How to clear one's mind

QuarterMaster

I don't have trouble sleeping. On the contrary, I sleep great. It's just the falling asleep part that I'm not so good at. My mind is always wandering around..thinking about the days events, what will happen tomorrow, etc. This is especially annoying during the weekdays, when falling asleep is something relatively high on the priority list. I've tried doing the whole 'think of a blank wall' routine - it hasn't worked.

Does anybody have advice, or similar experiences? My life would really appreciate any help!

fforde

I usually play a movie or TV show I have seen a million times. If you have seen it enough you dont even have to look at the screen. Keep it low and it will be enough to keep your mind from wandering, but not enough to really keep your attention. I do this with old Simpsons episodes every night. Works like a charm.

lunarwulf

I have had insomnia all my life, it comes and goes. Some things that I've had to do are:
Avoid sugar, caffeine, cigarrettes, and drinking before bed... up to 3 hours before.

Get some exercise and just wear myself out, also keeping healthy helps reset your body clock. Just don't exercise within 3 hours of bedtime.

I usually read before I go to sleep, it helps slow me down and relax.

Get up everyday at a regular time.

Chamomile tea helps.

Drez

Masturbate.

Seriously.

It's like Tylenol PM. But free.

lunarwulf

Drez wrote:

Masturbate.

Seriously.

It's like Tylenol PM. But free.

On second thought, forget everything I said. Drez's got the best suggestion.

cmsamo

I second the "watching old tv show" method. I do that all the time as well. Failing that I listen to music on a low volume.

Also, lying in bed taking deep breaths to calm yourself sometimes works. Not big dramatic ones, but long slow deep breaths. (Kinda like meditation I guess)

Menthol

Drez wrote:

Masturbate.

Seriously.

It's like Tylenol PM. But free.

:^:

But you can combine that with previous suggestions... masturbate to the lame 80s porn you've seen 654515564561651 times before.

JohnnyCache

Lumines

QuarterMaster

Heh, thanks guys (I'm just going to assume you're all guys :P). I'll try the listening to soft music suggestion. Any bands you would recommend? Like, would John Mayer-type things work?

Masturbating is like the duct-tape of bodily functions. We'll see where it goes.

trixtah

you guys can fall asleep by jacking off? weak! count the shiny floating dots and make sure your eyes are closed tightly yet comfortably. Strenuous exercise during the day can make you tired as hell toward your bed time as well (yes well, apparently some exercises are more strenuous to certain people). That or just take some benadryl...

Raere

Soft classical music is good. Some of it can be loud, so get some soft ones. Samuel Barber comes to mind, especially Adagio for Strings.

Re: nholder

Any kind of music makes me too crazy. I need to hear people talking to go to sleep...any TV or DVD that I can put on is great. If I don't have any kind of voice (no music behind it) I can't go to sleep. But I am drunk so whatev.

LB

Thinking of nothing is very hard. I find imagining a huge, dark, peaceful lake the best. I push anything that crosses my mind into a locker and let it sink under the water as slowly as possible without causing ripples. I do that to each thought, snippet of music, or anything else that crosses my mind, until I fall asleep.

Masturbation also helps.

Robert Khoo

Fibonacci sequence

Thanatos

Robert Khoo wrote:

Fibonacci sequence

Holy shit, that would keep me up for hours.

Oh, god, now I'm doing it, and I can't stop.

Robert Khoo

ho ho ho

contraband

I would just draw sketches of the business manager for penny-arcade.com


(try unfocusing your eyes from the wall, laying against an arm so you don't have to concentrate on keeping your eyes closed, and think about the pillow or your blankets. works for me.)

nexuscrawler

Computers tend to overstimulate your eyes andhead. Try to read or do something quiet befroe you go to bed. I always find if I go right from the computer to bed I always feel wired.

ViolentChemistry

What finally ended up working for me is to get up early, expend energy all day, make sure to eat enough during the day, then when it's time for bed and I'm tired, close my eyes and daydream. Until the day part drops off.

SilverWind

I like focusing on a single peaceful image. Usually I think of the room slowly filling with water, or a lake (which someone up there described). Focusing on one thing is a lot easier than trying to focus on nothing (and letting everything drift in).

homeobocks

If your sleep is prevented by anxiety, try keeping a list of all the things that you are anxious about.

Spaz

ViolentChemistry wrote:

What finally ended up working for me is to get up early, expend energy all day, make sure to eat enough during the day, then when it's time for bed and I'm tired, close my eyes and daydream. Until the day part drops off.

