When I disconnect and unplug, I’m lying in my bed with what seems like an interminable number of thoughts looping in my head. I know, my head is very talkative. I can’t sleep because of this, and so after a while, my phone shuts me up because I go and look at it. Any advice on keeping my thoughts to a minimum? Cheers.

I have the very same problem sometimes. What works for me in these kind of situations is focusing my mental energy in an activity that involves touch. I'll give you some examples: shuffling a deck of cards, playing with rocks, marbles, pens, or any other object I can touch. That restless energy in my mind is somehow absorbed by the object and I start ordering my thoughts. Once they are ordered and clear the chaos in my mind stops and I am back in control and I can examine my thoughts from a distance. And I can see the why behind the restleness. Sometimes I jot down what I learn when my mind quiets down. When I'm too tired for that I imagine explaining what I learn to a friend or anyone else who I feel that cares for me. And by doing this I free myself from the emotions and the swirling thoughts.
You may think that more thinking won't help you think less. But this isn't exactly thinking. It's more like listening to yourself so you can understand what happens inside of you. Why were you angry today? Why were you sad? Our inner self is like a child seeking attention and affection. Once we give it to him it quiets down. And I'm not just being metaphoric. I've noticed that the first night I listened to myself , it took me three hours to quiet down, the next one took less, and the next one even less. Instead of letting the cup of inner frustrations get filled I emptied it little by little, by listening and looking inside.

When my mind won't calm down the first thing I do is lay in bed and try to internally put my mind in a state of ease and relaxing.
I then pretend like I am sleeping, I will even go as far as image ming like someone is watching me and I am trying to fool them. Much like a child.might to a parent. This helps me to focus only on my breath and to put my body and mind into a space that simulates sleep.

What works for me is imagining myself in an activity that makes me happy. It’s usually sports for me and that keeps my mind focus on one thing rather than multiple ideas.

I have had so many nights like that, so I understand your struggle. I've found that reading or meditating before bed is very helpful. You could even try an audio book. One last tip. On those nights when your thoughts seem to endlessly torment you no matter what you do, try writing them down in a journal. You don't have to make coherent sentences if you don't want to, just purging your thoughts onto a page can help to clear them from your head.

Hey there. Personally my helpful tips are : turn your wifi off and put phone in flight mode. Put on A Life on Our Planet and listen to David Attenbourgh's voice or any audio book of your choosing ( aim for nature or for affirmation style stuff OR calming sound healing is also perfect ) Have these Downloaded obvs so phone can basically be off. Make sure blue light is off. Place away from you a little like close enough to switch off off but not like on you or too close to you head. . Write down the thoughts if they keep coming. Have a journal ( just a notebook and pen nothing fancy ) next to your bed and write it all down. Morning is great but if u need scribble at night !

Have you tried a meditation program? Meditation is a great tool to quiet a busy mind. I meditate nightly to calm my brain before sleep and every morning to clear my mind to tackle my day.

I would try listening to soft music – something you might know the words to, so you can sing along and forget about the other thoughts in your mind.

Imagine you are at your favorite place. Focus on one thing – sand between your toes at the beach, the water pulling around your ankles. Wherever you imagine, focus on one physical sensation. When your mind goes off someplace else, and it will, once you notice, bring yourself back to your favorite place and focus on one sensation again. Mostly though, be patient with your self. It can take a little while to get the mental hamsters used to getting off the wheel every night, turning in their sneakers, and sleeping. But, sooner than later, they will.

Personally I really like to fantasize about things,I create a different world in my head and I manipulate the things in that world the way I want to because its my world and the more create these stories in my head,stories that make me happy, my brain starts getting tired of thinking and I doze off immediately. Hopefully this makes sense.

I find a mindfulness meditation quite helpful before bed. Theres plenty of free ones on YouTube and Headspace has some great (subscription) ones too. Another option is to read a physical book. I like to choose something relaxing like books about space and science. You can also play an audiobook or chill podcast (I think most have sleep timers) to give your mind something to focus on while you doze off. I love Headspaces sleepcasts too. So relaxing and chilled.

Try playing some soothing zen music, I have found that to help. You can also run the hard spot behind your lobe in circular motion like say a hundred times and you will quickly fall asleep

I do my journaling at night before bed for this very reason. It allows me to get the days thoughts out so they aren’t running around as I sleep. Before journaling I’d be lost in my thoughts and emotions all night and into the morning when I woke up. Like you I would also stay on my phone until I could fall asleep, but there was a point where even that would no longer work. So definitely journaling first and then a quiet meditation during my disconnect and unplug really helps clear my head.

