The mind as a garden: choosing which thoughts to cultivate
Every day, our mind receives thousands of stimuli. Some blossom and become ideas that sustain us; others, like weeds, invade our emotional ground until it is exhausted. The good news, as psychologist and therapist Rebeca Podestá explains, is that “our brain is constantly changing and has the capacity to adapt and reconfigure itself.” This principle is known as neuroplasticity.
But it’s not about simple passive adaptation. What we think, say, and feel daily actively molds the neural connections that determine how we interpret the world. “What we say and what we think is very important. Every time we say something negative, our body and mind register it as real,” emphasizes Rebeca.
Far from being a sentence, this affirmation opens up a transformative possibility: if we can build patterns that harm us, we can also build others that nourish us.
Gratitude: the anchor that brings us to the present
In a world saturated with expectations, to-do lists, and self-imposed demands, practicing gratitude can seem naive. However, from neuroscience to psychotherapy, the benefits of this gesture are widely documented.
“Our mind is accustomed to focusing on what is missing,” explains our co-founder Ursula Pfeiffer. “But if we shift that focus to what is present, to what is already working, we generate more fertile emotional ground.”
Rebeca translates this into a concrete practice: “A simple way to start is to write down three things you are grateful for each day. It can be anything from a hot coffee to a nice conversation. Gratitude changes our brain chemistry.”
This simple habit activates brain regions associated with well-being and decreases the activity of those linked to anxiety. It is, in essence, emotional gymnastics that strengthens our resilience and reduces stress.
The power of affirmations: it’s not magic, it’s mental training
“An affirmation is a positive phrase, in the present tense, that helps us reprogram limiting beliefs,” states Rebeca. And although they may sometimes sound forced at first—especially if we are going through a difficult time—their constant repetition creates new neural pathways that allow us to internalize them as possible.
Unlike magical thinking, affirmations do not deny reality, but rather propose a different relationship with it. It is not about repeating that everything is fine when it clearly is not, but about reminding ourselves that even in the midst of the storm we can choose how we interpret what happens to us.
“We can say, for example, ‘I am capable of overcoming this,’ ‘my worth does not depend on the opinion of others,’ ‘I give myself permission to rest.’ These phrases function as anchors against external noise,” suggests Rebeca. Ursula complements: “If we don’t choose what we think, we end up repeating what the world already thinks of us.”
Affirmations are, in a way, pacts with our future selves. They invite us to see ourselves beyond momentary pain and to act from a place more aligned with our deep needs.
Caring for internal language: the most influential dialogue
One of the most insistent points in the conversation was the role of internal language. What we tell ourselves alone, in a low voice or in silence, has an impact that we often underestimate.
“The words we use to describe or talk to ourselves mark our emotions. If I constantly tell myself ‘I’m a mess,’ my mind adopts it as a truth,” explains Rebeca.
This negative internal dialogue often does not come from us, but from inherited voices: from parental figures, from school experiences, from cultural norms. Recognizing that not all our ideas about ourselves belong to us is the first step to choosing new narratives.
“We can start by replacing ‘how foolish I am’ with ‘I am striving to improve this’ or ‘I haven’t gotten it yet, but I’m learning,’” she proposes. That small transformation of language can radically modify the emotional tone of our day.
Dismantling inherited beliefs: gender, culture, and self-image
The most deeply rooted beliefs rarely originate at a single moment. “We are a cumulation of experiences,” Rebeca points out. Some lived firsthand, others absorbed like a sponge from our families, from school, or even from popular culture.
One of the most common is the feeling of not being enough: “I am not good enough as a daughter, partner, professional…,” she enumerates. That thought, once it settles in, leads us to surround ourselves with people who confirm it and to repeat decisions that feed it.
Gender mandates also persist. “Many women believe they must avoid conflict at all costs, and please everyone, even if that means betraying themselves. Men, on the other hand, learn that the only emotion allowed is anger,” she explains.
And we cannot ignore the cultural context. Phrases like “you look prettier when you’re quiet” or “don’t make waves” are not just proverbs: they are life instructions that alienate us from the right to express what we feel or need.
Recognizing the pattern is just the beginning
Once we identify that something isn’t working—that we react with anger, that we seek approval at all costs, that we feel overwhelmed by everything—the real work begins. “In the science of mind, we don’t talk about problems, but about conditions. And every condition can be transformed,” explains Rebeca.
From that perspective, we are not flawed or broken. We are simply reproducing patterns that can be changed.
The mental spiritual treatment proposed by this philosophy is based on five steps: recognition of life as creative energy, unification with it, realization of the desired change, gratitude, and liberation. Although it may sound abstract, each of these steps aims at a profound reconfiguration of our emotional focus.
When the change truly feels
The transformations may seem small from the outside—answering the phone kindly, arriving on time without anxiety, preparing dinner without emotional exhaustion—but in reality, they are profoundly significant. “I have seen people who changed their perspective and suddenly could enjoy the beach without feeling out of place, or rediscover joy in their daily routine,” says Rebeca.
Because ultimately, it’s not about changing the external world, but about modifying how we experience it. “Not everything is in our hands, but our way of looking, feeling, and responding is,” she concludes.
A practice to start today
For those who wish to begin this journey, Rebeca suggests starting with two simple but sustained practices:
- Daily gratitude: “Be grateful for three to ten things. The time doesn’t matter, consistency is what’s important.”
- Personal affirmations: “Write them in positive, present tense, and let them reflect what you want to experience, not what you wish to possess.”
Some of her favorites: “I have enough time for everything,” “I arrive everywhere on time,” “I love my body as it is,” “I have a united family.”
And as she clarifies, it’s not about accumulating objects, but about cultivating emotional states. “If I want to experience joy and confidence, that’s what I must sow with my thoughts.”
Watch the complementary episode “Science of Mind: Gratitude, affirmations and neuroplasticity” on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/M1fnIJf1P9A
