Overview: Interoception Tangles

Here is my understanding of the levels where interoception can go wrong:

Iffy data: you could lack collagen in your joints and as a result the sense of strain—which would tell you what your limbs are up to—gives mushy feedback and you aren't precisely sure where the floor is.

Suppression: data is rejected because it seems improbable, it has been suspect in the past, it threatens a well-established "fact," it threatens a useful delusion, it's just too much info... (the suppression topic could be a book in itself)

Hijacking: you ignore that you feel unsafe in the room, but suddenly have a desire to pee (though your bladder isn't really full). That works to get you out of the room but it does confuse the sensorial picture.

Addiction.

Assessment glitches: the organismic reconciliation of information from different data streams falters.

Nociceptive miscalibration: your uh-oh alarm goes off when it shouldn't, or fails to go off when it should. Pain, fatigue, and inflammation all interact with these thresholds — and the miscalibration runs in both directions.

And overall:

Your system is reacting to history, not to the present.

There is some good news. People can refine and refresh their interoceptive skills. And the journey is, actually, enjoyable. Not another dreaded chore.