Paying attention to body sensations has been associated with many positive outcomes such as increased subjective well-being, enhanced emotion regulation, and reduced symptom reports. Furthermore, body awareness has an important therapeutic utility in the treatment of various psychological ailments. Despite its importance in mental health, there is very little research on body awareness during adolescence and young adulthood - important developmental periods characterized by bodily changes and the development of one\'s relationship to one\'s body. Therefore, the present qualitative study sought to explore how body awareness is understood, experienced, and described by adolescents and young adults. Four online focus groups were conducted with young people between the ages of 14 and 24 (N = 20). Thematic analyses revealed a multidimensional and highly contextualized understanding and experience of body awareness in this age group. In general, young people reported mainly attending to intense and unpleasant body sensations with a particular attitude (e.g., accepting or avoidant) depending on the type of sensation, leading to a variety of cognitive, emotional, and behavioral reactions to these sensations. These processes were embedded in an underlying schema of beliefs about body awareness and an overarching physical and socio-cultural context. Results further revealed a more nuanced experience and understanding of body awareness in women and in young adults. The present findings can be used as a foundation for the development of body awareness theoretical frameworks and self-report instruments for youth and can aid the generating of hypotheses for future research on body awareness in this age group.

OBJECTIVE: WATSU (Water-Shiatsu) is a body-oriented therapy in warm-water pool with passive movements, massage and breathing techniques. The present study investigated the short-term effect of a single session of WATSU on body awareness.
METHODS: In a randomized-controlled study 60 volunteers (18-65 years) were assigned to a 20-min intervention of WATSU or to a 20-min lecture on WATSU. Immediately before and after the intervention they had to answer questionnaires. Primary endpoint of the investigation was the change of the total score of the non-verbal Awareness Body Chart (ABC). Secondary endpoints were the changes of the scores of the 14 single body parts of the ABC, of the Visual Analogue Pain Scale, of a German self-perception questionnaire (KEKS) and changes in mood scored with a German questionnaire on mood (Bf-SR). To compare groups, Mann-Whitney U tests were used.
RESULTS: The WATSU group had a significantly higher increase in the ABC total score in comparison to the lecture group (WATSU: 0.3 (IQR 0 - 0.8), lecture: 0.1 (IQR -0.2 - 0.2), p = 0.014). In the KEKS no group differences were seen. In WATSU a significantly stronger improvement of pain (Visual Analogue Pain Scale: WATSU: -15 (IQR -29 to -8), lecture: -4 (IQR -9 - 2), p < 0.001) and of mood (Bf-SR: WATSU: -6 (IQR -14 to -2), lecture: -1 (IQR -5 - 1), p = 0.003) could be observed.
CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that WATSU immediately increases body awareness and improves pain and mood.

Endometriosis-related pain may be associated with depressive symptoms. Although a growing body of evidence supports this association, the underlying mechanisms are still largely unclear. Impaired perceptions of bodily external and internal stimuli may be involved in this process. This study aims to assess the mediating role of 2 facets of interoception-the awareness of negative body signals and interoceptive self-regulation-in the association between pain severity and depressive symptoms among women with endometriosis. A total of 301 patients who reported a diagnosis of endometriosis were recruited from an endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain outpatient university clinic and through patient associations and completed self-reported instruments. A parallel mediation analysis was conducted. Almost half of women (48.2%) reported depressive symptoms above the self-rating scale cutoff values. Pain severity significantly predicted depressive symptoms (β = .39, 95% bootstrap confidence interval [CI] [.719, 1.333]). Negative body awareness (β = .121, 95% bootstrap CI [.174, .468]) and interoceptive self-regulation (β = .05, 95% bootstrap CI [.035, .252]) partially mediated this relationship. Our findings indicated that pain may interfere with the perception of the body as a source of calmness and safety, limiting the individual\'s ability to effectively regulate emotions. Future research should further explore these mechanisms and evaluate the efficacy of interventions focusing on interoceptive sensibility to enhance the psychological well-being of endometriosis patients. PERSPECTIVE: This article investigates for the first time the potential role of 2 facets of interoceptive sensibility in the relationship between pain severity and depressive symptoms in women with endometriosis. These findings may contribute to advancing knowledge about the mechanisms involved in the complex pain-depression cycle.

