Transformation Journey: Intuition – How you can perceive, sense and learn how to trust yourself again in an increasingly busy world

In today’s world, many of us live under constant pressure to perform, to prove ourselves, and to be “good enough.” We are taught to focus outwardly — on schedules, institutions, expectations, and external validation — and in doing so, we often lose touch with our inner voice, our intuition, and our deepest sense of self. Neglecting this inner knowing can make us forget who we truly are, what we want, and what is most meaningful to us. It can also weaken our self‑trust — the confidence that we can make wise decisions not only through logic, but through felt understanding and embodied experience. Reconnecting with intuition is therefore a vital part of holistic growth and healthy decision‑making.

Contemporary research in psychology and neuroscience describes intuition not as a vague “gut feeling,” but as a real cognitive process rooted in the brain’s capacity for rapid, nonconscious pattern detection. Intuitive cognition often operates in parallel with slower analytical thinking; it draws on implicit learning, memory, and emotional appraisal to generate swift, meaningful tendencies toward decisions or actions without deliberate reasoning (Pretz et al., 2014). Dual‑process theories suggest that intuitive processes arise automatically and nonconsciously, while analytical reasoning is slower and deliberative (Goel et al., 2023). Neuroimaging research supports this distinction, showing that intuitive judgments involve widespread neural networks — including areas such as the insula — which integrate bodily and affective information with higher‑order cognition (Volz et al., 2007). This evidence frames intuition as an embodied integration of experience and sensation that contributes to meaningful judgment and choice in real time. Studies also show that intuition overlaps with states of deep engagement such as flow, where nonconscious processing and action harmonise and insight arises through immersive performance rather than deliberate analysis (Parvizi‑Wayne et al., 2025). This supports a systemic view of intuition as a functional, embodied process influencing conscious experience and behaviour.

Despite these natural capacities, intuition often becomes muted as we grow older. In early life, children engage the world with openness, curiosity, and embodied awareness. Over time, however, the demands of structured life — rigid schedules, social norms, and pressures to conform — teach us to prioritise external validation over internal guidance. Clarissa Pinkola Estés, in Women Who Run with the Wolves, describes how modern civilisation marginalises the instinctual and intuitive self by privileging socially conditioned behaviours and rational control at the expense of bodily wisdom and inner signals. Intuition, she suggests, is a vital survival skill that becomes suppressed when we ignore our internal cues in favour of performance and conformity (Estés, 1992/2008).

In addition to social conditioning and external pressures, our modern environment presents another challenge to intuition: distraction. Smartphones, social media, constant notifications, and an always‑on culture compete for our attention in ways that fragment our concentration and reduce our capacity for inner awareness. Research shows that mobile phones and their constant stimuli create cognitive demand that can lead to lapses in attention and difficulty processing multiple streams of information at once (David et al., 2015; Woodlief et al., 2024). Habitual smartphone use has been linked with lower levels of mindfulness and higher impulsivity, impairing sustained attention and increasing susceptibility to distraction (Kim et al., 2024). Even when a phone is merely present nearby, it can detract from cognitive capacity and weaken focus on current tasks (Ward et al., as discussed in Psychology Today coverage, 2024). This constant competition for attention — between internal states and external cues — not only reduces concentration but also diminishes our ability to tune into bodily sensations, subtle feelings, and intuitive signals. In a sense, the “popcorn brain” phenomenon described by psychologists — where the brain becomes conditioned to frequent stimuli and short bursts of information — reflects how digital overload shortens attention spans and weakens deeper engagement with our inner world (Real Simple feature on cognitive load, 2024).

This constant distraction makes it harder for us to be present with ourselves. When we are continuously pulled outward — scrolling, switching tasks, responding to alerts — we have little space to notice the quiet, embodied signals that intuition produces. Instead of tuning into inner sensations, we remain in a reactive mode, scanning for external input, cueing reward pathways tied to social media feedback, and reinforcing patterns of external validation over internal attunement.

Reconnecting with intuition therefore means learning to notice and regulate distraction. Bringing mindful awareness back to bodily sensations, breath, and present‑moment experience helps counteract the fragmented attention cultivated by digital and social pressures. When we pay attention to bodily signals — such as tension, warmth, ease, or unease — and to the intuitive impressions that arise, we create space to notice what has been pushed out of conscious awareness. These sensations can reveal unmet needs, unspoken longings, or emotions that have been overshadowed by the habit of disregarding internal experience. In this way, intuition becomes a bridge between body, mind, and consciousness: an embodied process through which suppressed parts of ourselves can be acknowledged, understood, and integrated.

To cultivate this reconnection, set aside time daily to sit quietly or walk with attention to your breath, bodily sensations, and subtle impulses without judgment. Notice the “hunches” or feelings that arise before your thinking mind intervenes, and observe them with curiosity. In your journal, capture moments where you notice intuitive signals: describe what you felt in your body, what insight arose, and whether you honoured or dismissed it. Reflect on how external expectations — performance, perfectionism, social pressure, and constant digital stimuli — may distract you from listening to your inner voice, and explore how you might prioritise embodied awareness alongside analytical thinking.

As you write, consider questions such as: When did I notice a bodily signal or intuitive sense today, and how did it feel? How did I respond — did I trust it, doubt it, or override it with logic? What patterns emerge when I reflect on times I ignored my inner knowing? In what areas of my life do I feel most pulled outward by distraction, and how does that affect my trust in intuition? What sensations, impulses, or emotions have I been suppressing, and what might they be trying to tell me? What steps can I take to reduce distraction and increase present‑moment awareness? Over time, these reflections will help you reclaim a deeper relationship with yourself. Intuition is not a mysterious gift, but a natural, embodied process arising from nonconscious pattern recognition, emotional appraisal, and lived experience. By attending to it and reducing distraction, you strengthen your self‑trust, reconnect with your body, and uncover what has been repressed, allowing for more grounded, integrated decision‑making, creativity, and meaningful action.

References:

David, M. E., Roberts, J. A., & Yang, S. (2015). The psychology of mobile phone distraction. Frontiers in Psychology. Retrieved from https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.612127/full (Frontiers)

Estés, C. P. (1992/2008). Women Who Run with the Wolves: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype. Ballantine Books.

Goel, V., et al. (2023). Neural differentiation of intuitive and deliberate reasoning: evidence from neuropsychological research. Behavioural Sciences, 14(11), 1028. (PubMed)

Kim, M., Seong, G., Jeon, M.‑J., Jung, Y.‑C., Lee, D., et al. (2024). The mediating effect of attentional impulsivity between mindfulness and problematic smartphone use. BMC Psychiatry. (PMC)

Parvizi‑Wayne, D., et al. (2025). Flow and intuition: a systems neuroscience comparison. Neuroscience of Consciousness. (PubMed)

Pretz, J. E., Brookings, J. B., Carlson, L., Humbert, J., & Roy‑Jones, T. (2014). Intuition in decision making: holistic, implicit processes. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making. (PubMed)

Volz, K. G., et al. (2007). Neural processes underlying intuitive judgments: evidence from fMRI. NeuroImage. (PubMed)

Woodlief, D., Taylor, S. G., Fuller, M., et al. (2024). Smartphone use and mindfulness: empirical tests of a hypothesized connection. Mindfulness, 15, 1119–1135. (Springer Nature Link)