This is basically what I've always done. I can always tell when I'm falling asleep because more and more random shit keeps happening and eventually it just transfers into a dream.

QuarterMaster

Spaz wrote:

ViolentChemistry wrote:

What finally ended up working for me is to get up early, expend energy all day, make sure to eat enough during the day, then when it's time for bed and I'm tired, close my eyes and daydream. Until the day part drops off.

This is basically what I've always done. I can always tell when I'm falling asleep because more and more random shit keeps happening and eventually it just transfers into a dream.

And this is probably what I'm going to try. Being homeschooled, it's hard getting motivated to get up early. :P As far as activities go, I like riding my bike; unfortunately Washington weather doesn't permit this often.

onceling

While I absolutely agree with the comments about exercise and tea and taking quiet time before you sleep - I also think you were spot on when you asked how to clear your mind, from what you describe about your mind racing around - this is the problem you are facing. I have the same thing.

1. Do not read in bed. Sex and sleep, that should be *all* that you do in the bed. If I start to read or play my DS or something before bed, I stay awake for hours and can't sleep. Your body gets into a routine that says the bed doesn't always = sleep.

2. Choose one thing and focus on it when you are ready to sleep. If you choose soft music, focus on the music and listen to it, it will stop your mind wandering. Personally, I can't sleep with noise so instead, I choose to focus on a story I am writing, thinking through it in my mind. You can also 'sing a song' in your head or tell yourself a story you've heard before. EDIT: Choose the *same thing* every night, you need to get your mind used to that leading to sleep.

3. You will need about 3 weeks to see the effect of your labor. Keep at the routine. It does take at least 3 weeks to break yourself out of the problem.

I fall asleep within seconds most nights. (Right now I really want to finish a book I bought so I've cheated and have to wean myself off it again in a couple of days).

Drez

Masturbate to the Fibonacci Sequence.

Raneados

godamnit khoo

now I can't stop counting the fibonacci in my brain

I hope you die of a broken heart

Ruckus

I can't believe you Robert, you should be working 24/7 to 31 for the 38 next 79 (117).

Calebros

Drez wrote:

Masturbate to the Fibonacci Sequence.

jackin it in the fibonacci sequence would yield the Golden Orgasm, i suspect

also, as for clearing your mind... you can literally just train yourself to think of nothing at all. picture in your head yourself as a person, and whenever you start to think, tell yourself to shut up. don't actually visualise it because that's still some sort of stimulus, but think of it that way. it's pretty much what i do when i meditate, though it's easier to quiet my mind now and i don't have to really use any sort of method.

ege02

QuarterMaster wrote:

I don't have trouble sleeping. On the contrary, I sleep great. It's just the falling asleep part that I'm not so good at. My mind is always wandering around..thinking about the days events, what will happen tomorrow, etc. This is especially annoying during the weekdays, when falling asleep is something relatively high on the priority list. I've tried doing the whole 'think of a blank wall' routine - it hasn't worked.

Does anybody have advice, or similar experiences? My life would really appreciate any help!

Yes.

Here is what you do: lie down, close your eyes, get into a comfortable position, and then focus on your breathing. Don't think of anything else, just imagine the air going in and out of your body. If your thoughts try to stray off, force them to refocus on your breathing.

This is like yoga meditation. Less intense, but works great for me. I'm like you: my mind always goes through that day's events and plans/anticipates the next day. When I do this though, I fall asleep within minutes.

Lindsay Lohan

I have the exact same problem. My solution is similar to those that mentioned the peaceful image. To slow my head down at night I often imagine that I am floating on top of a cloud looking down at the world below. It's about the only method of relaxation that's ever worked for me. It's incredibly goofy but it works for me every time.

Pojaco

I don't know that I'm actually allowed to recommend this in H/A, but if smoking (not tobaccy...unless it's wacky) is an interest or option, it helps many people go to sleep. No one I know of course :roll:

piL

For the record, I find that I sleep an hour or so more if I masturbate before I go to sleep. Which if you're trying to go to bed faster, it might be because you're wanting to minimize wasted "lay in bed time".

That said, I generally have the same problem, but I will second the "Not doing other things in the bed" opinion (I tried to study last semester in the bed, which resulted in me falling asleep after every thirty minutes of study time ) and also the focusing on your breathing. It works for me when I do it, but I always feel like I'm wasting time doing it. Ultimately, earlier to sleep, earlier to rise, and you'll get that time back during your fully concious period.