Focus on a blank slate. A blank page. There is nothing left for you to focus on at the end of the day. You need rest. Don’t pick up the phone. It will only create the cycle of thoughts all over. Not saying you can’t have thoughts or think but just breathe. You’ve worked hard. Listen to your breathe. Good night!

Try guided meditation! Not necessarily spiritual one if you're not into it. The ones that make you focus on your breathing aim at creating focus i.e. minimize thoughts. I personally follow both spiritual & these breath-based ones. It won't happen in 1 day or maybe in a week. But definitely happen if you're consistent and determined. You'd need to follow what they guide you to do in meditation with az much focus as you can give even if it's very poor at the moment. Just like working out – it only improves if you are consistent and doesn't give results immediately but gives results for sure if you're consistent & determined, no matter how small time you dedicate towards it.
This is if you're really just lying down and trying to minimize thoughts.

I personally unplug from "screen" like computer or phone and do anything else keeping my social distancing in mind. Like I walk/run around my home, across the street listening to music in my headphones optionally during my run. I dance on my own or stretch or right down some of my fav recipes etc.

I had insomnia for years, and the struggle is real. Meditation has been really helpful for clearing up some headspace when I’m trying to sleep. Focused breathing is a wonderful skill that can, with enough practice, definitely help quiet racing thoughts.

Also, picking a consistent bedtime has been really important for me. Even though work schedules can be crazy, going to bed around the same time each night has made a huge difference in my ability to fall asleep quickly.

And finally, if sleep just isn’t happening, going to sit on the couch with my phone until I feel a bit more tired, and then returning to bed later, can sometimes help reduce the stress of racing thoughts.

Most of all, be generous with yourself. Stress is the enemy of sleep.

I should take some sleep see video oil and listen to bedtime stories which puts me right to bed and just forget about my phone yeah my phone is an issue I think my phone is taking up a lot of my time soooo I’m just gonna have to learn how to live with all of my phone for about a week I guess.

Try writing down your thoughts if they are keeping you awake. Maybe getting them on paper will get them out of your head. Read or do puzzles or something and try to avoid screens

I asked For my birthday a Bluetooth sleeping mask. I put in sounds or low music. I may Even do a guided meditation. I have Terrible insomnia so sometimes this helps quiet the noise in my head so I sleep Better.

Doing a sleep meditation helps to stop focussing on my thoughts. I have an app on my phone with guided sleep meditation. To make sure that I do not get distracted by all the other apps on my phone, I have set up my phone that all apps will be restricted as of a certain time at night except the option to make receive calls (in case of emergency), music app and the meditation app. I turn the sleep meditation on, switch off the light and drift off to sleep. If you still struggle you could try to journal before going to bed.

I try to read a book it gets me out of my head and into another world and if that doesn’t work I put headphones in and play music so loud I can’t hear my thoughts and I can finally just enjoy the music… second one I don’t recommend unless u don’t mind loud music. Other times I give into the thoughts and just let myself have a really good cry because sometimes that’s just what my body needs is to let it out and let it go. I hope this helps u

A few things that helped with my brain that wouldn't shut up:
1. Meditation. I recommend Headspace for beginners. Or you can simply use the meditations provided by Fabulous. This will take a while to implement as the practice of quieting the mind takes some time to learn.
2. Play relaxing soft music. Somehow, that keeps the brain occupied sometimes.
3. Journal. Instead of letting your thoughts/feelings stew in your head, purge them out of your system by writing them down. This especially helps if you have things you're bothered by and wouldn't leave you alone at night.
4. Read a relaxing PHYSICAL book. Entertains the mind and keeps it occupied until you're ready to sleep. This works when your mind is bored, without the side effects of glaring blue light messing with your sleep hormones (melatonin) from being naturally produced by your body.
5. Chat with a good friend. Similar effects to journaling down your thoughts.

I know how you feel… I have that too but I am trying to make it better! So listen to me before go to sleep eat something that you like! (Not chocolate) listen to relax music and take the fluffiest blanket. Close your phone, close your eyes and try to remember memories or things that make you happy…. I hope I helped you 🙂

Download your thoughts on to paper before you lay down. Doesn’t have to be complete sentences or neat. Just get it out if your head. Sometimes I take a highlighter afterwards and highlight the ones I want to keep or expand on later. Usually takes 15-30 minutes for me. I keep the phone out of reach when I’m sleeping most nights.