Do you ever feel like your mind just won’t shut off? You go about your day-to-day activities, but something is nagging in your mind? This is a common issue among individuals with mental health concerns, but it can happen to anyone! This leads many to wonder how they can help themselves quiet the mind. Below we will discuss tools that you can try on your own and then discuss how therapy is so helpful.
Why is This Happening?
There are many reasons why your brain might be unable to shut off. A big reason could be stress. Stress changes your body chemistry without you realizing it and has ample negative side effects. One is the release of cortisol, a hormone meant to help the body manage stress. Cortisol can cause individuals to stay awake and alert, making it difficult for the brain to shut off. Another reason this may be happening is because of a mental health concern. Examples such as anxiety, depression, ADHD, and OCD (just to name a few) keep you from being able to fall asleep at night and make it difficult for the brain to shut off. The list does not stop here as other factors such as food and drinks, certain substances, and some medications can make it hard for our brains to shut off.
How Can I Relax My Brain?
Yoga
Yoga is a form of exercise that focuses on the mind and body connection. It incorporates breathing techniques, builds strength and flexibility, and promotes calmness and well-being. With the use of breathing techniques, yoga can teach its users how to calm themselves when they are dealing with stressful events. The breathing techniques can help guide them to calmness and these skills can extend to many different aspects of life. Yoga also releases various hormones that help the body feel good, like dopamine and serotonin. These hormones can help calm the body after feeling stressed and steer it to a relaxed state. Yoga also focuses on concentration and being present in the moment. When stress builds up, it is difficult to focus on current concerns and how to start working through them. This can lead to even more stress because you can begin to feel unorganized and disoriented. By focusing on the body during yoga, our body can concentrate and focus on the movements. There are many ways to practice these techniques outside of yoga. In this article, we discuss different ways that one can practice mindfulness and meditation.
It should also be noted that any form of exercise can benefit mental health. Studies have shown that workouts from weightlifting to just a brisk walk have decreased anxiety and depression symptoms. Other benefits include better sleep, stress relief, and increased energy.
Journaling and To-Do List
Another way to quiet the mind is by journaling or creating a to-do list. Journaling can be done in many ways, like writing about your day, or what you would like to do the next. Writing our thoughts on paper or even on our phones helps displace those worries from our minds and therefore can help reduce worry. It is almost as if you are transferring the thoughts that are in your mind to the paper or phone, and now they are holding all the thoughts. Additionally, when you can get the thoughts out of your head, you might find a solution to a concern. You can see all the thoughts laid out and it can help you clear the confusion in your mind. Different things that you can write in your journal can include things that made you happy, sad, stressed, an achievement, or simply an overall summary of your day. But sometimes there does not need to be a journal prompt, and you can write freely. Think of the journal as a friend who is listening to your stress with an open ear and no judgment.
A second way to quiet the mind is to write a to-do list. For the average person, having a lot to do in one day can feel very overwhelming and make it difficult to know where to start. In their mind, they might try to plan when they are going to do certain things and how they are going to do them, but it does not feel structured. Writing out a to-do list for each day can help with this stress. Sometimes having a clear plan can make going about the day much easier and make everything seem more structured and less stressful. Many apps help you plan out your day, or just a basic calendar can do the job. First, start by writing each task you hope to accomplish the next day and tasks you must do, and then set a time for each one. For set plans, write those in first, and then add in extra tasks that must be done, add those in after. Right in front of you is a timeline to help you plan for the day and eliminate the stress of feeling that you have too much to do.
Therapy to Help Quiet The Mind
One way that we can help you quiet the mind and feel calmer is by attending therapy services. Although taking all these steps above can help quiet the mind, we know that if you are worrying or your mind feels loud/ busy therapy is incredibly effective. Our therapists are here to talk you through your worries and offer research supported strategies.
Unless you have been to therapy before, you may not know that what you say in your mind has an incredible impact on how you feel and what you do. What you say to yourself each day and the voice in your head can be changed! There are a lot of therapy tools to help with that. We are able to help you turn down the volume of the chatter that goes on in your mind so you can live life to its fullest. We can provide new tricks about how to interact with the thoughts that pop in your head.
Thank you to Best Within You Therapy & Wellness intern Jamie Rubin and Dr. Vincent Fitch for this blog post about how to quiet the mind. If you would like to schedule a therapy appointment for yourself or a loved one, please visit our appointment page.