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How Do You Feel?: An Interoceptive Moment with Your Neurobiological Self
A book that fundamentally changes how neuroscientists and psychologists categorize sensations and understand the origins and significance of human feelings
How Do You Feel? brings together startling evidence from neuroscience, psychology, and psychiatry to present revolutionary new insights into how our brains enable us to experience the range of sensations and mental states known as feelings. Drawing on his own cutting-edge research, neurobiologist Bud Craig has identified an area deep inside the mammalian brain―the insular cortex―as the place where interoception, or the processing of bodily stimuli, generates feelings. He shows how this crucial pathway for interoceptive awareness gives rise in humans to the feeling of being alive, vivid perceptual feelings, and a subjective image of the sentient self across time. Craig explains how feelings represent activity patterns in our brains that signify emotions, intentions, and thoughts, and how integration of these patterns is driven by the unique energy needs of the hominid brain. He describes the essential role of feelings and the insular cortex in such diverse realms as music, fluid intelligence, and bivalent emotions, and relates these ideas to the philosophy of William James and even to feelings in dogs.
How Do You Feel? is also a compelling insider's account of scientific discovery, one that takes readers behind the scenes as the astonishing answer to this neurological puzzle is pursued and pieced together from seemingly unrelated fields of scientific inquiry. This book will fundamentally alter the way that neuroscientists and psychologists categorize sensations and understand the origins and significance of human feelings.
How Do You Feel? brings together startling evidence from neuroscience, psychology, and psychiatry to present revolutionary new insights into how our brains enable us to experience the range of sensations and mental states known as feelings. Drawing on his own cutting-edge research, neurobiologist Bud Craig has identified an area deep inside the mammalian brain―the insular cortex―as the place where interoception, or the processing of bodily stimuli, generates feelings. He shows how this crucial pathway for interoceptive awareness gives rise in humans to the feeling of being alive, vivid perceptual feelings, and a subjective image of the sentient self across time. Craig explains how feelings represent activity patterns in our brains that signify emotions, intentions, and thoughts, and how integration of these patterns is driven by the unique energy needs of the hominid brain. He describes the essential role of feelings and the insular cortex in such diverse realms as music, fluid intelligence, and bivalent emotions, and relates these ideas to the philosophy of William James and even to feelings in dogs.
How Do You Feel? is also a compelling insider's account of scientific discovery, one that takes readers behind the scenes as the astonishing answer to this neurological puzzle is pursued and pieced together from seemingly unrelated fields of scientific inquiry. This book will fundamentally alter the way that neuroscientists and psychologists categorize sensations and understand the origins and significance of human feelings.
384 pages, Hardcover
First published November 1, 2014
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471 people want to read
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October 1, 2021
This book is an excellent resource on the neuroscience of interoception. Unfortunately, I was looking for something more psychologically-oriented. This is focused on the neuroanatomy and physiological functioning. I did learn a lot from it and I will be thinking about how to apply the information to my psychology practice with patients.
The main takeaway for me is that the ability to perceive all the sensations we feel has the purpose of maintaining homeostasis and helping the brain recognize when we do or do not have enough energy to function. The anterior insular cortex and the anterior cingulate cortex apparently integrate the sensations so that an overall assessment of the body's resources can be made. At least, I think that's what the book was trying to convey. The material is quite technical and I'm sure I missed some of the major points.
I liked the fact that the author was frank about what he learned in school and how he became curious about questions that were not included in his textbooks. For example, the focus on sensations that signal pain made him want to research the purpose of pain signals. He realized that there must be deeper reasons for the body and the brain to need a signal, beyond the obvious reason of getting attention to alleviate the pain. So he's been doing this research for years on the underlying reasons for perceiving all our sensations and the neuroanatomy involved. It's actually fascinating stuff.....
The main takeaway for me is that the ability to perceive all the sensations we feel has the purpose of maintaining homeostasis and helping the brain recognize when we do or do not have enough energy to function. The anterior insular cortex and the anterior cingulate cortex apparently integrate the sensations so that an overall assessment of the body's resources can be made. At least, I think that's what the book was trying to convey. The material is quite technical and I'm sure I missed some of the major points.
I liked the fact that the author was frank about what he learned in school and how he became curious about questions that were not included in his textbooks. For example, the focus on sensations that signal pain made him want to research the purpose of pain signals. He realized that there must be deeper reasons for the body and the brain to need a signal, beyond the obvious reason of getting attention to alleviate the pain. So he's been doing this research for years on the underlying reasons for perceiving all our sensations and the neuroanatomy involved. It's actually fascinating stuff.....
Displaying 1 of 1 review