What is Interoception and How Does it Affect Autism?

Connect with Samantha: https://everybrainisdifferent.com/ Get the Ultimate Guide to Raising Your Neurodivergent Child: https://everybrainisdifferent.com/ Samantha and Lauren discuss Samantha’s son’s years-long struggle with chronic, debilitating pain (legs, back, migraines) and how a pain clinic evaluation led to a new explanation: sensory processing disorder with heightened interoception. After extensive normal test results, a multidisciplinary team suggested his internal body-signal sense may be “turned up,” intensifying pain perception. Samantha and Lauren define interoception (internal sensations like hunger, bathroom needs, heart rate, temperature, pain, and emotions) using occupational therapist Kelly Mahler’s framework and note that interoception differences can be muted, intense, or distorted, affecting interpretation of sensations and emotions. The episode emphasizes validation, shifting from “why does he hurt?” to “what support does his nervous system need?”, and introduces Mahler’s “body, emotion, action” approach, encouraging parents to become “body detectives” with neutral body check-ins and curiosity rather than telling kids to “calm down.” 00:00 Welcome and Topic Setup 00:15 Years of Chronic Pain Search 00:46 Pain Clinic Evaluation 02:27 Unexpected Diagnosis Insight 04:32 Interoception Explained 06:24 When Signals Feel Too Loud 09:23 Muted vs Intense Awareness 11:56 Validation and Support Mindset 15:32 Body Emotion Action Framework 20:38 Becoming Body Detectives 22:06 Key Takeaways and Next Steps 23:44 Resources and Closing Connect with Samantha Foote! Website: https://everybrainisdifferent.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everybrainisdifferent YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@everybrainisdifferent