Thoughts won't stop racing at 1 am...

[Domika]

I'm sorry if this is the wrong way to post or anything, I never really posted on forum's before I was always more of a lurker but

I can't take this feeling I get everytime I go to bed now. It's like my brain just suddenly powers up and tells me every possible negative thought it can and how everything will go wrong and how everyone hates me and how no one wants me here and how I'm awful at work etc etc etc

I just want my brain to pause at night and let me sleep, melatonin and hydroxyzine don't work anymore and I can't get on any type of prescription medication for reasons... I just want to make.my brain pause it's thoughts at night....

 

[fell]

This happens to me a lot too. Some ways that help me are to try to wear myself out (mentally or physically) - if you have the energy to, maybe a run in place or video from YouTube for Pilates or cardio. I usually don't have that energy though and it's just mental energy… recently I've been doing crosswords, sudoku, logic puzzles until my brain wears out some more. Or other nights, I'll get kind of a mindless game (like a snake game or a silly lumberjack or restaurant service game) and play it while I have a calming or helpful podcast on (I love Ram Dass - his voice is really soothing to listen to while my brain does something else). I hope this helps

 

[UntilTheLast]

I don't know if it'll work for you, but for me the trick (after spending weeks and months trying to figure out what to do to keep my mind from spinning and keeping me up, and having none of it work) was to realize that if I was going to be able to come up with a way to get my mind to stfu, then I would have done it by now, and to instead just remind myself "nothing that I do is going to make me be able to fall asleep, or to keep these thoughts out of my head." And then over time, the thoughts just... started to quiet down on their own. I think that my own efforts to quiet my mind were just adding stress and more thoughts to the mix, and adding to the very problem that I was trying to get rid of. By removing that constant source of stress and inner agitation, the "fuel" kinda went out of the fire, and the cycle of inner chaos got broken. I have no clue if that would work for you, but it's an option/tool/whatever to consider.

 

[lionetta12]

I'm sorry if this is the wrong way to post or anything, I never really posted on forum's before I was always more of a lurker but

I can't take this feeling I get everytime I go to bed now. It's like my brain just suddenly powers up and tells me every possible negative thought it can and how everything will go wrong and how everyone hates me and how no one wants me here and how I'm awful at work etc etc etc

I just want my brain to pause at night and let me sleep, melatonin and hydroxyzine don't work anymore and I can't get on any type of prescription medication for reasons... I just want to make.my brain pause it's thoughts at night....

Ever tried any meds that are supposed to «shut down» thoughts which also can make you sleepy? Quietapine works for that.

 

[dreamscape1111]

Daily meditation is the only way out even if it sucks for the first few months. It's like building a quiet and calm island inside yourself that nobody and nothing can ever disturb.
Mindfulness is a muscle that you can grow each time you meditate or do any mindfulness practice.
Focusing on the breath flow in and out on its own for at least 5-10 mins, consciously relaxing body tensions, feeling your feet touch the ground, etc. all help ground you in your body.
Stretching and yoga are helpful too in settling down at night, as well as not eating after 8.
The last thing to try would be journaling and just letting whatever is on your mind be put onto paper to give it an outlet helps a lot with clarity, it's basically just expression.
A pill will never solve anything permanently, it can be helpful temporarily, but it's not the solution.

 

[Domika]

I just wanted to say in general thank you to everyone who's replied to this, when I post it I had a sudden fear that I did something wrong and that I'd be coming under fire for it

Ever tried any meds that are supposed to «shut down» thoughts which also can make you sleepy? Quietapine works for that.

If I can be completely honest I've never heard of Quoetapine and I'll have to look it up. I didn't say this in my main post but one of the things I actually want to avoid is taking pills I feel like I'm going to do something wrong whenever I do.

Thank you

Daily meditation is the only way out even if it sucks for the first few months. It's like building a quiet and calm island inside yourself that nobody and nothing can ever disturb.
Mindfulness is a muscle that you can grow each time you meditate or do any mindfulness practice.
Focusing on the breath flow in and out on its own for at least 5-10 mins, consciously relaxing body tensions, feeling your feet touch the ground, etc. all help ground you in your body.
Stretching and yoga are helpful too in settling down at night, as well as not eating after 8.
The last thing to try would be journaling and just letting whatever is on your mind be put onto paper to give it an outlet helps a lot with clarity, it's basically just expression.
A pill will never solve anything permanently, it can be helpful temporarily, but it's not the solution.

I really, really need to attempt meditation again, as well as journaling. It's just one of the biggest things I struggle with with both daily meditation and journaling is the fact it's daily. I struggle to do stuff like that every day because I can't manage to find the want or ability to...

I remember trying meditation recently but everytime I tried it just caused my brain to get encumbered with any more thoughts, but that could be because of my incredibly loud roommate who is not helping my situation at all....

Thank you though

 

[randy]

I struggle with this. meditation didn't really help a lot but what helped me were aspects of ACT therapy. Particularly "cognitive defusion"

the other thing that sort of worked for me was allowing myself to have negative thoughts at any time except when I was in bed. The only thoughts I allow myself to have in bed are about how comfortable being in bed is

 

[Domika]

I struggle with this. meditation didn't really help a lot but what helped me were aspects of ACT therapy. Particularly "cognitive defusion"

the other thing that sort of worked for me was allowing myself to have negative thoughts at any time except when I was in bed. The only thoughts I allow myself to have in bed are about how comfortable being in bed is

ACT therapy? I know I could Google it but I also wish to ask what that is. In familiar with cognitive concepts but not really with cognitive diffusion.

I wish I had the sf contr to stop myself from having negative thoughts in bed, but no matter how much I barricade the door they come rushing in

 

[randy]

ACT therapy? I know I could Google it but I also wish to ask what that is. In familiar with cognitive concepts but not really with cognitive diffusion.

I wish I had the sf contr to stop myself from having negative thoughts in bed, but no matter how much I barricade the door they come rushing in

It's a bit different than CBT.

Acceptance and commitment therapy - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

cognitive de-fusion is like taking a step back from your thoughts and observing them from a distance, separating yourself from your thoughts. that's the de-fusion part. One exercise for this is "leaves on a stream"

https://www.mindfulnessmuse.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Cognitive-Defusion-Exercise-1.pdf

 

[amijima]

I have that a lot. Meditation didn't really do much for me (although I only tried it for about 6 months, maybe sticking to it would have worked?).

Journaling before bed has helped quite a bit. Just overthinking everything and putting it to paper helps me to kind of drop the thought for a while.

But mainly draining my mental energy in the evening helps me a ton.
I personally started playing OSU! ( a rhythm game) a year and a half ago and usually play for 1-2 hours in the evening. The constant focus the game requires sometimes leaves me staring a the blank screen afterwards, without any thoughts at all.
But yeah, finding something mentally taxing/straining to do before bed helped me the most.