Hey everyone, Kelly Mahler, occupational therapist, and I am really excited to share something with all of you. It’s something that’s really near and dear to my heart. We have been working on an interoception apparel line. If you’re not familiar with interoception, it is the sense of how our body feels, and this apparel line celebrates the diversity of the felt experience, how we are all so different, and it also champions inner curiosity and inner validation. I wanted to take the time to explain the 9 designs that we are releasing on t-shirts and let you know a little bit behind the scenes of what each of these designs means to me.
Design #1: We All Have Different Inner Feels
Design #2 is “We All Have Different Inner Feels.” I’m starting out with one of my favorites because this is a reflection of all that we have learned in the last decade with our interoception work. That is just how different each of our bodies feel. So what your body feels like when you’re tired or thirsty or happy is likely different than what my body feels like. And that’s okay. So this shirt is just a way of saying, I honor your unique experience and I hope that you’ll honor mine. It’s a celebration of the beautiful diversity in all of our felt experiences.
Design #2: There is No Wrong Way to Feel
Design #2 is “There is No Wrong Way to Feel.” This design reminds us that there’s no universal way to feel. There’s no single footprint of the way an emotion should feel in our bodies. There’s no correct experience. Our experience is what is correct and true for us. And my interception work is all about helping people discover their own unique inner feels and embrace their body’s authentic signals. So this shirt is a statement that your experience is valid and it invites others to explore and trust their own bodily truth. There’s no wrong way to feel.
Design #3: Compliance Dims the Light and Interoception Shines it Bright
Design #3 is “Compliance Dims the Light and Interoception Shines it Bright.” This design is really a call to action. It’s speaking out against compliance that we know silences our inner voice many times, and compliance teaches us to prioritize external rewards over our own body needs. And really, interception work is quite different. It’s quite the opposite of compliance, and that’s it really offers us a brighter path. It helps us to discover our body signals and really start to think of them as valid and worthy. This interoception apparel is about embracing our inner experience and letting our light shine and knowing you don’t need to earn your worth or comfort.
Design #4: Your Inner Experience is Correct and Valid
Design #4 is “Your Inner Experience is Correct and Valid” and I don’t know about you, but sometimes I just need to hear it. What I’m feeling is correct and what I’m feeling is very valid. It’s worthy of somebody else’s attention and acknowledgement. This shirt serves as a reminder that your feelings are valid, they’re meaningful. No matter how the world may try to dismiss them or ignore them or misinterpret them, it’s all about embracing your own experience while extending compassion to others as well. Honoring the unique ways we all experience the world and trust the signals our body sends us.
Design #5: Use Curiosity, Not Compliance
Design #5 is “Use Curiosity, Not Compliance.” And this design is really inviting us to trade control that we often use in compliance and trading that for understanding the deeper why behind the behavior we might see. Oftentimes compliance asks another person to suppress their instincts, their inner needs, and conform to our demands. But really curiosity is quite the opposite, and that’s really where it encourages us to ask questions, to think deeply, to explore the why’s and to really understand a person’s interceptive experience. This shirt is a reminder to replace that compliance with inquiry and replace that discipline with discovery. It’s really the shirt stands for connection, compassion, not only for other people, but also for ourselves. So wear the shirt as a symbol for a kinder, more empowering world design.
Design #6: Body Wisdom Over Behavior System
Design #6 is “Body Wisdom Over Behavior System” and what this design is all about, it’s really speaking to that powerful shift that I’m really passionate about. And it’s really from going away from ignoring a person’s inner experience, really relying on external systems to control behavior like sticker charts or token boards to really shifting to a place where we’re attempting to understand and value what another person’s body is telling us. And it’s not just about our clients, it’s not just about our students, it’s also about us. When we explore our body signals or when anyone explores their body signals and they learn what their body signals uniquely mean for them and what their bodies uniquely need for comfort and felt safety, that’s really where the power comes, that self-awareness, that growth, and dare I say, behavior change. This shirt is a reminder that lasting change doesn’t come from external control, it comes from within. It comes from trusting and understanding our body’s wisdom design.
Design #7: Inner Curiosity
Design #7 is “Inner Curiosity.” I love this design because it’s simply stated and it’s really all about that internal exploration. Really just I guess being curious about what’s happening inside us, inside other people. It’s such a powerful way to learn about ourselves and others, to be able to grow, to be able to connect, to also be able to be compassionate to our own bodies and the bodies of other people. This shirt serves as a celebration that curiosity can bring, and it really invites other people to join us on this interception journey.
Design #8: Retro Interoception
Design #8 is a “Retro Interoception” design, and one of my clients requested a retro interoception apparel design. So this design is dedicated to her. You know who you are. I love the idea of a retro design because it can be a nod to the past while looking towards the future. We’ve learned so much about interception over the last decade or two, but we have so much more to go and so much more to learn. And honestly, I don’t know if interceptions ever going to go out of style. It’s all about honoring that timeless importance of tuning into our bodies and using that awareness to live as authentically as possible. Interception is really where it’s at, and it shouldn’t be a privileged experience. It should be an experience that we all have access to, to be able to move through this world in a way where our bodies feel safe and comfortable and regulated to be able to act in a way that honors our body’s needs.
Design #9: Be the Reason Someone Knows Their Inner Experience Matters
Design #9 is “Be the Reason Someone Knows Their Inner Experience Matters.” This one just really gets me every time. This design just speaks to the importance of interoception and interoception work. Too many people face daily interoceptive invalidation, having their inner worlds dismissed, misunderstood gaslighted. And so by wearing the shirt you’re saying, I see you, your body signals matter. It’s that step towards a world where everyone’s inner experience is honored and valued, and I hope I see that in my lifetime.
So there it is–our first round of interoception apparel! The 9 designs that we currently are offering. All on short sleeve t-shirts, a variety of different colors. We’d love to hear from you–which is your favorite design? Hopefully this interoception apparel can really help us spark conversations about the topic and remind us all that our inner experience is really what matters.
Until next time.