How prediction error moves through the nervous system — tank, burners, temperature, four gates. The full mechanistic architecture in one diagram. Last updated March 2026.
The Signal Stream UPSTREAM SIGNAL MODEL · INSIDE ATTUNEMENT THE STREAM WHERE WE WORK CAPACITY TANK low volume heats faster fills: sleep · safety · co-regulation · autonomy sympathetic off · parasympathetic on depleted state shown CAPACITY sleep · co-regulation · safety felt autonomy · rest · movement fills the tank · precondition for everything prediction error exceeds threshold sympathetic activates · mobilization begins VALVE OPENS energy siphoned to resolve error CONSTRAINT BURNERS · what the system protects · threats add heat am I safe? VIABILITY body · pain · survival am I connected? BONDS attachment · connection can I act? AGENCY autonomy · choice does this make sense? LOGIC coherence · map integrity ACCOMMODATE sensory load reduction burner threshold mapping environment calibration reduce heat · not avoidance HOT WATER survival · protect prior · no update WARM WATER strategy · some learning available COOL WATER explore · play · update · learning GATE 1 Pressure awareness recruited · valence + arousal · urgency begins "something is here" — before it has a name OUTPUT → FELT PRESSURE ATTUNE turn toward the signal not solving · caring friend not manager pressure not story GATE 2 Movement procedural reflex · pre-conscious · body-first avoidance · fight · seek comfort · freeze · collapse OUTPUT → MOVEMENT STRATEGY GATE 3 Emotion implicit memory · premise · relational expectation what this means about me, you, the world OUTPUT → EMOTIONAL STRATEGY GATE 4 Meaning symbolic · narrative · language · identity the story constructed around what happened OUTPUT → NARRATIVE DECONSTRUCT words · beliefs · premises loosen the map's certainty requires cool water RECONSTRUCT new concepts · education mechanistic frame new categories, not new words what this framework is doing building new predictive architecture tank first · all entry points require sufficient capacity hot water = no access above pressure · attunement is what becomes possible when the others are in place Inside Attunement · Attuned Signal Care Framework · insideattunement.com