UNASSIGNED: To assess pain outcomes, stress levels and body awareness among patients with chronic pain and explore potential associations between these variables.
UNASSIGNED: An explorative study.
UNASSIGNED: Patients with chronic pain in primary and specialist care were assessed regarding pain intensity using the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS; 0-10 point scale) and stress levels using the Stress and Crisis Inventory (SCI-93; 0-140). To assess body awareness, multidimensional assessment of interoceptive awareness (MAIA; 0-5), a widely used self-report measure of interoceptive bodily awareness was used.
UNASSIGNED: Participants (n = 42) reported an average NRS of 4.4, elevated stress levels and low body awareness. Stress levels were moderately correlated with pain intensity (r = 0.53; p < 0.001; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.25-0.72) and number of pain sites (r = 0.58; p < 0.001; 95% CI 0.32-0.76). The regression analysis showed that pain outcomes predicted stress level scores and explained almost 50% of variance (R 2 = 0.47, p < 0.001). Moreover, shorter pain duration predicted a higher body awareness (p = 0.04).
UNASSIGNED: In patients with chronic pain, high pain intensity and multiple painful sites seem to be associated with impaired stress regulation. The patients had low body awareness, which was negatively influenced by pain duration.

Exploring a novel approach to mental health technology, this study illuminates the intricate interplay between exteroception (the perception of the external world), and interoception (the perception of the internal world). Drawing on principles of sensory substitution, we investigated how interoceptive signals, particularly respiration, could be conveyed through exteroceptive modalities, namely vision and hearing. To this end, we developed a unique, immersive multisensory environment that translates respiratory signals in real-time into dynamic visual and auditory stimuli. The system was evaluated by employing a battery of various psychological assessments, with the findings indicating a significant increase in participants\' interoceptive sensibility and an enhancement of the state of flow, signifying immersive and positive engagement with the experience. Furthermore, a correlation between these two variables emerged, revealing a bidirectional enhancement between the state of flow and interoceptive sensibility. Our research is the first to present a sensory substitution approach for substituting between interoceptive and exteroceptive senses, and specifically as a transformative method for mental health interventions, paving the way for future research.

BACKGROUND: Following a stroke, patients may suffer from alterations in the perception of their own body due to an acquired deficit in body representations. While such changes may impact their quality of life as well as recovery, they are not systematically assessed in clinical practice. This study aims at providing a better understanding of the rate, evolution, and impact on recovery of upper limb (UL) body perceptions (BPs) alterations following stroke. In addition, we will investigate associations among BPs alterations items, their associations with the sensorimotor functions, UL activity, damages in brain structure and connectivity.
METHODS: We developed a new tool named ALPQ (for Affected Limb Perception Questionnaire) to address the present study objectives. It assesses subjective alterations in the perception of the affected UL following stroke, by measuring several dimensions, namely: anosognosia for hemiplegia, anosodiaphoria for hemiplegia, hemiasomatognosia, somatoparaphrenia, personification of the affected limb, illusion of modification of physical characteristics (temperature, weight, length), illusory movements, super- or undernumerary limb, UL disconnection, misoplegia, and involuntary movement. This study combines a cross-sectional and longitudinal design. The completed data sample will include a minimum of 60 acute and 100 sub-acute stroke patients. When possible, patients are followed up to the chronic stage. Complementary evaluations are administered to assess patients\' sensorimotor and cognitive functions as well as UL activity, and brain lesions will be analysed.
CONCLUSIONS: This study will provide a better understanding of BPs alterations following stroke: their rate and evolution, as well as their associations with sensorimotor deficit, cognitive profile and UL activity, brain lesions and recovery. Ultimately, the results could support the personalization of rehabilitation strategy according to patients\' UL perception to maximize their recovery.
BACKGROUND: The protocol for this study has been pre-registered on the Open Science Framework on July the 7th, 2021: https://osf.io/p6v7f .

