“Look deeply into nature and then you will understand everything better”

– Albert Einstein

We focus on sharing high quality trainings for stress reduction as well as for mental and emotional well-being. We are Truth-seekers; we are scientists in the frame of our own bodies; we are objective, logic, and systematic. We recognize that we are living systems and therefore we understand that learning about the laws of nature under which we exist is fundamental for our personal development. We focus on observing and experiencing how these laws work in our bodies.

We are here to share the good news: It is possible to rewire our brains and to liberate ourselves from the conditioned mind, automatic reaction, and suffering that comes with perpetual dissatisfaction and stress. It is possible to re-take control of our lives and enhance our resilience to stress; by doing this we are able to reach a state of higher well-being both mentally and physically. We share with you all the conceptual and intellectual knowledge you need and we guide you through your personal practice so you can experience in the frame of your own body how body-brain communication works.

What do I learn?

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To explore and to identify the real source of stress and suffering in your life.

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To understand the nature and origins of this stress and suffering (Why and How it happens in the frame of our own bodies).

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To practice contemplative techniques to change non-favorable habits step-by-step so you can move from an automatic-reactive behavior into a more consciously responding one; this leads to a state of higher well-being.

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To apply the principles that we share with you in your daily life and re-take the control of your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors; to re-take the control of your life.

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To use these principles to create a healthy and efficient communication with family, friends, co-workers, and other members of society in general.

By learning and practicing Awareness of Body-Brain Communication (ABBC) and with the support of the conceptual knowledge that we can learn at Innerminder, we can change non-favorable habits and tune-in with our biological nature. We learn about ourselves and consequently we can serve and function more efficiently in our community.

OUR APPROACH:

We help you to understand your own Body-Brain Communication process. We offer programs combining conceptual knowledge and carefully guided contemplative practice.

Theoretical/Conceptual knowledge:

All our programs are supported by cutting-edge scientific evidence. We integrate concepts from fields such as Neuroscience, Evolutionary Psychology, Biology, and Contemplative Sciences. At Innerminder we understand that our biological nature defines our existence; therefore, we pay special attention during our programs to teach and clarify these concepts, both intellectually and experientially. You learn about your nature, about your brain and body at the deepest functional level.

Contemplative Practice:

You learn to practice Awareness of Body-Brain Communication (ABBC). This contemplative technique integrates aspects of two of the most popular types of meditation around the world nowadays: Vipassana meditation and Mindfulness meditation (as known in the western world). By practicing this technique, we learn the language of Body-Brain Communication. We learn to observe and experience how the brain communicates with the rest of the body and vice-versa. We sharpen our ability to sense and perceive this communication process. We become aware of body sensations, thoughts, emotions and consequent behaviors. We train different intentions and attitudes towards bodily events experienced during contemplative practice in order to rewire our brains. The first step is to increase our ability to become AWARE of all these events inside our bodies; once we can recognize and identify these events, we then can CHOOSE how to respond, instead of automatically react (this involves rewiring the brain); when we can choose how to respond we gain FREEDOM: we are no longer entangled in our conditioned automatic reactions.

Awareness = Choice = Freedom.

Knowing how Body-Brain Communication works is a Human Right!

This information must be FREE for everyone!

MISSION

Our mission is to educate professionals at the conceptual and experiential level about Body-Brain Communication and to facilitate a state of higher physical and mental well-being of both the individual and the community.

Our intention is to serve our community by making this information available to everyone for FREE and by sharing it in the best way/format possible. We continuously work on improving the strategies to fulfill this intention.

OUR MODEL: GIVING FIRST

We believe that having access to this information is a Human Right; therefore, we consider it is important to keep this accessible to everyone regardless of financial situation, gender, religion, etc. We TRUST in the generosity of people, knowing that if they find the information useful they will support this cause so more people can benefit as well.

Innerminder follows the model of “giving first”. Usually, when we pay for a service or product in advance we feel entitled to receive something (that is how the system works); however, when we do this we sometimes limit the space for trust and gratitude. At the subconscious level we create expectations as soon as we pay for something in advance. On the other hand, if someone gives us a service or product without asking for something in return, the whole process changes. It is a completely different experience. We feel gratitude. We may even feel the need of giving something in return as a gesture of gratitude. At Innerminder we are inclined towards the latter model. This is a model based on TRUST! We need more TRUST and GRATITUDE in our community! We give you information and the content of our programs first; then, you evaluate whether it is useful. Finally, if you are in conditions of supporting the cause, your contribution will be very welcome.

Our Aspiration

Innerminder contributes to synchronize our society with its biological, evolutionary design. We aspire to share the concepts and practices needed so the people can create a life style with qualities that benefit both the individual and the community.

We contribute to the social shift that our world needs: the knowledge at the intellectual and experiential level of how our brains and bodies work will be popular and accessible to everyone; the awareness of this information, as well as practicing contemplative techniques, will be common. We believe this is the Next Generation in Preventive Health Care. The aspiration of Innerminder is to create a social environment on which learning about how Body-Brain Communication works is a moral responsibility.

Learning about Body-Brain Communication is a Human Right; here at Innerminder we provide to you all the tools you need for FREE. Just take the next step.

Beliefs of an InnerMinder:

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Knowing oneself at the deepest functional biological level is fundamental for personal development.

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When our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are synchronized with our true biological, evolutionary design we become more efficient members of our community: we can serve better to our family, friends, co-workers, and society.

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Information about how Body-Brain Communication works should be FREE and available to everyone: It is a Human Right!

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Conceptual and intellectual knowledge are extremely important for personal development; however, it is not enough to rewire the brain. Self-contemplation is essential to re-structure our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors.

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The purpose of our existence as a biological species is to serve others in the most efficient way possible.

Values of an InnerMinder

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Truth-seeking/Inquisitiveness

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Rationality/logic-structured/Integration

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Open mindedness

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Tolerance and Respect

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Effort

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Trust

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Service

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Gratitude

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Mindfulness

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Compassion

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Devoutness

People

Luis Castillo, PhD.
Co-founder and CEO of Innerminder

Luis is passionate about integrating concepts from Neuroscience, Evolutionary Psychology, Biology, and Contemplative Sciences to create a framework that can be easily available for everyone. He believes that understanding our biology both at the conceptual and experiential level is essential for well-being: – Wisdom emerges from experiencing our true biological nature in the frame of our own bodies. As Aristotle once said “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom” – He always gives emphasis on the fact that in order to know WHO we are, we first need to consider WHAT we are: We are living systems! Hence – he says – we are governed by universal laws of nature; understanding and experiencing these laws in our bodies give us insights that can be applied to our daily life to achieve a higher well-being.

Luis obtained his PhD in Neuroendocrinology of the Stress Response from the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research and the University of Heidelberg in Germany. He is a qualified MBSR (Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction) teacher and has over 7 years of experience in daily meditation practice. He has attended several 10-day silent retreats in Germany and Switzerland and has experienced monastic life as a yogi while staying at the Nissarana Vayana Monastery (Theravada tradition) in Sri Lanka. He also attended the 14-day retreat for the International Peace Training in Thailand. He is also a Certified Mindfulness Meditation Teacher through the Awareness Training Institute and the Greater Good Science Center from the University of California-Berkeley, where he was mentored by Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield – well known and exceptionally experienced meditation teachers.

His intellectual and conceptual knowledge about life sciences and personal experience with meditation practices has given him a unique perspective on the field of contemplative techniques. He is convinced that this knowledge should be available to everyone all around the world.