A sensation is a physical experience you can notice, such as warmth, pressure, tingling, tightness, heaviness or movement.
It doesn’t need to be dramatic. It doesn’t need a psychological explanation before it counts.
Start before the story.
"My throat feels tight" is different from "I’m afraid they won’t love me if I disagree."
Both may be relevant. The first is what you notice physically. The second gives it a meaning.
Keeping them distinguishable can make the experience more precise. You can explore the interpretation without requiring the sensation to prove it.
In the guided seven-day books of the Sensual Hero’s Journey, body maps give sensations a place beside written responses. A colour, shape, line or word is enough. You don’t need drawing skills or an impressive inner discovery.
Sometimes noticing what is present is already a different relationship from pushing through it.
Interoception considers sensing information within the body. Body map explains a practical way to record what you notice without making it look like anybody else’s experience.
The International Somatic Movement Education and Therapy Association’s About the Profession introduces the field of learning through bodily awareness. It gives context for sensation as something experienced from within, not only measured from outside.