In this study, binary logistic regression and linear regression analyses were used to examine the relationship between interoceptive body awareness and suicidal orientation among Colombian university students. Additionally, the bootstrap technique was employed to resample and estimate the distribution of the data. The results support the idea that greater interoceptive awareness may protect against suicidal orientation by improving emotional regulation. An inverse relationship was found between interoceptive awareness and suicidal ideation. These findings align with previous literature emphasizing the importance of body awareness for emotional well-being. Further longitudinal research is needed to explore this relationship more deeply.

UNASSIGNED: The aim of this study was to describe chronic pain patients\' perception of their physical function and treatment factors for improving or maintaining physical function long-term after the completion of an Interdisciplinary Pain Rehabilitation Program (IPRP) and to compare physical function before, directly after and at long-term follow-up (16-20 months after treatment).
UNASSIGNED: Patients with severe nonmalignant chronic pain, participating in an IPRP at a specialist clinic, were eligible for inclusion in a convergent mixed methods study. Quantitative data included aerobic capacity, level of physical activity (PA) and self-efficacy for exercise. Qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews.
UNASSIGNED: The qualitative analysis resulted in one theme: Orientation change and two categories: Permission to feel self-worth and Reclaiming life, which illuminated factors that enabled a sustained increase in PA. The quantitative data (n = 11) showed a significantly increased maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) from 2.46 l/min (SD = 0.9) at baseline to 2.63 l/min (SD = 0.9, p = .03) on completion of the program. VO2max was sustained at long-term follow-up (2.56 l/min (SD = 1.0, p = .24).
UNASSIGNED: This study indicates that an orientation change process through an IPRP can lead to increased physical function and a sustainable level of PA. Furthermore, it highlights the importance of a person-centered approach to enable sustainable change in patients with chronic pain.

BACKGROUND: The pain-neuroscience literature has recently emphasized body perception or awareness. Impaired body perception results have been reported in many different chronic pain problems. Studies have reported that individuals with low back pain (LBP) also have body perception disturbances related to the lumbar spine.
OBJECTIVE: This review aimed to determine the evidence that body awareness alterations in individuals with LBP.
METHODS: Systematic review.
METHODS: Studies were searched in PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Pedro databases up to January 2021. Each database was searched independently, according to a specific iteration research string. The protocol record of the systematic review was entered into the PROSPERO system.
RESULTS: Nine studies were included in this research. We found evidence to support more perceptual impairments in patients with LBP than healthy counterparts. In addition, the results of the studies showed an association between disrupted body awareness and pain severity, pain catastrophizing, and disability.
CONCLUSIONS: Body perception disturbances in LBP seem to be a promising path that needs to be further explored, with the ultimate goal of developing treatment contents targeting body awareness as a more comprehensive and valid evaluation and therapeutic method.
BACKGROUND: The registration number was CRD42021235934.

In the last two decades, the scientific literature on so-called body representations has been increasing, and the notion of body awareness (BA) is particularly interesting for neurorehabilitation. In this article, we present results derived from recent studies on this representation, considering the different definitions and explicative models proposed as well as the empirical settings used to test it, providing an extensive overview of these issues. This article discusses the challenge of understanding how we integrate the sensory experiences of proprioception (knowing where our body is in space) and interoception (sensing internal bodily sensations, like hunger of thirst) with our perception of self. This is a difficult problem to analyze because our awareness of our body is inherently linked to our perspective, since the body is the means through which we interact with the world. Presenting the different viewpoints offered by recent theories on this concern, we highlighted that the neurorehabilitation and psychiatric settings offer two important fields useful for the study of BA because in them it is possible to analyze bodily representations by inducing/observing a controlled discrepancy between dysfunctional content and sensory inputs.