘name it to tame it’, they can’t form control over the feeling or make positive choices about how to respond. This makes self-regulation more difficult, leading to frustration.
On the other hand, some kids may be over-responsive.
Over-responsive interoceptive awareness
If a child is over-the-top responsive to their inner feelings, they may be super tuned in to things like their heart rate or breathing, and when they feel those changes, might get extra anxious or upset. You might also see them avoiding certain activities that involve different sensations, like messy play or certain types of clothes. Basically, their internal radar is on high alert, and it can affect how they handle their emotions and everyday stuff.
Again, if they can’t interpret internal cues well, they may be inclined to catastrophize these big inner sensations in their body, with no idea of how to regulate them.
So you may be asking, how can I improve my child’s interoceptive awareness? Well, here’s seven activities designed to do just that.
Seven activities to help kids develop awareness of interoception and handle big emotions
Teaching kids about interoception, or how to understand and connect with their body signals, can be a fun and engaging process. It’s all about helping them tune in to what’s going on inside. Here are some tips:
Body Detective Games:
Turn learning into a game! Play “Body Detective” where kids become detectives exploring the signals their bodies send. Ask questions like, “Can you feel your heartbeat? What about when you take a deep breath?” It’s like a mission to discover the mysteries of their own bodies.
Books such as the Inside Out Human Body, with layered 3-d models of the human body are a fantastic resource. They can help children explore ‘the most amazing machine in the universe’ – their body! Or check out See Inside Your Body, for slightly younger kids.
Games such as Operation or PlayDoh Operation Classic Clinic also help children begin to think about where various organs are located in their body, and the role they play.
Emotion Check-ins:
Connect emotions with physical sensations. When they feel happy, sad, or excited, ask them what’s happening inside their bodies. Like, “Do you feel butterflies when you’re excited? Where do you feel it?” This helps them link emotions with the physical vibes in their tummies, hearts, or elsewhere.
Breathing Buddies:
Introduce “Breathing Buddies” to make deep breathing more exciting. Have them lie down with a stuffed animal on their belly. As they breathe in and out, make the buddy rise and fall. It turns a simple exercise into a playful interaction, teaching them about the connection between breath and body.
Mindful Moments:
Incorporate short mindful moments into their routine. Maybe during snack time, have a “mindful munch” where they focus on the taste, smell, and how their body feels while eating. This helps build a habit of being present and paying attention to internal sensations.
Or try a mindful body scan with them. Get them to sit comfortably and imagine a bright spotlight shining on each part of their body. As you work your way from head to toes with them, ask them to bring attention to each area, checking it for sensations such as tension or pain.
This practice will help them feel more connected to their physical and emotional self.
Emotion Journals:
Encourage them to keep a little Emotion Journal where they draw or write about how they feel physically and emotionally each day. It’s like a secret diary where they can express themselves and start recognizing patterns in their body’s signals.
Likewise, encouraging them to map out their body on a page can be helpful.
Silly Stretches and Movements:
Make movement a part of interoception learning. Any type of exercise is great, but you may want to make it fun by creating “Silly Stretches” or “Wacky Walks” where they move their bodies in funny ways. Then, chat about how their bodies feel after the silly session.
It adds an element of fun to exploring internal sensations.
Listen to Their Bodies:
Remind them that their bodies are like superheroes with unique powers. Encourage them to listen when their bodies say they need rest, food, or play. This way, they learn to trust and respond to the signals their bodies send them.
For a deeper understanding and even more activity ideas to help children develop interoceptive awareness, check out Interoception: How I Feel: Sensing My World from the Inside Out.
Closing thoughts on how awareness of interoception can help children handle big emotions
So basically, helping kids tune into their body signals and emotions reaps many benefits.
It’s like giving them a superpower to understand themselves better, and handle all the ups and downs of life. Whether it’s teaching them to take a breather when they’re feeling overwhelmed or recognizing when they need a hug, honing in on interoception can set them up for success in handling their emotions and relating to others.
It’s like giving them an extra edge in this crazy world.
