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In a scientific context, sensitivity represents the capacity of the nervous system to perceive, process, and integrate signals arriving both from the external environment and from within the organism. This function underlies perception, emotional response, and the subjective quality of experience.

From the perspective of neuroscience, sensitivity is not a passive «reception» of information. It is an active process that includes filtering, prioritization, and integration of sensory signals depending on the current state of the nervous system. Thus, sensitivity is always linked to regulation: it reflects not only which signals are available, but also which of them are allowed into awareness and functional use.

In contrast to the common view of sensitivity as a personality characteristic or a temperamental trait, neuroscience understands it as a dynamic property of regulatory systems, dependent on the state of the nervous system, the level of arousal, and bodily processes. This means that sensitivity can change over the course of life, increasing or decreasing depending on conditions and experience.

Such an approach makes it possible to consider changes in sensitivity not in terms of «character» or «psychological weakness,» but as reflections of the current configuration of regulatory mechanisms.

1.1. Sensory and Interoceptive Components of Sensitivity

Sensitivity includes two interrelated levels: exteroceptive and interoceptive. Exteroception enables perception of signals from the external environment – tactile, visual, auditory, and thermal. These signals allow spatial orientation, interaction with objects and other people, and assessment of contextual changes.

Interoception is associated with the perception of internal signals – breathing, heart rate, muscle tone, visceral sensations, and changes in temperature and pressure within the body¹. It forms the basis of the subjective sense of «I exist» and underlies bodily self-awareness.

Contemporary research shows that interoception plays a key role in the formation of emotional states, motivation, and subjective well-being². In this framework, emotions are not viewed as abstract psychological phenomena, but as interpretations of bodily states.

Reduced interoceptive sensitivity correlates with emotional flatness, difficulties in recognizing one’s own states (alexithymia), diminished capacity for pleasure, and weakening of motivational processes³. At the same time, exteroceptive sensitivity may be partially preserved, creating the illusion of «normal» functioning despite a deep reduction in bodily contact.

1.2. The Regulatory Role of Sensitivity

Sensitivity performs a central regulatory function by enabling the nervous system to respond in a timely manner to changes in internal and external conditions. Through sensitivity, feedback is formed that is necessary for adaptation, learning, and recovery.

With a sufficient level of sensitivity, the nervous system is able to:

– distinguish between safe and threatening signals;

– modulate levels of arousal in accordance with context;

– maintain a balance between activity and recovery;

– adjust behavior before overload occurs.

In this sense, sensitivity is not an «additional» function, but a fundamental prerequisite for self-regulation. Without adequate sensory and interoceptive feedback, the nervous system loses the ability to fine-tune its responses.

A reduction in sensitivity disrupts these processes, leading to a narrowing of the range of states and a decrease in regulatory flexibility. The organism begins to function in generalized modes – either excessive activation or suppression – losing the capacity for nuanced adjustment.

1.3. Adaptive Reduction of Sensitivity

It is important to emphasize that reduced sensitivity is not a random or pathological process. It represents an adaptive response of the nervous system to overload. Under conditions of chronic stress, prolonged tension, or lack of opportunities for recovery, decreasing the flow of sensory and interoceptive information helps reduce the load on regulatory mechanisms⁴.

From a neurophysiological perspective, this is accompanied by changes in sensory processing thresholds, reduced activity in interoceptive cortical regions, and усиление filtering of incoming signals. The nervous system effectively «narrows the perceptual channel» in order to maintain functionality under unfavorable conditions.

Such dampening of perception may be functional and even necessary at certain stages. It allows continued action, work, and social functioning despite limited resources.

However, when maintained over time, this mode begins to restrict the quality of experience, reducing the capacity for pleasure, curiosity, and recovery. Sensitivity no longer returns automatically even after external load decreases, because the regulatory system itself has adapted to a resource-conservation mode.

1.4. Bodily Foundations of Sensitivity

Sensitivity does not exist independently of the body. It relies on bodily structures – cutaneous and fascial receptors, proprioceptive pathways, muscle tone, breathing, and postural patterns. Through the body, the primary registration of most signals occurs, on the basis of which subjective experience is formed.

Changes in bodily regulation directly affect the availability of sensations. Chronic muscular tension, restricted breathing, or reduced tissue mobility decrease the flow of afferent information entering the central nervous system⁵.

In this context, sensitivity cannot be «restored» solely through cognitive work or increased attentional focus. Without restoring bodily accessibility, the nervous system does not physically receive a sufficient volume of information to expand the experiential range.

The NeuroWave method considers work with bodily patterns a necessary condition for restoring sensitivity. In this approach, bodily work is not aimed at intensifying sensations, but at restoring the conditions under which sensations can arise and be integrated without overload.

1.5. Sensitivity and the Quality of Experience

The quality of experience is determined not by the intensity of emotions, but by their differentiation, coherence, and rootedness in bodily experience. With restored sensitivity, a person is able to distinguish subtle nuances of states, notice transitions between them, and respond with greater precision and economy.

This quality of experience is associated with a sense of aliveness, engagement, and subjective richness of life, but not necessarily with strong or extreme emotions. On the contrary, excessive intensity is often a sign of dysregulation rather than heightened sensitivity.

In this context, the loss of pleasure and emotional richness can be understood not as a personal «deficit,» but as a consequence of changes in the regulatory processes of the nervous system. Restoring sensitivity becomes not an end in itself, but a result of restoring regulation and bodily accessibility.

In the following chapters, it will be examined in detail how loss of pleasure, emotional flatness, and reduced motivation can be understood as consequences of neurophysiological processes, and how the NeuroWave method creates conditions for the gradual return of sensitivity without forcing or overload.

REFERENCES FOR CHAPTER 1

– Craig, A. D. Interoception and emotion. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 2002.

– Critchley, H. D., Harrison, N. A. Visceral influences on brain and behavior. Neuron, 2013.

– Herbert, B. M., Pollatos, O. Interoceptive sensitivity and emotion processing. Biological Psychology, 2012.

– McEwen, B. Allostatic load and the costs of chronic stress. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1998.

– Damasio, A. The Feeling of What Happens. Harcourt Brace, 1999.

– Khalsa, S. et al. Interoception and mental health. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 2018.

– Porges, S. The Polyvagal Theory. Norton, 2011.

– Treadway, M. T., Zald, D. H. Reconsidering anhedonia in depression. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 2011.

– Volkow, N. D., Baler, R. D. NOW vs LATER brain circuits. American Journal of Psychiatry, 2015.