When the brain does not adequately feel the body: Links between low resilience and interoception

Lori Haase; Jennifer L Stewart; Brittany Youssef; April C May; Sara Isakovic; Alan N Simmons; Douglas C Johnson; Eric G Potterat; Martin P Paulus

doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2015.11.004

When the brain does not adequately feel the body: Links between low resilience and interoception

Biol Psychol. 2016 Jan:113:37-45. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2015.11.004. Epub 2015 Nov 28.

Authors

Lori Haase¹, Jennifer L Stewart², Brittany Youssef³, April C May⁴, Sara Isakovic⁵, Alan N Simmons⁶, Douglas C Johnson⁷, Eric G Potterat⁸, Martin P Paulus⁹

Affiliations

¹ Psychiatry Department, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0603, USA. Electronic address: lhaase@ucsd.edu.
² Psychology Department, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, NY 11367, USA. Electronic address: jennifer.stewart@qc.cuny.edu.
³ Psychiatry Department, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0603, USA. Electronic address: byoussef@ucsd.edu.
⁴ Psychiatry Department, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0603, USA. Electronic address: acmay@ucsd.edu.
⁵ Psychiatry Department, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0603, USA. Electronic address: sara.isakovic@gmail.com.
⁶ Psychiatry Department, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0603, USA; Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, 3350 La Jolla Village Drive, San Diego, CA 92161, USA. Electronic address: ansimmons@ucsd.edu.
⁷ Psychiatry Department, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0603, USA; Warfighter Performance Department, Naval Health Research Center, 140 Sylvester Road, San Diego, CA 92106-3521, USA. Electronic address: dcj002@ucsd.edu.
⁸ Naval Special Warfare Command, 2000 Trident Way, San Diego, CA 92155-5599, USA. Electronic address: eric.potterat@navsoc.socom.mil.
⁹ Psychiatry Department, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0603, USA; Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, 3350 La Jolla Village Drive, San Diego, CA 92161, USA. Electronic address: mpaulus@ucsd.edu.

Abstract

This study examined neural processes of resilience during aversive interoceptive processing. Forty-six individuals were divided into three groups of resilience Low (LowRes), high (HighRes), and normal (NormRes), based on the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (2003). Participants then completed a task involving anticipation and experience of loaded breathing during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) recording. Compared to HighRes and NormRes groups, LowRes self-reported lower levels of interoceptive awareness and demonstrated higher insular and thalamic activation across anticipation and breathing load conditions. Thus, individuals with lower resilience show reduced attention to bodily signals but greater neural processing to aversive bodily perturbations. In low resilient individuals, this mismatch between attention to and processing of interoceptive afferents may result in poor adaptation in stressful situations.

Keywords: Insula; Interoception; Resilience; fMRI.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

Adult
Attention / physiology
Awareness
Brain / physiology*
Carbon Dioxide / blood
Cerebral Cortex / physiology
Female
Humans
Interoception / physiology*
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Neuroimaging
Neuropsychological Tests
Psychomotor Performance / physiology
Resilience, Psychological*
Respiratory Mechanics / physiology
Thalamus / physiology
Young Adult

Substances

Carbon Dioxide

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

Grants and funding