A Pathway to Greater Self-Trust: Interoceptive Awareness

A, if not the, central theme in my Integrative Mindfulness Coaching work is helping women reconnect — or often connect for the first time ever — to a sense of self-trust. 

This exploration of the ways in which a disconnection from core Self originated and currently manifests invariably ends up at the heart of our inner exploration. 

But this whole concept of self-trust is foreign and often quite disorienting at first for those of us who were never taught that it was safe/acceptable/welcomed/positive to turn inward, sense what feels right to us and make choices in our lives from the inside out. 

And to confuse matters further, we each actually have lots of internal selves, or “parts”, many of which operate adaptively yet protectively in our adult lives. 

And those well-intentioned but scared, confused, young, protective parts aren’t the “selves” we want to nurture trust in. 

We want to cultivate not merely self-trust but Self-trust. 

Your core, capital “S", Self is the part of you where wisdom quietly resides.

The part of you that naturally resonates with the frequency of loving universal energy.

The part of you where intuition leads.

The core essence of you that’s inherently whole, loving and lovable.

SO HOW DO WE NURTURE TRUST IN THAT SELF?

The more familiar we become with our internal landscape of sensations and feelings swirling through our bodies from moment to moment, the more trusting we become of ourselves over time. 

Cultivation of this type of interoceptive awareness — awareness and felt sense of what’s happening in the inner realm as directly experienced sensations in the body — is one pathway toward increased self-trust. 

There are lots of ways you can dial up this internal awareness. Here are a few ideas to get the ball rolling:

1. Notice when you’re hungry. 

What internal sensations tell you this is hunger?

Where do you notice hunger arising in your body? 

What internal sensations give you clues about which type of food you want to eat?

2. Notice how your body wants to move throughout your day.

What internal sensations let you know your body's wanting to stand up or stretch? 

What inner cues tell you your body is longing for some movement? 

When/where do you notice an inner impulse to honor/follow these urges or resist/override them?

3. Notice the urge to go to the bathroom as soon as you notice you need to. 

What internal sensations tell you you need to go? 

Is there a mental impulse to ignore or override this physiological need? 

What happens to the sensations the longer you wait?

4. Notice when sleepiness creeps in at night. 

What internal cues let you know your body is ready for sleep?

Do you follow that sleepy impulse as soon as it arises, or keep watching one more episode or reading one more chapter? 

How does the sleepiness feel in your body: Pleasant, unpleasant or neutral? 

What if any texture or temperature is associated with it?

Increased intimacy with our inner landscape leads to increased Self-trust over time (meditation and self-compassion are other wonderful Self-trust cultivators).

So tune in with some warm, curious attention and intention and see what you notice.

Lots of Love,

Meissa

PS - If you’re curious about exploring these themes in a sweetly personalized way, be in touch about 1:1 coaching possibilities.