diff --git a/src/timmy/cognitive_state.py b/src/timmy/cognitive_state.py
index 2ec2450..f88a8b0 100644
--- a/src/timmy/cognitive_state.py
+++ b/src/timmy/cognitive_state.py
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ WebSocket relay.  The old ``~/.tower/timmy-state.txt`` file has been
 deprecated (see #384).
 """
 
+import asyncio
 import json
 import logging
 from dataclasses import asdict, dataclass, field
@@ -169,9 +170,14 @@ class CognitiveTracker:
         """Update cognitive state from a chat exchange.
 
         Called after each chat round-trip in ``session.py``.
+        Emits a ``cognitive_state_changed`` event to the sensory bus so
+        downstream consumers (WorkshopHeartbeat, etc.) react immediately.
         """
         confidence = estimate_confidence(response)
 
+        prev_mood = self.state.mood
+        prev_engagement = self.state.engagement
+
         # Track running confidence average
         self.state._confidence_sum += confidence
         self.state._confidence_count += 1
@@ -193,8 +199,40 @@ class CognitiveTracker:
                     seen.add(c)
             self.state.active_commitments = self.state.active_commitments[-5:]
 
+        # Emit cognitive_state_changed to close the sense → react loop
+        self._emit_change(prev_mood, prev_engagement)
+
         return self.state
 
+    def _emit_change(self, prev_mood: str, prev_engagement: str) -> None:
+        """Fire-and-forget sensory event for cognitive state change."""
+        try:
+            from timmy.event_bus import get_sensory_bus
+            from timmy.events import SensoryEvent
+
+            event = SensoryEvent(
+                source="cognitive",
+                event_type="cognitive_state_changed",
+                data={
+                    "mood": self.state.mood,
+                    "engagement": self.state.engagement,
+                    "focus_topic": self.state.focus_topic or "",
+                    "depth": self.state.conversation_depth,
+                    "mood_changed": self.state.mood != prev_mood,
+                    "engagement_changed": self.state.engagement != prev_engagement,
+                },
+            )
+            bus = get_sensory_bus()
+            # Fire-and-forget — don't block the chat response
+            try:
+                loop = asyncio.get_running_loop()
+                loop.create_task(bus.emit(event))
+            except RuntimeError:
+                # No running loop (sync context / tests) — skip emission
+                pass
+        except Exception as exc:
+            logger.debug("Cognitive event emission skipped: %s", exc)
+
     def get_state(self) -> CognitiveState:
         """Return current cognitive state."""
         return self.state
diff --git a/tests/timmy/test_cognitive_state.py b/tests/timmy/test_cognitive_state.py
index 2b1596a..0652561 100644
--- a/tests/timmy/test_cognitive_state.py
+++ b/tests/timmy/test_cognitive_state.py
@@ -1,5 +1,8 @@
 """Tests for cognitive state tracking in src/timmy/cognitive_state.py."""
 
+import asyncio
+from unittest.mock import patch
+
 from timmy.cognitive_state import (
     ENGAGEMENT_LEVELS,
     MOOD_VALUES,
@@ -166,3 +169,51 @@ class TestCognitiveTracker:
     def test_engagement_values_are_valid(self):
         for level in ENGAGEMENT_LEVELS:
             assert isinstance(level, str)
+
+    async def test_update_emits_cognitive_state_changed(self):
+        """CognitiveTracker.update() emits a sensory event."""
+        from timmy.event_bus import SensoryBus
+
+        mock_bus = SensoryBus()
+        received = []
+        mock_bus.subscribe("cognitive_state_changed", lambda e: received.append(e))
+
+        with patch("timmy.event_bus.get_sensory_bus", return_value=mock_bus):
+            tracker = CognitiveTracker()
+            tracker.update("debug the memory leak", "Looking at the stack trace now.")
+            # Give the fire-and-forget task a chance to run
+            await asyncio.sleep(0.05)
+
+        assert len(received) == 1
+        event = received[0]
+        assert event.source == "cognitive"
+        assert event.event_type == "cognitive_state_changed"
+        assert "mood" in event.data
+        assert "engagement" in event.data
+        assert "depth" in event.data
+        assert event.data["depth"] == 1
+
+    async def test_update_tracks_mood_change(self):
+        """Event data includes whether mood/engagement changed."""
+        from timmy.event_bus import SensoryBus
+
+        mock_bus = SensoryBus()
+        received = []
+        mock_bus.subscribe("cognitive_state_changed", lambda e: received.append(e))
+
+        with patch("timmy.event_bus.get_sensory_bus", return_value=mock_bus):
+            tracker = CognitiveTracker()
+            # First message — "!" + "great" with high confidence → "energized"
+            tracker.update("wow", "That's a great discovery!")
+            await asyncio.sleep(0.05)
+
+        assert len(received) == 1
+        # Default mood is "settled", energized response → mood changes
+        assert received[0].data["mood"] == "energized"
+        assert received[0].data["mood_changed"] is True
+
+    def test_emit_skipped_without_event_loop(self):
+        """Event emission gracefully skips when no async loop is running."""
+        tracker = CognitiveTracker()
+        # Should not raise — just silently skips
+        tracker.update("hello", "Hi there!")