Our minds turn inwards. Our brains review our unaccomplished tasks, our relationships, and our future plans. This doesn’t happen because our brains are malfunctioning. It’s just a normal cognitive sorting process.
The second factor at play here is the reduction in sensory inputs. Our brains respond more to our thoughts at night. The lack of external sounds and changes in our surroundings increases our internal thoughts. Our emotional thoughts are also more intense at night. Our brains store information in long-term memory during our sleep. So, our small concerns seem to have more emotional weight at night.
Cognitive Load Release
During the day, our brains normally put off our unresolved thoughts. But at night, our brains release their accumulated mental load at once. Our thoughts come in fast succession as our minds try to organize our unaccomplished thoughts before sleep.
The thoughts we experience at night normally seem to revolve around the same issue. This happens because our brains try to find closure on our thoughts. But our brains have no new information to solve our problems. So, our thoughts keep revolving around the same issue.
Emotional Amplification
Our brains normally have logical filters to prevent emotional thoughts. But at night, our brains have low mental energy. So, our emotional thoughts amplify. Our brains normally respond to situations using pattern recognition. So, our thoughts seem to have a more negative tone at night.
Common Night Thoughts
- Playing back our conversations
- Thinking about the worst possible outcome
- Questioning our past decisions
- Planning our far-future scenarios
The Mental Reset Technique
The mental reset technique stops the brain’s unfinished tasks pattern rather than trying to suppress thoughts. The suppression of thoughts actually makes them stronger because the brain perceives them as unresolved. The mental reset technique stops thoughts in a different manner by providing the mind with a definitive endpoint. The endpoint is not necessarily quieting the mind but rather closing the processing.
The mental reset technique consists of three components: acknowledgement, categorization, and grounding. These three components provide the mind with a definitive endpoint that it can accept. The mind perceives information as complete when it is categorized rather than ignored.
Acknowledgement Phase
The mental reset technique begins with the acknowledgement of the thought. The thought is acknowledged but not analyzed. The acknowledgement of the thought stops the mind from repeating it because the mind perceives that it has been acknowledged.
The acknowledgement of the thought is not necessarily discussing the thought. The acknowledgement can be something as simple as “future planning thought” or “social memory.” The mind does not accept the endpoint of the thought if it is extensively analyzed. The mind perceives the thought as unresolved if it is extensively analyzed.
Categorization Phase
The mental reset technique then categorizes the thought in the mind. The mind does not engage in problem-solving with the thought because it categorizes it in a time frame. The mind perceives that it can engage in the thought at a later date.
Common Categories
- Tomorrow action
- Weekly review
- No action required
Step-by-Step Night Routine to Stop Thought Loops
The mental reset technique can be implemented at night before going to bed. The length of the mental reset technique does not matter; what matters is the consistency of the technique. The mind associates the mental reset technique with going to bed. The mind slows down before going to bed because it knows that it will perform the mental reset technique. The mental reset technique is a cognitive boundary.
The mental reset technique consists of a series of steps that need to be followed in sequence. The mental reset technique cannot be skipped because the mind perceives it in a pattern. The mind does not accept the endpoint if the pattern is broken.
The Reset Sequence
- First, sit up instead of lying down.
- Postures imply that you are actively processing something rather than passively ruminating.
- Next, do the steps slowly.
- Notice the thought
- Label it briefly
- Assign a time category
- Exhale slowly for six seconds
Repeating this sequence three times usually interferes with the repetition.
Ending the Loop Physically
After labeling the thoughts, a physical action can be added to interrupt the process. The brain will recognize that it is done and will stop the process.
Some good actions to take include placing the feet on the floor or on a cool surface. The physical sensation will shift the brain’s focus to the present and away from the thoughts.
Using Breath and Body Signals to Calm the Brain
The breathing patterns directly affect brain alertness, and the brain monitors the carbon dioxide levels to determine safety. Fast breathing means danger, and slow breathing means safety.
Body Grounding Signals
The physical signals will reinforce the safety signals to the brain and stop it from being overly active. The brain will stop making predictions and will be more certain.
Helpful Grounding Techniques
- Touching the Mattress with the Palms
- Touching the Feet Down Slightly
Recognizing Thought Types
Recognizing Practical Thoughts
Practical thoughts are usually related to actions and decisions and usually involve the next step or the results that can be measured. Practical thoughts usually revolve around schedules, deadlines, or logistics and are repeated so the mind does not forget.
