{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,30]],"date-time":"2026-08-30T19:43:10Z","timestamp":1788118990359,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,11]],"date-time":"2026-03-11T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1773187200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Postdoctoral Research Station in Education, Guangzhou University","award":["GZHUSE2024053"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["GZHUSE2024053"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Behavioral Sciences"],"abstract":"<jats:p>This qualitative study examined how a 21-day integrated program fosters interoceptive awareness and mind\u2013body integration among urban adults in mainland China (n = 11). The intervention combined daily nasal breathing regulation, spontaneous mandala making, and descriptive journaling, complemented by weekly group sharing. Using a cultural\u2013psychological lens, we investigated how an inward\u2013turning tradition in Chinese culture shapes embodied experience and meaning\u2013making. Applying Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to diaries, drawings, and focus-group data, we identified three interrelated processes: (1) the refinement of bodily attention; (2) a shift from deliberate control to natural immersion; and (3) the symbolization of feeling through artistic expression and social resonance. Findings indicate that systematic engagement in the \u201cbreath\u2013mandala\u201d intervention heightened sensitivity to chest-centered embodied sensations and promoted the integration of bodily experience into personal narratives; a non-goal-directed, relaxed practice style facilitated the transition from control to absorption, activating self-regulatory mechanisms; and non-evaluative awareness deepened flow while supporting cognitive reorganization and reflective capacity. The study delineates a core pathway by which breath-triggered interoceptive work operates within mind\u2013body interventions, offering a theoretical basis and practical direction for tailored regulation programs across diverse populations.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/bs16030411","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,11]],"date-time":"2026-03-11T14:43:18Z","timestamp":1773240198000},"page":"411","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Understanding Mind\u2013Body Experience from the Perspective of Interoceptive Awareness: A 21-Day Embodied Practice Intervention"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0006-2060-9157","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Zixi","family":"Liu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Education (Teachers College), Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0007-1969-9375","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Zhen","family":"Wu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Mental Health Education and Counseling, Guangzhou HuaLi Science and Technology Vocational College, Guangzhou 511325, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jingchao","family":"Zeng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychosocial and Psychoanalytic Studies, University of Essex, Colchester CO4 3SQ, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0008-5062-685X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Haosheng","family":"Ye","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Education (Teachers College), Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,11]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"9","DOI":"10.7575\/aiac.ijels.v.5n.2p.9","article-title":"The interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA): A guide to a good qualitative research approach","volume":"5","author":"Alase","year":"2017","journal-title":"International Journal of Education and Literacy Studies"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"214","DOI":"10.1080\/14780880802314304","article-title":"Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA): A qualitative methodology of choice in healthcare research","volume":"5","author":"Biggerstaff","year":"2008","journal-title":"Qualitative Research in Psychology"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"697","DOI":"10.1097\/00006842-200109000-00001","article-title":"Interoception: The inside story\u2014A model for psychosomatic processes","volume":"63","author":"Cameron","year":"2001","journal-title":"Psychosomatic Medicine"},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1795","DOI":"10.3758\/s13415-025-01328-7","article-title":"The relationship between interoception of breathing, anxiety, and resting-state functional connectivity in the brain","volume":"25","author":"Chemis","year":"2025","journal-title":"Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"542","DOI":"10.1002\/smi.2887","article-title":"Understanding mind\u2013body disciplines: A pilot study of paced breathing and dynamic muscle contraction on autonomic nervous system reactivity","volume":"35","author":"Chin","year":"2019","journal-title":"Stress and Health"},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Clark, A. 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