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Abstract
Interoception supports the ability to notice, interpret, and react to internal sensations and impacts emotional regulation and participation in meaningful activities. This study aimed to expand evidence regarding the efficacy of a 7-week intervention based on The Interoception Curriculum: A Guide to Developing Mindful Self-Regulation in improving interoception and emotional regulation. We purposefully sampled middle-school participants (N = 9) with several diagnoses from a special education classroom. Self-report and teacher-report measures on interoceptive awareness and emotional regulation were collected before and after implementation of the interoception intervention. Statistically significant correlations were seen between the interoceptive awareness and emotional regulation and improvements in interoceptive awareness and emotional regulation were found following the intervention. In a small one group pretest/post-test design, a seven-week intervention based on the interoception curriculum demonstrated feasibility of this approach for children in a special education classroom and outcomes showed that interoceptive awareness and emotional regulation could improve after participation in this intervention.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
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Notes on contributors
Kelly Mahler
Kelly Mahler, OTD, OTR/L, a Doctor of Occupational Therapy, brings 22 years of experience working with school-aged children and adults. Winner of awards like the 2020 AOTA Emerging and Innovative Practice Award, she is also an adjunct faculty at Elizabethtown College and Misericordia University. Kelly leads research on interoception, self-regulation, trauma, and autism while providing evidence-based courses as an AOTA-approved provider.
Kerri Hample
Kerri Hample, OTD, OTR/L, FMCHC, is an associate professor and program director for the post-professional OTD program at Elizabethtown College. Her specialty focus is on feeding and eating, childhood nutrition, sensory processing as it relates to feeding and sleep, and aquatics.
Carly Ensor
Carly Ensor, MS, OTR/L, is a pediatric occupational therapist in Camp Hill. She has worked in NICU, Early Intervention and Outpatient Pediatrics. Her specialty areas of practice include infant feeding/swallowing, responsive feeding practices, DIR floortime and sensory integration.
Mary Ludwig
Mary Ludwig, OTR/L is an occupational therapist practicing in Lancaster, PA.
Laura Palanzo-Sholly
Laura Palanzo-Sholly, OTD, OTR/L, attended Misericordia University for both her undergrad and doctorate degrees and is a pediatric therapist who has worked in the schools for more than 20 years.
Adelaide Stang
Adelaide Stang, OTR/L earned her Master of Occupational Therapy degree at Elizabethtown College and works at Kids Thrive Therapy in Towson, Maryland.
Dominic Trevisan
Dominic Trevisan, PhD, worked on this manuscript as a postdoctoral research fellow at the Yale Child Study Center where he primarily investigated interoception and sensory processing differences in people with autism. He now works in the Medical Communications Industry where he develops disease education content geared towards patients and healthcare providers.
Claudia Hilton
Claudia Hilton, PhD, MBA, OTR, FAOTA is an associate professor of occupational therapy at the University of Texas Medical Branch. Her research focus is on supporting participation among people with autism.