Writing down a keyword on a piece of paper stops the mind from overthinking because it knows the information is safely stored away and it does not have to repeat it.
Recognizing Emotional Thoughts
Emotional thoughts usually revolve around interpretations rather than actions and usually involve conversations or reactions from people. The mind gets confused when it realizes there is no real-time feedback and it cannot solve the thought immediately.
Creating a Low Stimuli Sleep Environment
The environment has a significant effect on mental activity as it is constantly being scanned by the brain to seek more information. The presence of bright light, unusual sound, and moving images on screens is always active and keeps mental processing active even when the body is tired. The elimination of such factors helps to reduce background alertness and spontaneous thought production.
The presence of advanced electronic gadgets helps to keep mental activity going late into the night. The brain is prompted to make predictions and track attention. The elimination of such factors allows the brain to stop preparing responses and shift to a state of awareness easily.
Light and Visual Input
The presence of dim lighting is an indication of an evening environment. The presence of harsh lighting is an indication of a daytime environment. The elimination of harsh lighting helps to reduce mental processing. The presence of soft lighting helps to reduce internal commentary.
The elimination of moving images is also important as it helps to reduce mental processing. The presence of moving images requires interpretation as it is always changing. The elimination of moving images helps to reduce mental processing as it is no longer required.
Sound Consistency
The presence of irregular sound is an indication of alertness as it requires scanning by the brain. The presence of consistent sound requires less scanning by the brain. The brain stops scanning when it is able to predict accurately.
The elimination of irregular sound helps to reduce mental processing. The presence of consistent sound is important as it helps to reduce scanning by the brain. The elimination of sources of irregular sound is important as it helps to reduce mental processing.
When the Mind Repeats the Same Worry
Some thoughts may repeat themselves even when other techniques such as labeling and breathing have been applied. The mind is likely to repeat the same thought when it is expecting to be evaluated in the future. The mind is likely to repeat the thought to avoid forgetting important information. The repetition of the thought is likely to be beneficial to the brain.
Instead of trying to stop the thought, change its status. The brain needs a scheduled review point. Once this is done, the mental system stops monitoring the issue.
Scheduled Thinking Method
Set a specific hour the following day to review the issue. It does not matter what hour of the day; what is important is that a review is scheduled. This helps the brain relax because it knows the issue is going to be reviewed.
Write a short phrase about the issue and schedule it to be reviewed at the set hour. This helps to reduce the mental loop because the brain does not have to monitor the issue.
Closing the Loop Before Sleep
After scheduling the review, the same phrase should be repeated whenever the issue arises. This helps the brain recognize the closure of the issue and relaxes the mind. This pattern should be repeated for a series of nights.
Closing Statements
- “Reviewed tomorrow morning”
- “Handled in the planning hour”
- “Stored for later”
This helps to close the loop and acts as a boundary for the brain, thus reducing the activity in the mind before sleep.
Building a Consistent Night Mind Pattern
The brain learns by repetition, not by intensity. This means that one successful night of closure does not train the brain to expect closure. However, by repeating the same pattern of closure before sleep, the brain starts to change its pattern of expectation about sleep.
This means that the brain starts to prepare for sleep a little earlier than before because it expects a closure pattern to be followed.
Training the Brain to Expect Closure
The repetition of the pattern every night helps the mind associate the completion of the pattern. The labeling of thoughts, slow breathing, and physical grounding, when done in a sequence, allow the mind to associate them as one action. Eventually, the first action of the pattern calms the mind.
Keeping it simple will help in increasing the speed of the learning process. The brain likes things that follow a pattern rather than a complex routine.
Maintaining the Pattern Long Term
- The same wind-down time
- The same level of lighting
- The same words to say to mark the end of the process
Having these constants will help you create a mental line between thinking and sleeping.
Conclusion
Night overthinking does not happen by accident; it is a process that the brain goes through to try and organize thoughts that have not been dealt with properly due to a lack of external stimulation. Once you understand this process, you will be able to interpret it in a different light and not try to impose silence on your brain.
Scheduling problems will give you a rest and let the brain know that it does not have to monitor things. It will also help you train your brain to stop overthinking and relax before going to sleep.
The mental reset process will help you stop overthinking at night by working with the natural processes that the brain goes through and not against them. The brain will be given a closure mechanism that will stop thoughts from going around in circles and will let them come to a stop on their own.
